PHOTO: Chris Fowler/Pure Life Photography
The Penticton Vees (18-4-1-0) conclude a three-game stretch away from home as they head to the Shuswap for a midweek matchup against the Salmon Arm Silverbacks (17-5-1-0) on Wednesday night at the Shaw Centre.
REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE vs. SALMON ARM
Wednesday, October 16th @ Shaw Centre (5-2 Silverbacks) (BOXSCORE)
Wednesday, November 13th @ Shaw Centre (7:00 PM)
Friday, November 15th @ South Okanagan Events Centre (7:00 PM)
Friday, January 3rd @ Shaw Centre (7:00 PM)
Saturday, January 18th @ South Okanagan Events Centre (6:00 PM)
Friday, February 7th @ South Okanagan Events Centre (7:00 PM)
The Vees enter Wednesday night’s game after a back-to-back win weekend in Wenatchee including a 5-3 victory over the Wild on Saturday night at the Town Toyota Center. Liam Malmquist, Danny Weight and Jackson Niedermayer tallied before Jay O’Brien scored the game winning marker on the power play in the 3rd period before David Silye added an empty net goal. Yaniv Perets made 29 saves on 32 shots in between the pipes for his 10th win of the season.
Wednesday night marks the second of six meetings between Penticton and Salmon Arm in the regular season with the Silverbacks taking the opening game by a 5-2 score back in mid-October. Jay O’Brien and Danny Weight tallied in the defeat for the Vees at the Shaw Centre while Yaniv Perets turned aside 31 of the 36 shots he faced in the loss in net.
Vees Leading Scorers:
Jay O’Brien (14-21-35)
Danny Weight (10-18-28)
Lukas Sillinger (9-15-24)
David Silye (6-18-24)
Liam Malmquist (7-11-18)
With their win on Saturday night in Wenatchee, the Vees have equaled their total of wins on the road from last season with 15 victories away from home, including six consecutive wins. Penticton leads the BCHL with those 15 triumphs on the road and have scored the most goals away from home with 78, just 12 goals off their mark from all of last season on the road. During their six-game road winning streak, the Vees have outscored their opposition by a 27-12 margin and have scored 4 or more goals in each of those contests.
A week of three goals and three assists was good enough for an honourable mention for the BCHL’s Player of the Week award for Vees forward Jay O’Brien, who extended his point streak to eight games on Saturday night. The Hingham, Massachusetts native has registered six goals and seven assists for 13 points in that span while including tallying three goals over the weekend in Wenatchee and has now scored five goals over his last five games.
The offensive success of the Vees game has come in full over the latest swing of road games and multiple players come into Wednesday’s game with shared success. Captain David Silye has points in eight of his last nine games while Danny Weight and Liam Malmquist each have points in five of their last six contests. Jackson Niedermayer and Lukas Sillinger have each compiled at least a point in four of their last five games.
The Salmon Arm Silverbacks come into their three-game week after a win and a loss in a home-and-home set against the Merritt Centennials over the weekend. The ‘Backs won 4-3 in a shootout on home ice on Friday night before falling by a 6-5 score at the Nicola Valley Memorial Arena in Merritt on Saturday. Daniel Rybarik, Nick Unruh, Drew Bennett, Antonio Andreozzi and Akito Hirose each scored in the game for Salmon Arm while Dylan Kruss made 26 saves on 32 shots in his 3rd loss of the season.
Silverbacks Leading Scorers:
Akito Hirose (4-24-28)
Noah Wakeford (10-16-26)
Daniel Rybarik (14-8-22)
William Poirier (9-12-21)
Nick Unruh (7-9-16)
The Shaw Centre has been one of the most difficult places to play in the BCHL this season as the Silverbacks hold a 10-2 record on home ice this season. Salmon Arm has outscored their opposition by a 44-24 margin this season, holding the second-best goal differential on home ice at +20 behind the Coquitlam Express, who are at a +32 rate, while the Silverbacks have won 7 of their last 8 games on home ice.
Silverbacks captain Akito Hirose carries a lengthy point streak of his own into the game on Wednesday night as he has collected a point in 11 consecutive games. The Calgary, Alberta native has tallied 2 goals and 14 assists for 16 points over that span and is tied with Trail’s Michael Colella for second in the league with 24 assists on the season. The University of Minnesota-Mankato commit registered his 100th career BCHL point with his goal on Saturday night in Merritt, amassing 15 goals and 85 assists in 174 career games.
After scoring his first goal in the BCHL when these two teams last met on October 16th, forward Nick Martino has been a steady source of offense for the Silverbacks. The Glenolden, Pennsylvania native has gathered a point in five of his last six games, including two assists in the defeat on Saturday night. Martino has earned two goals and five assists for seven points over that six-game stretch and is the owner of 8 points in his 12 games played.
The Vees and Silverbacks play the second of their six-game season series on Wednesday night from the Shaw Centre with puck drop scheduled for 7:00 PM. The game will be broadcasted on EZ Rock AM 800 as well as HockeyTV.com beginning with the pre-game show at 6:40 PM with the Voice of the Vees, Trevor Miller.
