Benson’s turn in the spotlight
Vancouver to host CHL Top Prospects Game, meaning Giants winger will be on display
Get used to seeing even more of Tyler Benson’s mug.
News broke Friday that the Vancouver Giants had been awarded host duties for next season’s CHL Top Prospects Game. Benson, the Giants’ standout rookie left winger, has been pegged as a possible top-10 pick for the 2016 NHL Draft, making him a likely headliner for that showcase, which is scheduled to go Jan. 28, 2016, at the Pacific Coliseum.
The Giants hosted the Prospects at the Coliseum in 2005, when their star centre Gilbert Brule was one of the marquee attractions.
The team hyped Brule to the hilt for months. They even tried to build up the Prospects as a showdown between Brule and Sidney Crosby, only to have Crosby pull out of the game at the last minute.
Brule went on to dominate the contest, bagging a hat trick in an 8-4 win for his side before a sellout crowd of 16,331.
Bobby Ryan, Carey Price and the late Luc Bourdon were among the players who took part in that game.
Benson, who celebrates his 17th birthday Sunday, is already accustomed to the national spotlight. He was the focus of feature stories on TSN in 2012-13, when, in the midst of the NHL lockout, he was setting an Alberta bantam league scoring record with 146 points, including 57 goals, in 33 games.
Don’t be fooled by those numbers, though. He’s been the most complete 16-year-old the Giants have ever had, outdoing Brule and Evander Kane.
Brule (25 goals, 60 points, 67 games) and Kane (24 goals, 41 points, 65 games) were more dynamic than Benson (14 goals, 43 points, 58 games going into Saturday) at this stage. Benson, though, plays a more mature, 200-foot game. He’s routinely been out on the ice in the last minute of the period with Vancouver protecting a lead, which is usually territory for veteran players.
His work ethic is probably his greatest attribute, much like another former Giants star, Brendan Gallagher.
Benson has shown a tone-setting, leadership ability with this group this year. He should be in the running for alternate captain duties next season at the very least, if not captain consideration. That would be unusual, too, in a 17-year-old’s season.
“It’s in my home rink and I know the place pretty well,” Benson, an Edmonton native, said of the Prospects.
“It’s a game that gets all the top players together and showcases skill.”
The contest is a promotional vehicle overall for the Giants, particularly with them struggling this season. As of Saturday morning, they were in jeopardy of not making the playoffs.
There’s a news conference Monday to unveil the full details, but owner Ron Toigo said Saturday that the Prospects will be part of the Giants’ season ticket package for next season.
And maybe the buzz that comes with getting the game shines a light on the program that helps connect the Giants with their next head coach. The host team coach does also get to help out normally at the Prospects.
Toigo continues to say that the team will meet with Claude Noel after the season to discuss his intentions, but the veteran skipper hasn’t said anything to suggest this isn’t a one-shot test case for him, a chance to study young players and use that for his next pro gig.
Keep in mind, the former Winnipeg Jets bench boss declined any sort of long-term deal when he agreed to replace the fired Troy Ward 25 games into this Giants season.
You could see him being interested if the Giants were cruising along, but, going into Saturday, Vancouver had lost eight in a row, four in which they were shut out. This is also his first junior job since an assistant’s spot in the 1989-90 with the OHL’s North Bay Centennials.
General manager Scott Bonner did talk on TSN 1040 about the club going on a coach search, too.