Outstanding Vancouver Giants were reciognized at a Monday individual awards function on Monday evening:
P.C. Toigo Most Valuable Player: Brett Mirwald (55 GP – 29-22-3-0 – 3.10 G.A.A. – .913 SV% – 2 SO)
Mirwald had an unforgettable overage season, being named the WHL Goaltender of the Week five times and finishing the year first in the entire WHL in saves (1723) and first in minutes played (3190). He was tied for third in Wins (29) and tied for third in SV% (.913). According to SportLogiq, Mirwald was 1st in the WHL in Goals Saved Above Expected (37.3).
The 6-foot-1 goaltender played in his 100th career regular season game to finish off the year on March 23 against Kelowna. In 81 career games with the G-Men, Mirwad’s .912 SV% is the third-best in franchise history amongst goalies who have played at least 50 games.
Gordie Howe Top Scorer: Jaden Lipinski/Ty Halaburda (66PTS)
Lipinski and Halaburda each recorded new career-highs with 66 points, with Lipinski doing so in one less game. The two played pretty much the entire season on the same line, consistently matching up against the opposition’s best and combining for five shorthanded tallies as well.
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Pat Quinn Defenceman Of the Year: Mazden Leslie (67GP – 14G – 30A – 43PTS)
Leslie was named Defenceman of the Year for the second straight campaign after once again leading all Giants defencemen in scoring, this time with 44 points. His 14 goals were tied for 10th amongst all WHL defencemen in the WHL, while his five game-winning-goals were tied for the most amongst all D-men. Twenty-seven of his 44 points came at even-strength. The Lloydminster, Alta. product really worked on his defensive game this season, leading all Giants in ice-time with close to 26 minutes per game, playing in all situations.
Player’s Choice Award: Jaden Lipinski (67GP – 24G – 42A – 66PTS)
Lipinski was a force for the Giants at both ends of the ice this season, co-leading the team in points with a career-high 66 on 24 goals and 42 assists. The 6-foot-4 forward was also top-10 in the WHL in shorthanded points with six and second in the WHL in face-off wins with 888. His 57.4 per cent clip in the face-off circle was top-5 in the league. The responsible centre also co-led the Giants in power play points with 17 and had 21 multi-point games, more than any teammate. He finished the season on a roll, with 20 points in his final 14 games (9G-11A).
Bruce Allen Inspirational Leadership Award: Kyren Gronick (45GP – 10G – 18A – 28PTS)
Gronick started his 19-yer-old season strong, with 14 points in his first 21 games, before an ankle injury in late November sidelined him indefinitely. The Regina, Sask. product battled hard to make a return to the ice ahead of schedule, making a return on January 26, 2024. Gronick was a swiss-army knife this season, providing reliable secondary offence as the third-line centre, while also killing penalties and helping in the face-off circle, where he was 52.8 per cent. The responsible forward finished the year with the second-best plus-minus rating on the Giants at +11.
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Most Improved Player: Tyler Thorpe (51GP – 23G – 21A – 44PTS)
Tyler Thorpe “Junior” flew out of the gate in his second season with the G-Men. After scoring four goals in 48 games as a rookie in 2022-23, Thorpe scored seven goals in his first five games of 2023-24, including his first hat-trick. It proved to be more than just a hot start, as the Richmond, B.C. product had 14 goals at the halfway point of the season, first amongst all Giants players, and then started the second half on fire with six goals in his first eight games following the winter break. Unfortunately Thorpe suffered an upper-body injury on Feb. 10 after a skate cut his forearm, ending his season at 23 goals and 44 points in 51 games.
Milan Ilich Rookie Of The Year: Cameron Schmidt (59 GP – 31G – 27A – 58PTS)
Schmidt certainly delivered in his first WHL season, becoming one of the most productive players in the entire WHL in the second half of the season, with 21 goals in his final 26 games. Not only did he lead the Giants in goals by season’s end with 31, but the 5-foot-7 forward broke the Giants franchise record for goals in a single season by a 16-year-old rookie on March 8 when he had a two-goal game against his hometown Prince George Cougars to reach 26 goals, beating the previous record set by Gilbert Brule in 2003-04 (25). He also became just the seventh WHL player in the last 30 years to score 30 or more goals as a 16-year-old rookie, joining Gavin McKenna, Connor Bedard, Brayden Yager, Patrick Marleau, Nolan Patrick and Brett Connolly.
