SEATTLE — How bad has the Seattle jinx gotten for the Everett Silvertips? Even when the game starts just the way Everett scripted it, things still go wrong against the Thunderbirds.
Despite a first period that followed coach John Becanic’s formula for ending Everett’s frustration against the T-birds to the letter, the Tips succumbed once again to their greatest nemesis, falling 4-3 at KeyArena.
Prab Rai had a goal and three assists, setting up David Richard’s game-winning short-handed goal early in the third period, and Seattle overcame a 2-0 deficit by overwhelming the Tips with its speed.
And Everett once again found itself on the losing end against the T-birds. Seattle has won all six meetings between the teams this season.
“I can’t really put a finger on it,” Everett leading scorer Dan Gendur said about the Tips’ struggles against Seattle. “Last year we were 6-0 against Vancouver (which went on to win the Memorial Cup). I bet they were feeling the same way we’re feeling right now.”
Prior to the game Becanic laid out a plan for finally beating Seattle: Get some early power plays and convert. That scenario played out perfectly as Everett got the game’s first five power plays, scoring twice to take a 2-0 lead after the first period.
However, Seattle’s speed was causing Everett all kinds of problems. Eventually it was the speedy Rai who began Seattle’s comeback, using a quick burst to set up a short-handed goal for Jim O’Brien early in the second period, and Everett never found a way to cope.
“I thought our guys really drove the net well, really entered wide well with that speed,” Seattle coach Rob Sumner said. “O’Brien certainly, Richard, I thought their speed was most telling.”
Richard finished with two goals and Riku Helenius made 15 saves in net for Seattle (23-17-5-2), which pulled within seven points of Everett for fifth place in the Western Conference. Seattle has five games in hand.
“They’re a good team,” Rai said of the Tips. “For some reason we have their number right now.
“We know we’re chasing them in the standings, and it’s a just a big night every night playing against Everett because they’re our rivals.”
Gendur had a goal and two assists, Zach Hamill scored twice and Leland Irving stopped 30 shots in goal for Everett (29-21-0-2), which had its six-game winning streak snapped.
At least this time Everett managed to find the net a few times. In the previous five losses to Seattle the Tips managed just five total goals, no more than two in any game.
However, Everett also handed two of those goals right back, allowing Seattle to score twice while short-handed.
“Outworked, outcompeted, power play cost us the game,” was Becanic’s succinct evaluation.
“(The T-birds) had jump,” Becanic added. “They got beat (by Spokane on Friday) night, so they were hungry. And us, when you win six in a row sometimes you think it’s going to come easy and you just don’t work hard.”
Gendur, with three more points, is in the midst of the greatest offensive stretch in Silvertips history, notching 32 points in the past 14 games. However, Gendur took sole responsibility for the loss after his turnover led to Richard’s winning goal.
“I cost us the game with that costly turnover at the end of the game,” Gendur said. “I owe everyone two points next game. I’m pretty speechless right now.”
Everett actually got the puck in the net again midway through the third period when, after another great move by Gendur on the rush, a crashing Clayton Bauer forced in the rebound. However, the goal was waved off because Bauer kicked it in.
Everett took the lead 6 minutes, 55 seconds into the game when Gendur snapped a one-timer from the high slot past Helenius. The Tips struck again at 14:55 when, just as a five-on-three advantage expired, Hamill put in a rebound.
But the 2-0 lead was deceiving and the T-birds translated their domination onto the scoreboard with a three-goal burst in the second. O’Brien’s short-hander came just 2:48 in. Rai then scored on the power play at 10:11, tipping a rebound off the back boards in behind Irving. Richard then gave Seattle the lead at 18:32 on a feed from O’Brien.
It seemed Everett was dead and buried, but the Tips gave themselves new life with 44.8 seconds remaining in the period. Gendur released Hamill up the middle for a breakaway, and although he was was hooked on the play, Hamill put his shot into the top corner to tie it back up.
Slap shots: Everett had a string of 46 consecutive successful penalty kills snapped by Rai’s power-play goal. … Everett was missing three key players because of injury. Defenseman Taylor Ellington suffered a fractured bone in his foot from blocking a shot during Thursday’s 5-4 shootout victory in Prince George. He’ll be out two to three weeks. Center Vitali Karamnov, who suffered a bruised clavicle in that same game, is also out two weeks. They joined right wing Kyle Beach (concussion) as injury scratches. … Seattle played without left wing Jan Eberle because of a concussion.
Thunderbirds 4, Silvertips 3
Everett210—3
Seattle031—4
@5. NHL box :First Period—1, Everett, Gendur 21 (Bauer), 6:55 (pp). 2, Everett, Hamill 17 (Gendur, Harty), 14:55. Penalties—Schappert, Seattle (delay of game), 5:33; Hickey, Seattle (holding), 12:54; Richard, Seattle (cross checking), 14:10; Nielsen, Seattle (kneeing), 17:40.
Second Period—3, Seattle, O’Brien 11 (Rai), 2:48 (sh). 4, Seattle, Rai 6 (Holloway, Scott), 10:11 (pp). 5, Seattle, Richard 10 (O’Brien, Rai), 18:32. 6, Everett, Hamill 18 (Gendur, Bauer), 19:15. Penalties—Richard, Seattle (hooking), 0:59; Burt, Everett (boarding), 7:40; Crowley, Everett (cross checking), 9:02; Crowley, Everett (hooking), 19:53.
Third Period—7, Seattle, Richard 11 (Rai), 5:58 (sh). Penalties—Scott, Seattle (high sticking-high sticking), 2:05.
Shots on goal—Everett 6-6-6—18. Seattle 10-19-5—34. Power-play opportunities—Everett 2 of 7. Seattle 1 of 3.
Goalies—Everett, Irving 21-17-0-2 (34 shots, 30 saves). Seattle, Helenius 13-9-5-1 (18 shots, 15 saves).
A—5,771.
Nick Patterson’s Silvertips blog: http://www.heraldnet.com/silvertipsblog
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