EVERETT — The final weekend of the first half of the season has arrived for the Everett Silvertips.
And the Tips have some work to do if they want to avoid going into the Christmas break like a child slipping down a waterslide.
Everett comes into this final weekend having lost four straight, and with a lengthy Christmas break to follow, the Tips want to make sure they don’t spend their time home stewing over a long losing streak.
“Nobody wants to go into any break losing a hockey game, whether it’s a streak or just losing your last game,” Everett coach John Becanic said.
Everett’s had a good first half. The Tips, expected to be among the league’s worst teams at the start of the season, have surprised, in large part because of unexpected production from their rookies. Going into tonight, Everett is 14-12-5-0, good for third in the U.S. Division and fifth in the Western Conference.
But this weekend, with Everett hosting Medicine Hat tonight and Prince George on Saturday, could change the perception of the first half. Earn points in the final two games before the break and the Tips can celebrate a successful first 33 games. But any momentum gained from the first half could be blunted should the Tips head into the second half on a six-game skid.
“It would really be nice to go into the break four games over .500,” Becanic said. “I think at the beginning of the year anybody would have said that would be a huge success. We almost feel we’ve fallen a bit short because we’ve let a few slip away. Still, we’re a couple games over .500, we have a chance to finish four above and that would put us real close to that last home-ice playoff spot.”
However the weekend unfolds, the Tips will have plenty of time to reflect on the outcomes. Following Saturday’s game, the players head home for the holidays, with the next game on Dec. 27, a full 14 days later. Everett was originally scheduled to have just nine days off for Christmas, but the home game against Vancouver originally scheduled for Wednesday was moved to Feb. 25. As a result, the Tips are enjoying their longest Christmas break in franchise history.
They’ll be able to enjoy it all the more if they can go into it with a pair of victories.
“That would help the guys’ confidence over Christmas,” Everett captain Zack Dailey said. “They’ll be like, ‘We won the last two so we’re on the right track.’ So, I think it’s really important for our confidence.”
The good news for Everett is that the Tips are facing two teams each missing their top player. Medicine Hat is without 19-year-old center Tyler Ennis and Prince George will be without the services of 19-year-old center Dana Tyrell. Both are attending Team Canada’s selection camp for the World Junior Hockey Championships.
“I don’t think that will hurt Med. Hat,” Becanic said. “They’re pretty talented up front, they have nine or 10 really good forwards. I think the Tyrell loss for PG will be a much more significant one. They’re just not as deep up front as (the Tigers).”
While Everett finishes off its first half this weekend, its opponents still have a busy road ahead. Medicine Hat is just beginning a road trip that includes five games in six days, while Prince George is in the midst of a weekend with three road games, with a another game at home Wednesday. Therefore, Everett should be free to expend full energy, moreso than its opponents.
“I think we just have to work hard,” Dailey said. “We have two games left and then 14 days off, so we just have to give everything we have these last two games. If we come out with energy we’ll be fine in both games.”
Nick Patterson’s Silvertips blog: http://www.heraldnet.com/silvertipsblog
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