Unsung Hero: Logen Hammett (67GP – 8G – 12A – 20PTS)
Hammett played big minutes in all situations for the Giants and was a stabilizer all season long. He was second to Leslie in ice-time per game and had a career-high 20 points, which included a memorable five-point night on March 16. Hammett’s bread and butter is his play in the defensive zone, where the Regina native played hard, and mostly stayed out of the box.
White Spot Humanitarian of the Year: Ty Halaburda (68GP – 21G – 45A – 66PTS)
Halaburda was one of two player ambassadors for Hockey Gives Blood this season, along with Lipinski. The pair donated blood in December and also spent time in the community as part of the Be A Giant school program. He and Lipinski co-led the Giants in both points (66) and power play points (17).
Bublé Iron Man Award: Ty Halaburda (68GP – 21G – 45A – 66PTS)
The Victoria product was the only Giant to appear in all 68 games for the Giants this season, after only missing two last year. Halaburda recorded five shorthanded points – which was just outside the top-10 in the WHL – and three game-winning-goals, as well as two shootout goals, one of which was a game-winner.
Most Sportsmanlike Player: Sam Honzek (33GP – 10G – 21A – 31PTS – 18 PIM)
Honzek wasn’t able to make his Giants debut this season until December 1 due to an injury suffered in an NHL preseason game with the Calgary Flames, but quickly got back to his offensive ways, finishing as basically a point-per-game player. Honzek was whistled for just eight infractions this season in 33 games, and recorded eight multi-point games, impressive considering he only played half a season.
Sultan Thiara Plus/Minus Award: Colton Alain (+13)
Alain may have only played third-pair minutes this season, but the 16-year-old showed consistent improvement all season long. In fact, he was a +1 with just one assist at the Winter Break, before recording a +12 rating with four assists in the second half of the season.
Save-On-Foods High School Scholastic Player of the Year: Colton Roberts
Roberts was named the Giants Academic Player of the Month for February and did a formidable job balancing a full course load of Grade 12 High School classes with his time at the rink during his NHL draft year. He scored seven goals and added 20 assists for 27 points, with 15 of his points coming on the power play.
Post-Secondary Academic Player of the Year: Tyson Zimmer
Zimmer took an online business class through Athabasca University, which has partnered with the WHL to offer online classes for over a decade. On the ice, Zimmer scored 11 goals and added 11 assists for 22 points in 30 games with the Giants after a trade from the Lethbridge Hurricanes on January 8. He finished the season with 23 goals overall, reaching the 20-goal plateau for the first time in his WHL career.
Three Stars of the Year: First Star – Brett Mirwald; Second Star – Jaden Lipinski; Third Star – Cameron Schmidt
Mirwald was far and away the winner of the Three Stars, finishing the season with nine First Star selections, five Second Star selections and six Third Star selections. The 20-year-old recorded 30 or more saves in a game 33 separate times this season and had 40 or more saves on 10 different occasions.
Lipinski was named the First Star five times, the Second Star six times and the Third Star once. He had 21 multi-point games this season, which included his first hat-trick on November 15.
Schmidt was named the First Star twice, the Second Star three times and the Third Star five times. He had five multi-goal games this season, including his first two WHL hat-tricks on February 24 and March 16.
Graduating Players: Logen Hammett, Brett Mirwald, Wyatt Wilson
All three Giants graduating players hail from Saskatchewan: Hammett from Regina, Mirwald from Saskatoon and Wilson from Swift Current.
Mirwald’s incredible season has been well-documented, as has Hammett’s under the radar game, but Wilson also provided a steadying and hard-nosed game on the back end. Wilson was a vital part of the penalty kill, and made life hard for opposing forwards in front of the Giants’ net. He averaged nearly 23 minutes of ice time this season.