KELOWNA, B.C. — The Everett Silvertips are back even.
After starting the season with four straight defeats, Everett clawed its way back to .500 with a 4-3 victory over the Kelowna Rockets on Friday night.
Everett built a 4-1 lead, then held on as Kelowna put in a determined effort to catch back up.
Shane Harper, Kyle Beach, Dane Crowley and Dan Gendur scored goals for Everett (5-5-0-0), which won its fourth straight. Leland Irving made 23 saves in goal to earn the win.
However, the Tips suffered a blow when captain Jonathan Harty went down with a leg injury early in the second period. Harty had to be helped off the ice and did not return. Everett led 4-1 at the time of the injury.
Jamie Benn scored two goals and Justin Bernhardt also scored for Kelowna (4-5-1-0). Kristofer Westblom had 23 saves in net for the Rockets.
Everett couldn’t have gotten off to a better start, opening the scoring 1 minute, 59 seconds in and leading 3-0 after 17 minutes.
Harper got the Tips on the board early with a rebound goal that put Everett up 1-0. It was 2-0 at 8:45 when, on the power play, Beach took a feed from Harty while entering the zone and beat Westblom with a wrist shot. Then the Tips went up 3-0 with another power-play goal, Crowley blowing a slap shot past Westblom at the near post.
However, the Tips gave the Rockets a lengthy five-on-three power play at the end of the period and Kelowna capitalized, Benn scoring after a nice passing move to make it 3-1 at 19:34. It was the eighth five-on-three goal the Tips have surrendered this season.
Everett restored its two-goal lead 2:58 into the second period when Gendur one-timed a shot past Westblom off a turnover. However, the Rockets again came back on the power play, Bernhardt coming away with the puck from a scrum in the corner and wrapping a shot around Irving to make it 4-2.
Benn scored his second 1:25 into the second period, flipping a backhander past Irving to make it exciting. But despite controlling play the rest of the way, the Rockets were unable to find the tying goal.
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