PHOTO: Cherie Morgan/Cherie Morgan Photography
The Penticton Vees (18-2-0-0) continue a busy schedule as they host the Salmon Arm Silverbacks (17-4-1-0) in a 1st place Interior Conference showdown on Friday night at the South Okanagan Events Centre.
2021/22 REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE:
Friday, December 10th @ South Okanagan Events Centre (7:00 PM)
Saturday, January 8th @ Shaw Centre (6:00 PM)
Wednesday, January 12th @ South Okanagan Events Centre (6:30 PM)
Wednesday, February 4th @ Shaw Centre (7:00 PM)
Wednesday, February 16th @ Shaw Centre (7:00 PM)
Wednesday, March 9th @ South Okanagan Events Centre (6:30 PM)
Penticton comes into Friday night aiming for their 11th straight victory after an 8-0 triumph over the Merritt Centennials on Tuesday night at the Nicola Valley Memorial Arena. Brett Moravec scored twice in the game while Grayson Arnott, Thomas Pichette, Jackson Nieuwendyk, Luc Wilson, Fin Williams and Beanie Richter all found the back of the net. Kaeden Lane turned aside each of the 14 shots thrown his way in his 14th win of the season and 8th career BC Hockey League shutout.
The Vees and Silverbacks meet for the first time this season and clash for the first time since November 13th, 2020 in an Okanagan Cup semi-final matchup. The last regular season series played between Penticton and Salmon Arm saw the Vees pick up the series win, coming away victorious in four of the six head-to-head meetings, including winning each of the last four games.
Vees Leading Scorers:
Luc Wilson (13-17-30)
Josh Nadeau (16-13-29)
Fin Williams (8-20-28)
Brett Moravec (11-11-22)
Bradly Nadeau (10-10-20)
There has been no team better than the Vees over the last 10 game span with Penticton posting 10 consecutive victories and outscoring their opponents by a staggering 58-16 margin. The 58 markers for the Vees over their last 10 games is more than three teams (Vernon Vipers, Wenatchee Wild and Merritt Centennials) have scored all season long. Penticton owns the best goals for in the league, scoring 107 tallies while surrendering just 40, also a league best to coincide with the top goal differential at +67.
The Vees have had a lot of offensive success over the course of their 10-game winning streak and have a pair of players who come into Friday’s action looking to continue long point streaks. Josh Nadeau carries a 10-game point streak into Friday night, posting 10 goals and 7 assists for 17 points in that span while Luc Wilson enters play with points in nine consecutive games, scoring 5 goals and 11 assists for 16 points in that time.
After being named an honourable mention for the BCHL’s 3 Stars of the Week, defender Grayson Arnott has had a strong string of production from the back end, collecting points in each of his last four games. The University of Maine commit earned his 1st goal of the season on Tuesday night in Merritt while registering six assists for seven points in that span. Arnott has vaulted his way up to being 2nd on the team in helpers with 17 and sits 2nd in scoring amongst defensemen in the BCHL with his 18 points, trailing only Victoria’s Clark Hiebert.
The Salmon Arm Silverbacks come into Friday night’s matchup against the Vees after a 5-2 victory over the West Kelowna Warriors on Sunday afternoon at the Shaw Centre. Noah Serdachny scored twice in the game while Simon Tassy, Isaac Lambert and Brandon Santa Juana each found the back of the goal. Liam Vanderkooi turned aside 33 of the 35 shots he faced in the game in his 5th win of the season.
Silverbacks Leading Scorers:
Simon Tassy (20-17-37)
Noah Serdachny (10-15-25)
Brandon Santa Juana (9-12-21)
Daniel Panetta (7-12-19)
Lucas Matta (6-10-16)
In his 3rd season with the Silverbacks, forward Simon Tassy has been on fire for Salmon Arm, leading the BC Hockey League in points with 37 in just 22 games, including a hot hand of goal scoring as he tops the BCHL in filling the net with 20 markers on the season. The University of Minnesota-Mankato commit has posted hat tricks in two games this season and has points in six of his last seven games, registering 4 goals and 9 assists for 13 points in that span. The Montreal, Quebec native has 11 multi-point games this season including 7 of those being games in which he tallied 3 or more points.
It’ll be a battle of top power plays and penalty kills tonight as the Vees and Silverbacks square off. Penticton comes in ranked 4th in the league in power play percentage, operating at 29.7% while up a man with Salmon Arm holding onto the 3rd spot when it comes to PP with a 30.2% man advantage. On the penalty killing side, the Vees rank 2nd in the league with an 85.5% penalty kill and the Silverbacks are just ahead of them in the top spot in the league while down a man, posting an 87.3% PK.
The Vees and Silverbacks will play the first of their six game season series tonight at the South Okanagan Events Centre. Puck drop is slated for 7:00 PM with tickets available for purchase at the Valley First Box Office at the SOEC as well as online at valleyfirsttix.com. The game will also be broadcasted live on Bounce Radio 800 as well as BCHLTV.ca beginning with the pre-game show at 6:40 PM.
