Tipped Off
10-18-2006, 10:19 AM
From the Seattle Times:
A Giant lesson: No mercy
By Jim Riley
Consistency is the hallmark of any great sports franchise, and it is a concept discussed often around the offices of the Everett Silvertips.
This season's team may well be the most talented in the brief history of the franchise, so if the Silvertips can maintain a consistent performance they will remain among the elite teams in junior hockey.
The model for consistency over the last few seasons has been the Vancouver Giants, the defending Western Hockey League champions who swept the Silvertips out of the playoffs last season.
The team motto in Vancouver is "hockey with heart," but over the last few seasons it could be more accurately described as "hockey with an edge."
Although their rough, physical style is not universally admired around the league, no one doubts that the Giants play hard from puck drop to final buzzer.
It's an aspect of the game Everett coach Kevin Constantine would like to encourage in his team.
At times, the Silvertips have shown a tendency to relax after building a lead, and that's a trait Constantine is determined to eliminate.
Constantine remembers the team's first game as a prime example.
The Silvertips took a 1-0 lead over Chilliwack in the first period on a goal by Zach Hamill and then nearly got whacked before winning 2-1 on a third-period score by Brandon Campos.
"We scored to go up 1-0 and then they had the next 13 scoring chances," Constantine said. "We have these little stretches when we find ways to relax instead of finding ways to keep pressure on people."
Relaxation is a foreign concept for the aggressive Giants, a team that won 10 straight to open the season before losing to Seattle in overtime. The 10 straight wins tied the 1978-79 Brandon Wheat Kings for the longest winning streak to start a season in WHL history.
"It seems the more they have a lead, the more they're in your face and the more physical they are," Constantine said. "They are really relentless, and we're not like that. We get a lead and get laid back instead of being more aggressive."
Everett captain Cody Thoring is on the case to ensure that no matter what the score, the Silvertips keep pressing. That determination showed when Everett beat Chilliwack 8-0 last Sunday.
"We've really talked a lot about how Vancouver plays and how if we want to get where they are, we have to play a full 60 minutes," Thoring said.
The most consistent Everett player to start the season has been goaltender Leland Irving, the first-round pick of the Calgary Flames, who has had three shutouts in his first eight starts.
The unflappable Irving prides himself on always giving his team a chance to win, something he's done in every game so far this fall.
"When I keep my game simple, that's when I am most effective," Irving said. "We have been questioning our consistency and know it's something we'd like to improve."
In three seasons, the Silvertips have never missed the playoffs and won a pair of U.S. Division titles. They won a Western Conference championship in their inaugural season in 2002-03.
The Silvertips carry high expectations this season after having four players (Peter Mueller, Irving, Ondrej Fiala and Brady Calla) taken in the first three rounds of the National Hockey League draft last June.
Fiala hasn't played yet after knee surgery in the offseason, but he is in Everett and expected to be in the lineup in the next three weeks.
Silvertips rewind
Record: 8-1-0-1, first in the U.S. Division
Last week: The Silvertips won the first of 10 games against the Seattle Thunderbirds last Wednesday 3-0. They lost for the first time in regulation when they were beaten 5-2 in Spokane. Everett then rebounded with a 3-2 win over the Portland Winter Hawks and an 8-0 victory over the Chilliwack Bruins.
This week: The Silvertips have only one game remaining this week. They travel to play Portland on Saturday night.
Star of the week: Rookie forward Kyle Beach has three goals and five assists in his last four games.
Who's hot: Brady Calla led the way with a goal and two assists in Everett's 8-0 blanking of Chilliwack last Sunday. Through eight games this season, Calla hasn't taken a single penalty.
Rankings this week: The Silvertips are ranked second in the WHL by writers who cover the league, behind defending champion Vancouver. The Silvertips are ranked third in the 56-team Canadian Hockey League rankings compiled by a panel of NHL scouts.
