EVERETT – The hex is over.
The spell the Vancouver Giants had woven over the Everett Silvertips this season was finally broken when Brady Calla scored with 18.4 seconds remaining in overtime, giving the Silvertips a 4-3 victory over the Giants on Saturday night in a Western Hockey League game.
“These guys have had our number all year, they’re an unbelievably talented team and we needed these two points really bad with Portland behind us here,” Everett defenseman Shaun Heshka said.
Torrie Wheat, Kyle Annesley and Heshka also scored goals and Leland Irving made 25 saves in net for Everett (29-24-7-2), which beat Vancouver for the first time in six attempts. The Silvertips now lead Portland by two points for second place in the U.S. Division.
“It was nice, finally, barely (to beat Vancouver),” Everett coach Kevin Constantine said.
“We were a little depleted body wise and I thought our guys battled extremely hard,” Constantine added. “Some guys had to play an extraordinary number of minutes and just battled their way through all of that.”
Jason Reese scored twice, Adam Courchaine also scored and goaltender Adam Jennings made 23 saves in goal for Vancouver (30-27-3-3).
Everett has had no luck against Vancouver this season. The Silvertips had lost all five of the teams’ previous meetings, three of those by a single goal, and many of those deciding goals coming late in the game.
With a severely depleted roster that forced Everett to dress just 19 players, it seemed unlikely that Saturday would be the day Everett finally ended that streak.
And when Vancouver’s Jason Reese scored with 1:47 remaining in regulation to tie the score at 3-3, it looked like it was going to be the same story all over again.
But this time the Silvertips found the formula in overtime. Everett poured on the pressure in search for the full two points, and that pressure paid off in the dying seconds. Calla’s shot from a tight angle was saved into the left slot by Jennings. Everett defenseman Mitch Love pinched in to poke the puck away from a Vancouver defenseman, and Calla came in and swept a spinning shot into the far corner of the net for the game winner.
“Games like that just show what kind of character we have on this team, for myself and a lot of the younger guys to step up and do our roles,” Calla said.
It looked like Everett had the game sewed up when Heshka blasted a shot into the top corner of the goal on the break at 14:45 of the third period, giving Everett a 3-2 lead with his 11th of the season.
But Reese secured a point for Vancouver at 18:13, putting the puck into an open net after Paul Albers’ errant blast from the right point hit hard off the back boards and into the left slot. The goal was Reese’s fourth of the season.
Everett went full out in overtime, with Jonathan Harty having a golden opportunity at the post, but unable to lift the puck over Jennings’ pad. But Calla saved Everett with his ninth goal of the season. The Silvertips outshot Vancouver 7-2 in overtime.
Everett scored first 3:29 into the game when Alex Leavitt found Wheat wide open at the far post for a tap in for his 22nd of the season. The Tips doubled their lead on the power play at 3:48 of the second period, Annesley forcing in a rebound for his eight of the season.
Vancouver cut the lead to one at 8:38 of the second period, Reese scoring on a wraparound. The Giants tied it at 9:55 of the third period, Courchaine sweeping a puck in off the post on the break for his 25th of the season.
Slap shots: Everett suited just 19 players. Center Zach Hamill, the team’s fourth-leading scorer, suffered a twisted ankle and left wing Brennan Zasitko tweaked his shoulder during Friday’s 2-0 loss at Tri-City. Also, defenseman Ivan Baranka missed his second straight game because of a deep bruise. All three are considered day-to-day. They joined long-term casualties Tyler Dietrich (ankle), Mark Kress (arm) and Jeremy Creurer on the scratch list. … Vancouver’s J.D. Watt created a bit of a stir in the first period when, after unsuccessfully trying to get Love to fight, he skated off the ice for his penalties doing a chicken immitation. … In the third period Everett left wing Michael Wuchterl did a spectacular flip in the air after being upended by Andrej Meszaros. Wuchterl fell hard and had to be helped from the ice, but later returned.
Silvertips 4, Giants 3 (OT)
Vancouver0120-3
Everett1111-4
First Period-1, Everett, Wheat 22 (Leavitt), 3:29.
Second Period-2, Everett, Annesley 8 (Blatchford, Heshka), 3:48 (pp). 3, Vancouver, Reese 3 (Courchaine), 8:38.
Third Period-4, Vancouver, Courchaine 25 (Gordichuk), 9:55. 5, Everett, Heshka 11 (Calla, Wuchterl), 14:45. 6, Vancouver, Reese 4 (Albers, Meszaros), 18:13.
Overtime-7, Everett, Calla 9 (Love), 4:41.
Shots on goal-Vancouver 9-9-8-2-28. Everett 6-4-10-7-27. Power-play opportunities-Vancouver 0 of 4. Everett 1 of 7.
Goalies-Vancouver, Jennings 6-8 (27 shots, 23 saves). Everett, Irving 8-7-1 (28 shots, 25 saves).
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