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04-05-2006, 11:28 AM
Silvertips
Round 2 starts Friday for flu-bitten Everett
By Jim Riley
Special to The Seattle Times
Related
Under the Helmet
Silvertips statistics
Kevin Constantine sounded horrible, like he needed to be connected to an IV more than a phone line.
Constantine, the head coach and general manager of the Everett Silvertips, is the latest member of the team to battle the flu, but he carried on Monday despite the illness.
Constantine and the Silvertips have a few days to recuperate after eliminating the Tri-City Americans in five games with a 2-0 win Friday.
The Silvertips will open the second round on the road against the Kelowna Rockets this Friday.
Game 2 is scheduled in Kelowna, B.C., on Sunday, and Games 3 and 4 will be in Everett on Tuesday and Wednesday.
"We had seven guys out with the flu during the first series, and several other guys who were able to play through it," Constantine said.
Ondrej Fiala, who was Everett's fifth leading scorer in the regular season with 21 goals and 35 points, missed the series with Tri-City
"Depending on whether the flu bug continues to circulate, we could go into this series more healthy than we did the first," Constantine said.
The Silvertips beat the Americans in five games, thanks mainly to a strong defense and Leland Irving's goaltending.
The Americans were 0-for-20 on the power play in the series, and Irving leads the Western Hockey League with a 0.79 goals-against average and a 96.8 save percentage in the playoffs.
The Silvertips used four lines throughout the series, and Constantine said there were a lot of good performances from players not bearing the weight of high expectations.
"Players who rely solely on skill have a tendency to not be as effective during the playoffs because the game is more physical and there is tighter checking," Constantine said. "You have to rely more on determination and grit, and we got that from a lot of our guys."
Everett had 10 players score goals in the series, led by Zach Hamill with three. Shaun Heshka led the team with seven points.
Heshka said the flu bug made it important for the Silvertips to wrap up the series early to earn a few extra days off.
Last season, the Silvertips beat the Portland Winter Hawks in seven games in the first round and then lost to the Kootenay Ice in four games in round two.
"Playing seven games can really wear you out, and getting our first series over a little early is huge for us right now," Heshka said. "It just gives you that much more energy, and hopefully we can carry it into the next series."
Defense will be the key for the Silvertips against Kelowna, the defending league champions, who beat Kootenay 4-2 in the first round. Justin Keller scored 51 goals for the Rockets in the regular season and added three in the playoffs against Kootenay.
Postseason positives
The Silvertips have advanced to at least the second round of the playoffs each year since coming into existence in the 2003-04 season.
Everett has been involved in seven playoff series and won five. The Silvertips' overall playoff record is only 20-17, however, mainly because they were swept 4-0 in both of their playoff-series losses.
Close calls
When Everett beat Kelowna in the playoffs in 2004, all seven games were decided by one goal.
The Silvertips won Games 5, 6 and 7 in overtime, with two of the wins coming in Kelowna.
The Rockets, however, still qualified for the three-league Memorial Cup competition that season and went on to win the trophy.
Round 2 starts Friday for flu-bitten Everett
By Jim Riley
Special to The Seattle Times
Related
Under the Helmet
Silvertips statistics
Kevin Constantine sounded horrible, like he needed to be connected to an IV more than a phone line.
Constantine, the head coach and general manager of the Everett Silvertips, is the latest member of the team to battle the flu, but he carried on Monday despite the illness.
Constantine and the Silvertips have a few days to recuperate after eliminating the Tri-City Americans in five games with a 2-0 win Friday.
The Silvertips will open the second round on the road against the Kelowna Rockets this Friday.
Game 2 is scheduled in Kelowna, B.C., on Sunday, and Games 3 and 4 will be in Everett on Tuesday and Wednesday.
"We had seven guys out with the flu during the first series, and several other guys who were able to play through it," Constantine said.
Ondrej Fiala, who was Everett's fifth leading scorer in the regular season with 21 goals and 35 points, missed the series with Tri-City
"Depending on whether the flu bug continues to circulate, we could go into this series more healthy than we did the first," Constantine said.
The Silvertips beat the Americans in five games, thanks mainly to a strong defense and Leland Irving's goaltending.
The Americans were 0-for-20 on the power play in the series, and Irving leads the Western Hockey League with a 0.79 goals-against average and a 96.8 save percentage in the playoffs.
The Silvertips used four lines throughout the series, and Constantine said there were a lot of good performances from players not bearing the weight of high expectations.
"Players who rely solely on skill have a tendency to not be as effective during the playoffs because the game is more physical and there is tighter checking," Constantine said. "You have to rely more on determination and grit, and we got that from a lot of our guys."
Everett had 10 players score goals in the series, led by Zach Hamill with three. Shaun Heshka led the team with seven points.
Heshka said the flu bug made it important for the Silvertips to wrap up the series early to earn a few extra days off.
Last season, the Silvertips beat the Portland Winter Hawks in seven games in the first round and then lost to the Kootenay Ice in four games in round two.
"Playing seven games can really wear you out, and getting our first series over a little early is huge for us right now," Heshka said. "It just gives you that much more energy, and hopefully we can carry it into the next series."
Defense will be the key for the Silvertips against Kelowna, the defending league champions, who beat Kootenay 4-2 in the first round. Justin Keller scored 51 goals for the Rockets in the regular season and added three in the playoffs against Kootenay.
Postseason positives
The Silvertips have advanced to at least the second round of the playoffs each year since coming into existence in the 2003-04 season.
Everett has been involved in seven playoff series and won five. The Silvertips' overall playoff record is only 20-17, however, mainly because they were swept 4-0 in both of their playoff-series losses.
Close calls
When Everett beat Kelowna in the playoffs in 2004, all seven games were decided by one goal.
The Silvertips won Games 5, 6 and 7 in overtime, with two of the wins coming in Kelowna.
The Rockets, however, still qualified for the three-league Memorial Cup competition that season and went on to win the trophy.