Quote of the week: "Anytime you can have balanced scoring it's huge for your team. We need everyone from our first line to our fourth line to work hard every night." — Zach Hamill, Everett's leading scorer
— Jim Riley
A Giant lesson: No mercy
By Jim Riley
Consistency is the hallmark of any great sports franchise, and it is a concept discussed often around the offices of the Everett Silvertips.
This season's team may well be the most talented in the brief history of the franchise, so if the Silvertips can maintain a consistent performance they will remain among the elite teams in junior hockey.
The model for consistency over the last few seasons has been the Vancouver Giants, the defending Western Hockey League champions who swept the Silvertips out of the playoffs last season.
The team motto in Vancouver is "hockey with heart," but over the last few seasons it could be more accurately described as "hockey with an edge."
Although their rough, physical style is not universally admired around the league, no one doubts that the Giants play hard from puck drop to final buzzer.
It's an aspect of the game Everett coach Kevin Constantine would like to encourage in his team.
At times, the Silvertips have shown a tendency to relax after building a lead, and that's a trait Constantine is determined to eliminate.
Constantine remembers the team's first game as a prime example.
The Silvertips took a 1-0 lead over Chilliwack in the first period on a goal by Zach Hamill and then nearly got whacked before winning 2-1 on a third-period score by Brandon Campos.
"We scored to go up 1-0 and then they had the next 13 scoring chances," Constantine said. "We have these little stretches when we find ways to relax instead of finding ways to keep pressure on people."
Relaxation is a foreign concept for the aggressive Giants, a team that won 10 straight to open the season before losing to Seattle in overtime. The 10 straight wins tied the 1978-79 Brandon Wheat Kings for the longest winning streak to start a season in WHL history.
"It seems the more they have a lead, the more they're in your face and the more physical they are," Constantine said. "They are really relentless, and we're not like that. We get a lead and get laid back instead of being more aggressive."
Everett captain Cody Thoring is on the case to ensure that no matter what the score, the Silvertips keep pressing. That determination showed when Everett beat Chilliwack 8-0 last Sunday.
"We've really talked a lot about how Vancouver plays and how if we want to get where they are, we have to play a full 60 minutes," Thoring said.
The most consistent Everett player to start the season has been goaltender Leland Irving, the first-round pick of the Calgary Flames, who has had three shutouts in his first eight starts.
The unflappable Irving prides himself on always giving his team a chance to win, something he's done in every game so far this fall.
"When I keep my game simple, that's when I am most effective," Irving said. "We have been questioning our consistency and know it's something we'd like to improve."
In three seasons, the Silvertips have never missed the playoffs and won a pair of U.S. Division titles. They won a Western Conference championship in their inaugural season in 2002-03.
The Silvertips carry high expectations this season after having four players (Peter Mueller, Irving, Ondrej Fiala and Brady Calla) taken in the first three rounds of the National Hockey League draft last June.
Fiala hasn't played yet after knee surgery in the offseason, but he is in Everett and expected to be in the lineup in the next three weeks.
Silvertips rewind
Record: 8-1-0-1, first in the U.S. Division
Last week: The Silvertips won the first of 10 games against the Seattle Thunderbirds last Wednesday 3-0. They lost for the first time in regulation when they were beaten 5-2 in Spokane. Everett then rebounded with a 3-2 win over the Portland Winter Hawks and an 8-0 victory over the Chilliwack Bruins.
This week: The Silvertips have only one game remaining this week. They travel to play Portland on Saturday night.
Star of the week: Rookie forward Kyle Beach has three goals and five assists in his last four games.
Who's hot: Brady Calla led the way with a goal and two assists in Everett's 8-0 blanking of Chilliwack last Sunday. Through eight games this season, Calla hasn't taken a single penalty.
Rankings this week: The Silvertips are ranked second in the WHL by writers who cover the league, behind defending champion Vancouver. The Silvertips are ranked third in the 56-team Canadian Hockey League rankings compiled by a panel of NHL scouts.
Quote of the week: "Anytime you can have balanced scoring it's huge for your team. We need everyone from our first line to our fourth line to work hard every night." — Zach Hamill, Everett's leading scorer
— Jim Riley