PHOTO: TAMI QUAN PHOTOGRAPHY
Salmon Arm, B.C. — The Salmon Arm Silverbacks (4-2-3) face off against the West Kelowna Warriors (4-3-1) on Sunday evening at Kal Tire Place.
The Backs are coming off a 3-2 shootout loss to Vernon, while the Warriors beat the Vipers 5-1 in their last contest on Friday.
Tonight’s game has a 6 p.m. puck drop.
Season H2H
| Date | Score | Record | Goalie |
| April 3 | 2-1 L | 0-1-0 | Say 38/40 |
| April 8 | 4-3 OTW | 1-1-0 | Say 31/34 |
| April 11 | 5-3 W | 2-1-0 | Say 32/35 |
| April 15 | 6-4 W | 3-1-0 | Vanderkooi 25/29 |
Us
Tired Yet?: As if the normal fatigue of such a packed schedule wasn’t enough, five of the Silverbacks nine games thus far have gone to overtime!
Last night’s shootout loss was the fourth time in five games Vernon and Salmon Arm have needed extra time, while the Backs and Warriors have “only” been deadlocked through 60 minutes once.
The Cycle is Real: The Vernon pod’s incredibly tight standings have been discussed before, with Vernon and Salmon Arm both at 11 points now, and West Kelowna two back with a game in hand.
What’s more interesting is each team has had success against a different opponent: The Backs are 3-1 against the Warriors: the Warriors are 3-1 against the Vipers and the Vipers are 4-1 against the Backs.
Hey Hey Whadda Ya Say: Salmon Arm goaltender Owen Say was fabulous in Saturday’s game against Vernon, making 29 saves on 31 shots, including some really timely ones at the end of the third and the end of overtime.
While he didn’t pick up the victory, he did also stop five of seven shooters he faced in the shootout.
Them
Derrick Steals Win Over Vernon: The Warriors last game was a 3-2 triumph over the Vipers on Friday, despite being outshot 44-23. Warriors goaltender Johnny Derrick was (clearly) outstanding in this one, compiling 42 saves. West Kelowna was outshot 30-13 in the final 2 periods and Derrick impressively didn’t allow a goal at all in the third period.
Jugnauth Impressing: Warriors rookie defenceman Tyson Jugnauth, who just turned 17 yesterday, is tied for first in the entire BCHL in scoring amongst D-men with 10 points. He’s a dynamic player with the puck on his stick and has been rewarded with heavy minutes in all situations.
Leading Scorers
Backs:
Points – Noah Serdachny (14)
Goals – Sullivan Mack & Noah Serdachny (6)
Assists – Joaquim Lemay & Noah Serdachny (8)
Wins – Owen Say (3)
SV% – Owen Say (.906)
Warriors:
Points – Marcus Joughin & Carter Wilkie (11)
Goals – Carter Wilkie (6)
Assists – Marcus Joughin & Tyson Jugnauth (9)
Wins – Zach Bennett & Johnny Derrick (2)
SV% – Zach Bennett (.920)
Special Teams
Backs:
PP – 22.2% (6th) / PK – 63.3% (16th)
Warriors:
PP – 30.3% (3rd) / PK – 77.4% (11th)
Players to Watch
SILVERBACKS: CAMERON RECCHI
In Saturday’s game, Recchi finished his check at centre ice so hard it shattered the penalty box glass into a zillion pieces.
If that alone isn’t worthy of labelling him player to watch, we don’t know what is.
Recchi also has two points in his last three games against West Kelowna, including his lone goal of the season thus far, scored on Apil 8.
WARRIORS: JOHNNY DERRICK
Based on his last performance, he’s the obvious choice here.
Tune In
As always, all games will be streamed live on BCHL TV, with the Braby Motors pre-game show getting underway at 5:45 p.m.
