Brennan Park Arena proved to be zero home ice advantage for the Vancouver North West Giants, but head coach Clint Thornton didn鈥檛 blame 麻豆社国产for his club鈥檚 4-1 loss to the Fraser Valley Thunderbirds on Saturday, Dec. 13.
The Giants lost both games they played in Squamish, dropping a game to the Greater Vancouver Canadians in November, but Thornton said he鈥檇 bring his team back to 麻豆社国产anytime.
鈥淲e love coming up here and we got a lot of support from the community,鈥� he said. 鈥淥ur losses have nothing to do with the rink here, we鈥檙e going through a bit of a slump and just didn鈥檛 execute tonight.鈥�
Thornton said he was happy with his team鈥檚 effort in the first period, as the Giants outshot the Thunderbirds 14-6 and the teams were scoreless after one. Penalties hurt the Giants in the second period and the Thunderbirds scored twice, as Nic Ponak and Nate Castonguay lit the lamp.
The Giants responded with a power play goal of their own in the third period when Justin Wilson blasted a shot in from the point, but 74 seconds later Brett Clayton replied with another power play goal for Fraser Valley. Ponak added an empty net goal late in the third to seal the win.
The victory could be considered an upset, as the Thunderbirds are ranked eighth and the Giants are third, but Thornton said the BC Major Midget League (BCMML) is a more evenly matched league this year compared to previous years.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a lot tighter,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nyone can beat anyone on any given day and every game you have to compete to win.鈥�
Saturday鈥檚 game marks the final time the Giants are scheduled to play in 麻豆社国产for the 2014-15 season and the two games came about after the Giants鈥� regular home rink in Burnaby was unavailable for two dates. The pair of games is an extension of the relationship between the 麻豆社国产Minor Hockey Association (SMHA) and the Giants that has been established from the BCMML Exhibition Weekend. The exhibition weekend has run the past three years in 麻豆社国产in September.
The Giants return home to Burnaby for a pair of games on Saturday (Dec. 20) and Sunday (Dec. 21) before heading to Calgary for the annual Mac鈥檚 Midget Tournament on Boxing Day.
For more information on the team, visit www.northwestgiants.ca.聽
