The earliest the Giants could have the players and staff who were absent from the World Youth Cup is this weekend.
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The Vancouver Giants are waiting to hear this morning if they will miss key forward Zack Ostapchuk to a suspension tonight in Victoria.
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Ostapchuk, who is a prospect for the Ottawa Senators, received a pass to the major at the 2:33 p.m. mark of the third period for a hit on Victoria Royals defender Gannon Laroque in Vancouver’s 3-0 loss on Wednesday. in victory. All non-fighting honors are reviewed by the WHL office and are eligible for supplemental discipline.
The Royals (11-13-4-0), who had 50 saves from Tyler Palmer and a lacrosse-style goal from Bailey Peach on Wednesday, are leading 5-1-0-0 in the season series against Vancouver this week. evening (7:05 pm, Sportsnet 650) at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Center.
Vancouver (14-15-1-0) has lost eight of its last nine, coinciding with the team starting to lose players and staff to world youth commitments. Coach Michael Dyck, who was an assistant for the Canadian team, was the first to retire, followed by center Justin Sourdif (Canada), winger Fabian Lysell (Sweden) and goalkeeper Jesper Vikman (Sweden). Fitness coach Mike Burnstein was also part of the Canadian squad.
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The league has granted six suspensions after entering the major major leagues this season. Ostapchuk is favored that he has not been suspended in his three years in the league and that Laroque remains in the game. Winger Julian Cull is the only Vancouver player to receive a regular season suspension. He was evaluated in two games for his pass from behind the major against the Everett Silvertips on Dec. 4.
The Junior World Cup was closed on Wednesday due to concerns about COVID-19. Giants general manager Barclay Parneta said the earliest Vancouver could host any of its world youth team would be a Sunday matinee (4pm) at home against the Kelowna Rockets.
It could be longer than that for an entire quintet comeback. The Giants, as well as other WHL clubs, have given players time off after the World Youth Championships in the past. Parneta says the team will come up with a plan on this in the coming days.
Dyck last coached the Giants on December 4. Sourdif’s most recent game with Vancouver was on December 8, and Vikman and Lysell left the team after a game on December 11.
The league also announced Monday that 36 players and team staff members were included on the league’s COVID-19 protocol list, including three members of the Giants. The league does not provide comments or identify interested individuals.
Vancouver has been missing forwards Adam Hall and Colton Langkow, and defender Connor Horning in their two games since.
Reference-theprovince.com