Vancouver Giants on hunt for GM after Barclay Parneta and WHL club mutually part ways
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The Vancouver Giants announced Wednesday afternoon that they've 'mutually parted ways' with general manager Barclay Parneta, who had been in that position the past seven seasons.
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This year had been one that the Giants had been building towards. They finished sixth in the WHL's Western Conference at 34-26-8-0, and then lost in five games in the first round of the playoffs to the Spokane Chiefs. That was their third straight first round loss. Vancouver advanced to the WHL championship series in 2019 in Parneta's first year at the helm, and they've won just a single playoff round since.
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'We will talk to a bunch of people and take this in a new direction,' Giants owner Ron Toigo said. 'He's been here for a long time. We just couldn't come to agreement with what he wanted and what we needed.
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'We expect to hear from a lot of people. We'll start talking to people right away.'
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This year's team had pedigree — the playoff roster included nine WHL Draft first-round picks — but it was wildly inconsistent all year. They have a solid base returning. The Giants could have a first-round pick in this summer's NHL Draft in winger Cameron Schmidt, and in next year's draft in defenceman Ryan Lin.
The Giants had a club option on Parneta's contract. Head coach Manny Viveiros, who's been with the Giants for two years, has another year on his deal, although he does have an opt-out clause in it if he gets a job in pro hockey.
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Assuming Viveiros returns to the Giants, he'll be considered for the GM post, Toigo said. Viveiros was coach and director of player personnel for two seasons with the rival Swift Current Broncos from 2016-18. He left for an assistant's job with the Edmonton Oilers after that. He came to the Giants following three seasons with the Vegas Golden Knights' AHL Henderson team.
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