Everett 6, Red Deer 3
Published 10:53 pm Wednesday, November 5, 2014
TALKING POINTS
This was not Everett’s best game. But a tremendous start sprinkled with some Nikita Scherbak hat-trick magic ensured the Tips pulled it out.
Everett came into the game playing rock-solid hockey, having won four straight, and it was more of the same in the first period. The Tips dominated, outshooting Red Deer 10-3 and jumping out to a 3-0 lead. It seemed like Everett was going to coast to its fifth straight victory.
Not so fast. Red Deer, which had taken 11 of a possible 12 points from its previous six games, played a poor first period. But the Rebels came out with considerably more energy to start the second, while the Tips came out sloppy. The result was two Red Deer goals in the first 3:21 to get the Rebels right back into it, and it seemed more likely Red Deer would tie the score than Everett would restore its two-goal advantage.
Enter Scherbak. The Tips acquired him just for these kind of situations, and he helped bail Everett out big-time. He sniped a shot on the power play to stop the bleeding midway through the second period. Red Deer got back within one again late in the second, but the Tips tightened back up in the third, and Scherbak gave Everett the cushion it needed with a rebound goal in transition midway through the third. He completed his hat trick by scoring into the empty net late in the contest.
This was Tyler Sandhu’s return to Xfinity Arena after he was traded from Everett to Red Deer two weeks ago, and of course he ended up scoring a goal. I swear, former Silvertips must score half their post-Everett goals in this building.
TURNING POINT
That power-play goal Scherbak scored in the second period to make it 4-2 was huge. Red Deer had all the momentum at that point, and the Tips needed that one badly.
THREE STARS
First star: Scherbak. Three goals, congrats on the first career WHL hat trick. He now has 10 goals and 10 assists in 12 games since joining the Tips.
Second star: Conner Bleackley, Red Deer. Two goals, the guy is a tank.
Third star: Carson Stadnyk, Everett. One goal and one assist, played a big part in Everett’s fast start.
The Herald’s honorable mention: Ben Betker, Everett. No points, but Everett coach Kevin Constantine went out of his way to credit Betker’s defensive work for its effect on the outcome.
BOX SCORE
