While Salmon Arm can’t take over first place tonight, they can make a good dent as they try to catch the Merritt Centennials who have played an extra three games and sit tied for first in the Interior Division.
Salmon Arm has a busy weekend as they host the Wenatchee Wild tomorrow in their second game of this weekend doubleheader. Parents are in town for all the players, so there will be the extra pressure of performing in front of those that were integral in getting them to this level. Also it’s Movember weekend with the team sporting special jerseys which will be auctioned off with proceeds going to the teams Movember foundation. With various pledgers, the team is receiving $62 per goal this month towards their Movember fundraising.
The Silverbacks are coming off an important weekend that saw them pickup two points in two games against Divisional rivals. Friday they were on the wrong end of some tough calls resulting in a 4-2 loss in Penticton. The boys would rebound the next night in the Shaw Centre where they have played so well this season. Trailing 2-1 heading the third, two quick goals gave Salmon Arm the lead, but Vernon tied the game in the final minute. Olson Werenka scored the game winner in front of the team’s highest attended game this season. With two goals on the night, Werenka doubled his goal total and was named the first star of the night.
Wednesday night against the Wild, Merritt had a four game home winning streak snapped. The Centennials would go ahead 2-0 in the game, but surrendered three unanswered goals falling 3-2.
Overall at home this season, the Backs are 10-1-1 which is the best record in the entire league. The stat that might be the most impressive is when they trail after two periods of play. Generally that spells doom for a team, but the Silverbacks are 4-0-1 when they are down going to the third. They have only scored the first goal of the game five times this season, but are also 4-0-1 when that happens. This season against Interior teams, the Silverbacks are 8-6.
In three meetings this season with Merritt, the Silverbacks are 1-2 including their only regulation loss on home ice. Salmon Arm started the season with a 4-2 in their home opener. They next week Merritt would return to beat Salmon Arm 5-2 after the Silverbacks had played in Trail the night before. In the middle of October the Cents shutout the Silverbacks 5-0. Since that game, the Silverbacks are 7-2.
Players to Watch:
Silverbacks: Saturday’s performance by Olson Werenka was impressive in a few ways. His two goals doubled his goal total to four on the season ending his season high six game point drought and 14 game goal drought. It also ended a streak of 12 games that saw Werenka take at least a penalty in a game. While staying physical in the game, Werenka was able to stay disciplined and was a key factor in the win. After two points in his first 12 games, Jonathan Krahn is starting to heat up with three points in his last six games. The rookie forward scored 27 seconds into the third period against Vernon to start the Silverbacks comeback.
Centennials: It was a nice two game stretch for Taylor Ward. He scored his first BCHL goal against the Silverbacks, and three days before notched his first points in the league with a pair of assists. The last six games haven’t seen Ward on the scoresheet, but he’ll look to start producing again against a team he has some confidence against. Leading the team with a goal and two assists against Salmon Arm in the last meeting, Nick Granowicz was on hot streak heading into Wednesday against the Wenatchee Wild with six goals and eight points in the past three games. He’s one of the many offensive weapons amongst the group that leads the league in scoring with 99 goals in just 24 games.
TUNE IN
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