Super Second Sees Giants Past Clan

First Period

The first period was one for the goalies as both netminders had themselves an excellent 20 minutes. Ben Lake and Elijiah Barriga were set up for early chances but were denied by Lucas Brine. Six minutes into the first, Ciaran Long and Nick Prkusic traded blows in what turned out to be a foreshadowing of a feisty game to come. The Giants had more good chances as Bo Hanson teed up Lake and Mark Cooper in quick succession, but they were denied. It was not all one-way traffic though as Tom McCollum was forced into some good stops from Liam Finlay and Chris McKay. Mike Lee came closest to an opener but he rattled the crossbar as we entered the first intermission scoreless.

Second Period

Any frustrations for the Giants were quickly erased just 39 seconds after the restart when P.O. Morin finished nicely as he shimmied past a Glasgow defender and finished well after Jordan Kawaguchi couldn’t get a handle on the puck. (1-0) The second goal wasn’t far away and it came via Kawaguchi this time as McCollum got himself an assist when his pass to Bobo Carpenter was laid perfectly into the path of Kawaguchi who flicked home after Carpenter had unselfishly taken a big hit before sliding him in (2-0)

06:36 into the period and things got better for Adam Keefe’s men as Simon Despres was penalised for interference and, he had barely sat down when the Giants struck. JJ Piccinich was the man to finish after Gabe Bast won the faceoff and quick passing from Barriga and Mark Cooper put it on a plate for the New Jersey born forward who made no mistake. (3-0) Still, the offence wasn’t finished in the middle stanza and a huge hit from Carpenter on Despres allowed Jeff Baum to plunder forward. The Texan d-man almost walked it into the net for a solo goal, but Lake was on hand to put the finishing touches on a well-worked fourth before the second intermission (4-0)

Third Period

The Giants could not build on the electric second period but never looked likely to surrender the lead they built after 40 minutes. Chances were few and far between for either side as penalties killed any momentum. Unfortunately, Tom McCollum’s shutout was spoiled 09:39 into the period as Despres capped off his evening with a neat finish just a couple of seconds before Josh Roach returned from the penalty box (4-1).

However, the hosts would atone for their Boxing Day defeat in Glasgow with a confidence-boosting win in this busy festive period.

Next Up

If you can’t get enough of Giants hockey then you’re in luck as Adam Keefe’s men are back at the SSE Arena on Monday 30^th December for their final home game of 2024. Dundee Stars are in town for the first of a back-to-back home and away double-header. You can still grab limited tickets here but be quick as another blockbuster crowd is expected!