Tipped Off
12-07-2005, 11:25 AM
Published: Wednesday, December 7, 2005
Win helps sick Tips feel better
With a number of players feeling under the weather, Everett starts fast and holds on to beat Prince George for its second straight win
By Nick Patterson
Herald Writer
EVERETT - Tuesday night the Everett Silvertips found something that had eluded them for more than a month.
A winning streak.
Playing with a lineup that belonged in bed with thermometers as much as it did on the ice, the Silvertips built an early lead, then survived to defeat the Prince George Cougars 4-2.
The victory was Everett's second straight. The last time the Silvertips (17-13-1-0) won back-to-back games was Nov. 4, when Everett won in a shootout at Red Deer. In between the Tips were 3-9-1-0.
"It's been a while since we won two in a row," Everett coach Kevin Constantine said with a wry grin. "I couldn't tell you the last time."
Before an Everett Events Center crowd of 4,512, Everett scored three goals in the first 12 minutes of the game, then rode the goaltending of Leland Irving as a team full of sick players ran out of gas.
Peter Mueller, one of a handful of Everett players who spent his time between shifts perched before a bucket because of the flu, had a goal and two assists to lead Everett. Jesse Smyke, Torrie Wheat and Shane Harper also scored goals, John Lammers had three assists and Irving made 32 saves - 22 in the third period - as Everett fended off the Cougars late.
And with Wheat and fellow forward Karel Hromas sitting out the last two periods with head injuries, it meant plenty of ice time for Everett's sick crew.
"You look at our bench and there's four guys on there, it seems like," Mueller said. "You look down and go, 'Who's up?' and it's, 'You're going right back out.' Take a swig of water and you're right back out there. Whatever you've got to do for the team, even if you only have two bodies on the bench."
Kalvin Sagert and Prabh Rai scored goals and Scott Bowles made 20 saves for Prince George (14-13-0-3), which has lost 10 of its past 11.
"I thought both teams competed hard," Prince George assistant coach Stewart Malgunas said. "Everett buried its chances early. Our team woke up in the third period, but it was too little, too late."
Given the circumstances, Everett needed to score early, and the Tips did just that, tallying two goals 18 seconds apart to go ahead 2-0.
First, on the power play, the Tips moved the puck around, drawing the Cougar defense out of position. That allowed Hromas to put a pass across the slot to Mueller, who one-timed it in at 3:39.
Then while the first goal was still being announced, Ondrej Fiala took a home-run pass from Jason Fransoo and although Fiala's shot was saved, Smyke put in the rebound.
"I think it was really important to get a lead because if you take Wheat and Karel out of your lineup, you've lost your top power-play guys and you've lost your top penalty killers," Constantine said. "Then you've got (Zach) Sim, Mueller, Smyke and (Taylor) Ellington, who on a normal night wouldn't have played because of being too sick. If you hadn't have had a lead it would have been a struggle to win a game."
Everett's lead was 4-1 going into the third period when the game's momentum swung. The Cougars came out firing, putting Everett back on its heels. With the Tips also taking three penalties, Everett ended up outshot 23-4 in the third. That after outshooting Prince George 20-11 in the first two.
But while the Tips pressed their luck, Irving stood tall, making a series of big saves. Only Rai's power-play tally managed to get through, though several other golden opportunities somehow stayed out as the puck slid through the crease.
"Our bench was so short we did run out of energy a little bit," Constantine said. "But in all honesty we're a real bad third-period team right now in terms of playing with a lead. We change our game. We sit back way too much and we don't try to spend time in the offensive zone. So we definitely need to try to get a little better at that."
Slap shots: Both Wheat and Hromas suffered concussion-like symptoms after first-period hits. They were scheduled to be examined today to determine the extent of the injuries. ... The 18 seconds between Everett's first two goals were the second-quickest in franchise history. The quickest came when Riley Armstrong and Jeff Schmidt scored 15 seconds apart against Brandon on Feb. 15, 2004. ... Everett defenseman Eric Doyle, also suffering from the flu, skated during pregame warmups, but was unable to go
Win helps sick Tips feel better
With a number of players feeling under the weather, Everett starts fast and holds on to beat Prince George for its second straight win
By Nick Patterson
Herald Writer
EVERETT - Tuesday night the Everett Silvertips found something that had eluded them for more than a month.
