Salmon Arm, B.C. — The Salmon Arm Silverbacks (17-4-1) travel to Merritt for a rematch with the Centennials (4-14-1) after edging them 4-3 in overtime on Friday night at the Shaw Centre.
It’s the second of six head-to-head meetings. The Interior Division rivals won’t see one another again until a home-and-home Jan. 31 and Feb. 1. After that they’ll play one another on Feb. 15 and 23.
Tonight’s game has the usual 7 p.m. puck drop.
3 Storylines
1) Will Backs Be Better Defensively, Have More Consistency?
The Silverbacks allowed 40-plus shots on goal for just the third time this season on Friday. The other two times they’ve allowed that many were against the Penticton Vees and Trail Smoke Eaters. It was also the first time this season the Backs entered the third period with a two-goal lead and gave up a tying goal.
“[We] allowed them to gain our zone too easy and didn’t have good sticks from our defencemen,” Silverbacks assistant coach Tanner Cochrane said in the post-game show on EZ Rock on Friday. “Our back check was there sometimes and sometimes not, so they got second and third chance opportunities. Our ‘D’ didn’t do good enough communicating to the forwards on the back track. We had opportunities to shut them down at the blue line that we didn’t take control of.”
2) Power Play
Both power plays came away empty-handed on Friday, going a combined 0-for-13. Even though the Backs’ first goal on Friday came right after a power play expired, there is still clearly work to be done, especially considering Merritt entered Friday’s action with the league’s worst penalty kill (66.7%).
Salmon Arm’s power play is now 0-for-15 in the last three games. On the other side, the Cents have scored just five power play goals all season long.
3) Nicola Valley Memorial Arena
It’s the first visit for the Backs to the small confines of Nicola Valley Memorial Arena. With just five returning players, it might be a bit of an adjustment to how lively the boards are and how tight things can be. We’ll see how quickly they can adjust.
Players to Watch
SILVERBACKS: TONY ANDREOZZI
Andreozzi returned to the lineup on Friday and made an immediate impact, opening the scoring early in the second period and adding a secondary assist on Wakeford’s 10th goal of the season.
Despite playing in just eight games so far due to injury, the smooth-skating defenceman already has five points.
CENTENNIALS: PAYTON MATSUI
Matsui got the Cents to within a goal on Friday after he backhanded a shot past Langenegger and into the top corner with just over five minute remaining in the third period.
The second-year Merritt forward now has 13 points on the year, just four less than he had all of last season.
Upcoming Milestones
Akito Hirose: 1 point from 100 career BCHL points. Also 3 games from 175 career BCHL games.
Nick Unruh: 3 assists from 50 career BCHL assists.
Current Point Streaks
Akito Hirose: 10 games (1G, 14A)
Tune In
Tonight’s game will be on EZ Rock as usual and will also be streamed live on HockeyTV.
