Photo Courtesy: Chris Fowler
Salmon Arm, BC –
The Silverbacks took down the Spruce Kings 2-1 on Saturday night. Ethan Ullrick had both the goals, while Matthew Tovell stopped 35 shots of the 36 that he faced.
For the second time this season, the Salmon Arm Silverbacks (8-5-0-1) welcomed the Prince George Spruce Kings (9-4-0-1) to the Shaw Centre. The two teams faced off just under a month ago, as the Silverbacks took down the Spruce Kings 4-2 on October 15th. The teams will meet up seven times on the season, including a pair of games in Burns Lake late in the season as they battle it out in the 2023 BCHL Road Show. The Silverbacks came into the game with points in 5 of their last 6, including a 4-2 victory over the Chilliwack Chiefs last night. While the Spruce Kings are finishing off an interior trip as they fell to the hands of the Penticton Vees 4-0 last last night.
It was a battle between two of the leagues top goaltenders as Matthew Tovell (6-4-0-1, 2.92 GAA, .915 S%) got his 12th start of the season for the Silverbacks, while Aidan Feddema (0-2-0-0, 4.20 GAA, .849 S%) got his 3rd start for the Spruce Kings.
The game got off to a slow start as both teams seemed to be feeling the flow of the game in the first five minutes of the period. The lone goal of the period came just under 10 minutes in as Charlie Banquier (3) was able to find a way to beat Tovell with a shot from the blue line. Just a few moments later, the Silverbacks had a glorious opportunity as they went to work on a two man advantage. It was Aidan Feddema stealing the show for the Spruce Kings as he made several incredible saves on the penalty kill to keep the game at a one goal lead for the Spruce Kings. The Silverbacks outshot the Spruce Kings 13-11 in the opening frame.
The second period was a defensive battle as neither team was able to get on the board. Aidan Feddema continued his strong play for the Spruce Kings as he he stopped all 9 shots that he faced in the middle frame. The Silverbacks went to the penalty kill twice, while the Spruce Kings once in the period, but all attempts were unsuccessful. The shots in the middle frame were 15-9 in favor of Prince George.
The third period got off to a frantic start as the game went without a whistle through the first five minutes of the period. Midway through the period, the Shaw Centre came alive as the Silverbacks went to the man advantage when Austin Fraser took a tripping call. The powerplay was short lived as Brandon Santa Juana took a penalty of his own. It was during that four-on-four sequence when Ethan Ullrick (6) found a way to bat home the rebound following a CJ Foley wraparound. That was the lone goal of the period as the two teams battled it out for the remainder of the period, and the game moved towards overtime. Shots at the end of regulation favored Salmon Arm by a 36-34 margin.
The three on three overtime period provided fans with the excitement that it always does. A frantic pace gave both teams multiple high danger scoring opportunities. Late in the extra frame, it was Ethan Ullrick (7) receiving a stretch pass from Owen Beckner and he was able to drive it straight to the net and bury the game winner for the Silverbacks with just under 30 seconds to go in the extra frame.
Next up for the Silverbacks will be a matchup with the Powell River Kings! The ‘Backs will welcome the Kings into town next Friday night. It will be third and final game of their three game home stand. Puck drop will be at 7:00. See you then ‘Backs fans!