A winning streak.
Playing with a lineup that belonged in bed with thermometers as much as it did on the ice, the Silvertips built an early lead, then survived to defeat the Prince George Cougars 4-2.
The victory was Everett's second straight. The last time the Silvertips (17-13-1-0) won back-to-back games was Nov. 4, when Everett won in a shootout at Red Deer. In between the Tips were 3-9-1-0.
"It's been a while since we won two in a row," Everett coach Kevin Constantine said with a wry grin. "I couldn't tell you the last time."
Before an Everett Events Center crowd of 4,512, Everett scored three goals in the first 12 minutes of the game, then rode the goaltending of Leland Irving as a team full of sick players ran out of gas.
Peter Mueller, one of a handful of Everett players who spent his time between shifts perched before a bucket because of the flu, had a goal and two assists to lead Everett. Jesse Smyke, Torrie Wheat and Shane Harper also scored goals, John Lammers had three assists and Irving made 32 saves - 22 in the third period - as Everett fended off the Cougars late.
And with Wheat and fellow forward Karel Hromas sitting out the last two periods with head injuries, it meant plenty of ice time for Everett's sick crew.
"You look at our bench and there's four guys on there, it seems like," Mueller said. "You look down and go, 'Who's up?' and it's, 'You're going right back out.' Take a swig of water and you're right back out there. Whatever you've got to do for the team, even if you only have two bodies on the bench."
Kalvin Sagert and Prabh Rai scored goals and Scott Bowles made 20 saves for Prince George (14-13-0-3), which has lost 10 of its past 11.
"I thought both teams competed hard," Prince George assistant coach Stewart Malgunas said. "Everett buried its chances early. Our team woke up in the third period, but it was too little, too late."
Given the circumstances, Everett needed to score early, and the Tips did just that, tallying two goals 18 seconds apart to go ahead 2-0.
First, on the power play, the Tips moved the puck around, drawing the Cougar defense out of position. That allowed Hromas to put a pass across the slot to Mueller, who one-timed it in at 3:39.
Then while the first goal was still being announced, Ondrej Fiala took a home-run pass from Jason Fransoo and although Fiala's shot was saved, Smyke put in the rebound.
"I think it was really important to get a lead because if you take Wheat and Karel out of your lineup, you've lost your top power-play guys and you've lost your top penalty killers," Constantine said. "Then you've got (Zach) Sim, Mueller, Smyke and (Taylor) Ellington, who on a normal night wouldn't have played because of being too sick. If you hadn't have had a lead it would have been a struggle to win a game."
Everett's lead was 4-1 going into the third period when the game's momentum swung. The Cougars came out firing, putting Everett back on its heels. With the Tips also taking three penalties, Everett ended up outshot 23-4 in the third. That after outshooting Prince George 20-11 in the first two.
But while the Tips pressed their luck, Irving stood tall, making a series of big saves. Only Rai's power-play tally managed to get through, though several other golden opportunities somehow stayed out as the puck slid through the crease.
"Our bench was so short we did run out of energy a little bit," Constantine said. "But in all honesty we're a real bad third-period team right now in terms of playing with a lead. We change our game. We sit back way too much and we don't try to spend time in the offensive zone. So we definitely need to try to get a little better at that."
Slap shots: Both Wheat and Hromas suffered concussion-like symptoms after first-period hits. They were scheduled to be examined today to determine the extent of the injuries. ... The 18 seconds between Everett's first two goals were the second-quickest in franchise history. The quickest came when Riley Armstrong and Jeff Schmidt scored 15 seconds apart against Brandon on Feb. 15, 2004. ... Everett defenseman Eric Doyle, also suffering from the flu, skated during pregame warmups, but was unable to go