WENATCHEE, WA: The Wenatchee Wild scored three second-period goals, and Andy Vlaha stopped 37 of 38 as the Wild defeated the Salmon Arm Silverbacks 5-1 in Game 4 to even the series 2-2.
The first period was filled with penalties—three aside for each team. The game’s first powerplay went to the Wenatchee Wild when Backs Defenceman Kieran Ruscheinski was called for holding 1:20 into the contest. The Wild had one good chance at the side of the goal off the stick of Ean Somoza, but Owen Say slid across to deny him. The Wild got the first five shots of the hockey game. The Silverbacks got a golden opportunity to take the lead when they got a 5 on 3 for over a minute. Off the faceoff, Mike Ladyman teed one up for Simon Tassy, and his laser rang off the crossbar keeping the game scoreless. Daniel Panetta had another chance on the man advantage, but Vlaha stopped him, getting a piece of it with the glove. Moments later, the Wild struck on the powerplay. With Isaac Lambert in the penalty box for interference, the Wild took advantage of a mad scramble in front of Owen Say, the puck went right to Ean Somoza at the side of the net, and he beat a down and out Say to open the scoring with his second of the playoffs. The Wild outshot the Silverbacks 12-9 in the opening twenty minutes.
The start of the middle frame wasn’t an ideal one for the visitors. The Wild doubled their lead four minutes into the second period when Quinn Emerson took a shot for well out, and it hit a body in front of Say and into the goal. It was Emerson’s third of the series. The Silverbacks did, however, respond to that on the powerplay. Simon Tassy was able to get some space in the slot, and he snapped a shot glove side on Vlaha to cut the lead in half. The goal was Tassy’s third of the playoffs. But just as the Backs get within one, the Wild quickly struck. Just 33 seconds later, Somoza and Cade Stibbe took advantage of a dangerous pinch by Tucker Hartmann, and it was Stibbe capitalizing on the 2 on 1 to restore the Wild two-goal lead. A couple of minutes later, the Silverbacks got another powerplay, their fifth of the hockey game. Again, they had good zone time and pressure but could not solve Vlaha. Emerson added another marker just past the midway point of the second period, picking up a rebound off the right pad of Say and roofing it top corner for a 4-1 lead. The Wild outshot the Backs 10-9 in the second period.
Most of the play was in the Wild zone in the third period as the Silverbacks outshot the Wild 19-5 in the third period. They got their 7th powerplay of the contest when Landon Parker was called for slashing, but the Silverbacks could not buy a goal on the man advantage. They went a combined 1/14 on the man advantage in Games 3 and 4. Vlaha stood tall in the third period stopping all 19 shots he faced. The Silverbacks pulled the goalie with four minutes left as they tried to get back into the hockey game. However, Cade Stibbe put the dagger into the empty net, making it a 5-1 game. The Silverbacks outshot the Silverbacks 38-29 in a losing effort. The series is now tied at two, heading back to Salmon Arm for Game 5 Friday, April 8th at 7:00 PM.
