Weekend What's-Up: No room for error on home ice

Salmon Arm and Trail are now dead-locked at 48 points apiece following the Smoke Eaters 2-1 win over the Merritt Centennials on Wednesday night. While Salmon Arm has two games in hand, the SilverBacks are facing a must-win Friday against Vernon on Fan Appreciation night.

It's easy to get caught up watching Trail in the standings, but the real story for Friday is the fact that Vernon is a mere five points back of Salmon Arm and has a game in hand of its own.

The SilverBacks will look to feed off one of their biggest crowds of the year in hopes of snapping a five game losing streak before hitting the road for 5 games to end the season.

(Note: Remember your SilverBacks are planning a BLACK OUT  for Friday, so wear black and get excited about the final home game of the regular season!)


The Who: 

• The Salmon Arm SilverBacks (21-23-2-4) (4th in Interior Div) (37 for 204 PP - 18.14%) (83.65% PK)
• Leading Scorer: Shane Hanna (Salmon Arm) 12G, 31A
• Likely starter: Adam Clark hasn't played since last Wednesday's loss to Merritt on home ice; hopefully the nine day rest will help the 'Backs starter.
• Last week: The 'Backs gave up a couple quick goals in a mid-week loss to Merritt before a great effort in Penticton that came just short of earning at least one point.
• Who's Hot: D-man Mitch Ferguson has two goals in the past four games and both were scored on great shots, hopefully his confidence with the puck can continue.

 

• The Vernon Vipers (17-23-1-8) (6th in Interior Div) (33 for 185 PP - 17.84%) (76.13% PK)
• Leading Scorer: Mason Blacklock (White Rock) 17G, 14A
• Likely Starter: Danny Todosychuk got the nod the last time these two teams met, and played a fine game in place of Austin Smith who has had his own fair share of good hockey against Salmon Arm this season. Flip a coin; it's a win-win situation for Vipers HC Jason Williamson.
• Last week: The Snakes split their weekend set, losing in extra time to Merritt on Friday before rallying for an OT win of their own against Cowichan the next night.
• Who's Hot: Mason Blacklock had both the tying, and winning goal against the Capitals.

The What:

• Season Series: The SilverBacks are 5-1 on the year against Vernon, with those five wins coming consecutively after losing the opener against the Vipers. The 'Backs have won three of those games in overtime.
• Leading Scorers: Shane Hanna has eight points on the year against the 'Backs Highway 97 rivals, the Vipers best in the season series is Colton Sparrow with three.
• Special Teams: Vernon is 3 for 22 on the PP against the 'Backs, while Salmon Arm is 4 for 29. The 'Backs have gone 2 for 14 in the past two games against Vernon.
• Big congratulations to Brandon Mistal, the 'Backs Captain is playing game #200 on Friday; we hope Brandon gets another shot to play in his home rink during the post-season. He will need to be a factor in order to accomplish that feat; with no goals in his past 18 games, let's hope #200 is a lucky one for Brandon.
• Speaking of streaks, after not scoring a goal for quite some time, 'Backs defender Brayden Sherbinin now has two goals in the past five games and ten points in the past nine games.
• It's not all about Salmon Arm, Vernon's trade of Adam Tambellini allowed them to get Mason Blacklock in the line-up, and while we mentioned him earlier, it’s certainly worth noting that he has 14 points in 12 games as a Viper. 

The Where:

• 7pm Friday at the Shaw Centre in Salmon Arm.
• LISTEN LIVE on the SilverBacks Ustream Channel, here