Could the Tips actually be getting healthy?
Published 4:09 pm Thursday, March 12, 2009
It’s been about two months since Everett was able to field its best lineup, but the Tips are getting real close to being able to do so again. Left wing Tyler Maxwell (knee) and defenseman Trevor Bauer (concussion) are slated to return tomorrow at Vancouver. That leaves just right wing Dale Hunt (concussion) unavailable, and he participated in practice for the first time today. Therefore, as long as the Tips make it through the weekend unscathed, they might just be at full strength for Game 1 next Friday.
There’s also some extra bodies on hand as the prospects have begun to trickle in as their seasons end. Forward Campbell Elynuik, the 16-year-old who’s been called up twice this season, is back with the team; 15-year-old defenseman Evan Morden also was at practice today; and fellow 15-year-old d-man Ryan Murray is apparently scheduled to join the team sometime this weekend. Tips coach John Becanic said he wasn’t expecting to throw any of those prospects into games, but he didn’t rule it out.
A couple other things to keep an eye on this weekend. Tomorrow’s game against the Giants is being broadcast on national television in Canada. Therefore, it behooves the Tips to avoid the type of disaster they had the last time they were in Vancouver, when they lost 7-0. Also, Tri-City, Everett’s first-round opponent, and Spokane play a pair of games. The last time these bitter rivals met was when Spokane’s Ryan Letts ran Tri-City goaltender Chet Pickard, earning Letts a 10-game suspension and Pickard an undisclosed injury. We’ll see what happens between those two now.
