Table Setter: The Penticton Vees get set for another home-and-home set this week, well sort of. The Vees play the Salmon Arm Silverbacks twice, starting tonight at the SOEC and the return leg Saturday in the North Okanagan. The Silverbacks do have a game with Merritt on Friday sandwiched between.
The last meeting between the two teams was a week ago today, as the Vees edged the Silverbacks 3-2 at home. Penticton came out like gangbusters in the first period, scoring three times, twice on the power-play; up three after twenty-minutes. However the Silverbacks hung around, and chipped away at the Vees lead, scoring two goals in the final two periods to make a game of it; their second coming late in the third period.
Last Wednesday was highlighted by several players on both sides playing against their former teams for the first time. Vees Sean Flanagan and Brock Balson, acquired days leading up to the game played against their former team for the first time; same story for Evan Anderson, Alex Jewell and Mitch Ferguson. Anderson was the standout, scoring and finishing with two points in his return to the SOEC in black & silver.
The Vees are 3-0-0 against the Silverbacks this season, winning the last two encounters by identical 3-2 scores. The only other game between the two divisional rivals was a 5-0 whitewash for the Vees over the Apes back on September 21st.
House of Horrors: The SOEC hasn’t been kind to most BCHL teams since it opened in the fall of 2008, and that is certainly true for the Silverbacks, well of late anyway. The Silverbacks last win, in the regular-season, at the SOEC was over two years ago, September 23rd, 2010 to be exact; Salmon Arm won that game 6-5. Since then the Apes are 0-6-1-0 at the SOEC, outscored 32-12 during the win-less streak.
Gorillas in the Mist: The Silverbacks have come out of nowhere to be one of the hottest teams in the BCHL. The Apes have won four in a row, including a weekend sweep of the Trail Smoke Eaters. Salmon Arm has been getting some goal production as well, outscoring their opponents 19-9 during this streak. November has been kind to the Silverbacks as they sport a very respectable 5-1-1-2 record; their only regulation loss was at the hands of the Vees.
Helping out with the offense is former Vees Evan Anderson who has four goals and eight points in his first seven games with the Silverbacks. Also heating up during their four-game run is Brandon Mistal (6-2-8) and Alex Gillies (2-6-8); Mistal was named the BCHL Player of the Week for the week of November 12th -18th.
Silverback Smack: Sam Mellor loves playing the Salmon Arm Silverbacks. In 16 career games the Cranbrook native has seven goals and 19 points; one goal and five points in three games this season. Wade Murphy has three goals in as many games against the Apes, and Troy Stecher has one goal and five points.
