PHOTO: TAMI QUAN PHOTOGRAPHY
Salmon Arm, B.C. — The Salmon Arm Silverbacks (9-7-3) will wrap up their 2020-21 pod season on Saturday evening against the West Kelowna Warriors (7-9-2) at Kal Tire Place.
The Backs had their hopes of finishing first in the pod eliminated on Friday with a 3-1 loss to Vernon.
West Kelowna’s last game was a 5-4 win over Salmon Arm on Wednesday.
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 |
| April 18 | 6-5 SOW | 4-1-0 | Say 27/32 |
| April 21 | 5-2 W | 5-1-0 | Vanderkooi 26/28 |
| April 25 | 3-0 L | 5-2-0 | Say 21/23 |
| May 2 | 4-1 W | 6-2-0 | Say 32/33 |
| May 5 | 5-4 L | 6-3-0 | Say 28/33 |
Us
Payback: The Silverbacks lost 5-4 to the Warriors in their last head-to-head meeting, in a game that lacked physical intensity. Expect that to change Saturday with the Silverbacks wanting to finish their season on a high and knowing that physicality in the past has led to success on the scoreboard.
Lay It All On the Line: Because it’s the last game of the season, the Silverbacks will obviously want to leave nothing left in the tank, especially the four 20-year-olds who are aging out: captain Hunter Sansbury, assistant captains Drew Bennett and Logan Shaw, and high-flying forward Sullivan Mack. Keep in mind the Warriors won’t be playing their last game, as they wrap up their season on Sunday against Vernon.
Defence the Key: On Wednesday, the Silverbacks scored four goals, but it was their defensive effort in the second and third periods that was the difference, as the Warriors scored two in the second and three in the third. Salmon Arm has had little trouble scoring goals against West Kelowna this season, averaging 3.78 goals for per game in their nine head-to-head meetings so far. If they defend well, they should take care of business.
Them
Last Time Out: The West Kelowna Warriors scored three third period goals on Wednesday to beat the Silverbacks 5-4 in regulation. It was their first win since April 25.
Joughin Coming Off Big Night: Marcus Joughin had a three-assist performance on Wednesday and he leads all Warriors players in H2H scoring against the Silverbacks, with 10 points in just seven games.
This & That
- Backs forward Simon Tassy leads the BCHL in goals with 16 & ranks tied for 7th in points with 25. He has 12 goals in his last 10 games.
- Backs forward Sullivan Mack is tied for 7th in the BCHL in points with 25. He is currently on a four-game point streak (1G, 6A).
- Backs forward Noah Serdachny is tied for 2nd in the BCHL in assists with 18 & is tied for 9th in points with 24. Amongst rookies, his 18 assists rank 1st and his 24 points are the second-most.
- Backs defenceman Hunter Sansbury has 11 points in his last 13 games (2G, 9A).
- Backs defenceman Tucker Hartmann has 10 points in his last 13 games (3G, 7A).
Leading Scorers
Backs:
Points – Sullivan Mack & Simon Tassy (25)
Goals – Simon Tassy (16)
Assists – Noah Serdachny (18)
Wins – Owen Say (7)
G.A.A. – Owen Say (2.83)
SV% – Owen Say (.907)
Warriors:
Points – Carter Wilkie (16)
Goals – Carter Wilkie (9)
Assists – Tyson Jugnauth (10)
Wins – Johnny Derrick (4)
G.A.A. – Zach Bennett (2.98)
SV% – Zach Bennett (.911)
Special Teams
Backs:
PP – 21.2% (T-7th) / PK – 69.8% (15th)
Warriors:
PP – 23.3% (4th) / PK – 79.7% (9th)
Players to Watch
SILVERBACKS: ALL THE 20S: HUNTER SANSBURY, DREW BENNETT, LOGAN SHAW & SULLIVAN MACK
These four Silverbacks will all be playing their final games of junior before aging out and graduating.
WARRIORS: CARTER WILKIE
The Warriors forward had the game-winner on Wednesday, his team-leading 10th of the season.
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.
