EVERETT — The way the Everett Silvertips stumbled out of the gate to start the season, it was going to take something special to get themselves turned back in the right direction.
Leave it to the player who fought hardest to counter the negative trend during the season’s first two weeks to produce that special moment.
Kyle Beach scored an unbelievable goal, scoring from behind the net with a gravity defying move, and the Silvertips won their first game of the season by defeating the Spokane Chiefs 4-0 Wednesday night at Comcast Arena.
“That eclipses (Zach) Hamill’s goal as ‘The Goal,’” Everett coach John Becanic said, referring to Hamill’s shootout winner last season when Hamill scored by shooting from between his legs.
Hamill had a goal and two assists and Leland Irving was back to his very best for Everett (1-4-0-0), which finally gave Becanic his first victory in the Western Hockey League as a head coach.
“The guys came out hard tonight,” said Beach, who now has five goals in four games. “We played the systems to a T, we didn’t give many chances up. For Coach B to get his first win and the team to get our first win of the season, it’s a great feeling.”
Said Becanic: “The nicest thing is how happy the guys are for me. They’re not even happy for themselves, every guy was genuinely happy for me, and that meant a lot. That goes back to our family concept and it’s nice to think they like you.”
The celebrations had to be tempered, however, as Everett center Zack Dailey had to be taken away in an ambulance in the third period, a high hit by Spokane defenseman Justin Falk leaving Dailey convulsing on the ice. Dailey was immobilized, but was conscious and acknowledged the crowd as he was stretchered off the ice. The extent of his injury was unknown.
Shane Harper and Lukas Vartovnik also scored for Everett. Irving, who struggled in Everett’s first four games, was rock solid in net, making 27 saves to pick up the shutout.
“Irving made three saves in the first period that kept us in the game when we weren’t very good,” Becanic said. “What you saw tonight was why he’s considered one of the best in the world.”
Dustin Tokarski finished with 19 saves in net for Spokane (3-1-0-0), which came into the game as one of the hottest teams in the league. The Chiefs hadn’t lost yet this season, a span that included six exhibition games, as well as three regular season road games won by a combined score of 16-5.
“I thought we didn’t play very well,” Spokane coach Bill Peters said. “We put ourselves behind the eight-ball with a lack of discipline (giving Everett 11 power plays). In essence they were all specialty team goals with two on the power play, one short-handed and one at the tail end of a power play.”
For four-plus games the 2007-08 season was nothing but frustration for Everett as everything went wrong. The haphazard play continued early Wednesday, only the efforts of Irving keeping the game scoreless after one period.
But that all changed thanks to a moment of pure magic by Beach.
On the power play, Beach took the puck behind the net, picked it up on the blade of his stick, then wrapped it around the post and stuffed it in behind Tokarski to give the Tips the lead 1 minute, 24 seconds into the second.
“Ever since Hamill’s between the legs goal we’ve had a little competition, who was going to do it first,” Beach explained about the move. “I’ve practiced it quite a bit. It was one of the four (goals), but I think the main thing tonight was the way the team played and the way we came together.”
That seemed to be just the thing Everett’s season needed as everything started going Everett’s way from there. It was quickly 2-0 when at 4:04, Jordan Mistelbacher feeding a nice cross-crease pass for Harper to slam in at the far post.
The Tips even got it right while short-handed. Ten seconds after going down a man, Hamill found himself with a breakaway, held off a backchecking Chief and made a nice move before slipping the puck between Tokarski’s legs, giving Everett a back-breaking 3-0 lead at 14:23.
“I think the Beach goal gave us a lot of life,” Becanic said. “I think guys were excited to play again. You’re a little nervous, a little tentative, you’re 0-4 and everyone’s gripping the stick tight. Then Beach scores a goal like that and it seems like everything kind of fell into place.”
Slap shots: Everett was without defenseman Dane Crowley, who was away attending a funeral. With defenseman Jeff Regier also given the night off, it meant a WHL debut for defenseman Chris de la Lande. … With Crowley gone and forward Brandon Campos released, Everett was able to bring overage winger Brennan Sonne back into the lineup.
Nick Patterson’s Silvertips blog: http://www.heraldnet.com/silvertipsblog
Silvertips 4, Chiefs 0
Spokane000—0
Everett031—4
First Period—No goals. Penalties—Wahl, Spokane (hooking), 6:50; Rutherford, Spokane (high sticking), 9:52; Falk, Spokane (roughing-roughing), 10:51; Beach, Everett (slashing), 10:51; Strong, Everett (high sticking), 13:26; Donaghy, Spokane (holding), 17:20.
Second Period—1, Everett, Beach 5 (Hamill, Fiala), 1:24 (pp). 2, Everett, Harper 1 (Mistelbacher, Dailey), 4:04. 3, Everett, Hamill 1, 14:23 (sh). Penalties—Bruton, Spokane (interference), 0:29; Reddington, Spokane (fighting), 1:42; Sonne, Everett (fighting), 1:42; Cowen, Spokane (delay of game), 1:53; Vartovnik, Everett (hooking), 5:06; Hamill, Everett (roughing), 8:39; Dailey, Everett (tripping), 14:13; Bowman, Spokane (roughing), 20:00; Bruton, Spokane (fighting0, 20:00; Potuer, Everett (roughing), 20:00; Harty, Everett (fighting), 20:00.
Third Period—4, Everett, Vartovnik 3 (Beach, Hamill), 1:36 (pp). Penalties—Cowen, Spokane (hooking), 0:36; Bowman, Spokane (goaltender interference), 2:47; Falk, Spokane (major-charging-fighting-game misconduct), 6:40; Beach, Everett (instigator-fighting-10-minute misconduct), 6:40; Potuer, Everett (interference), 6:59; Blackwater, Spokane (goaltender interference), 7:19; Hamill, Everett (interference), 9:43; Ellington, Everett (delay of game), 11:23; Blackwater, Spokane (roughing), 14:05; Rutherford, Spokane (10-minute misconduct), 16:56; Donaghy, Spokane (fighting), 16:56; Potuer, Everett (roughing-10-minute misconduct), 16:56; Vartovnik, Everett (fighting), 16:56.
Shots on goal—Spokane 9-6-12—27. Everett 7-9-7—23. Power-play opportunities—Spokane 0 of 8. Everett 2 of 11.
Goalies—Spokane, Tokarski 1-1-0-0 (23 shots, 19 saves). Everett, Irving 1-3-0-0 (27 shots, 27 saves).
A—4,179.
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