Silvertips win exhibition opener — and make moves before game

EVERETT — The Everett Silvertips won their opening game of the exhibition season Friday night.

But the more significant news may have occurred several hours earlier.

Everett picked up a potential impact player Friday when the Tips claimed overage forward Travis Dunstall off waivers, then Everett went out and beat the Tri-City Americans 4-2 in the Everett Silvertips Preseason Tournament.

Dunstall, a 5-foot-10 and 180-pound native of Onoway, Alberta, had 15 goals, 34 assists and 103 penalty minutes in 61 games for Medicine Hat last season. He was Kamloops’ first-round pick (16th overall) in the 2004 bantam draft before being traded to the Tigers midway through the 2007-08 season.

Dunstall, a player still trying to live up to his first-round status, was considered superfluous to Medicine Hat’s needs and was not invited to the Tigers’ training camp. He had been training with the Grand Prairie Storm of the Alberta Junior Hockey League.

“He’s another player who has skill, talent and ability,” Everett general manager Doug Soetaert said. “He had a decent year last year, but he has the potential to be a top-end player. We’re trying to create competition, and this adds to that.”

Dunstall, who’s scheduled to arrive today and could be in tonight’s lineup against Seattle, becomes Everett’s fifth overager competing for three spots, joining forwards Shane Harper, Zack Dailey and Alex Poulter and defenseman Colin Scherger — Dunstall, Poulter and Scherger are all waiver pick-ups. Soetaert said none of the five has a lock on a roster spot.

As for Friday’s game at Comcast Arena, goaltender Kent Simpson showed he was in midseason form, making 32 saves to lead the Tips.

Poulter, Harper, Kellan Tochkin, and Dale Hunt scored goals as Everett built a 4-0 lead, thanks to a combination of Simpson and superior finishing.

“This was the first time we’ve seen them in a real game and it got sloppy at times, but that’s normal,” new Everett coach Craig Hartsburg said. “I thought there were some spurts where we played really smart, really crisp hockey.

“I thought we played with some energy, and I thought we tried to put some pressure on people, though we still have a long ways to go to learn how to do it smart.”

Brett Plouffe and Jordan Messier scored in the final eight minutes for Tri-City. Drew Owsley made 22 saves in goal for the Americans.

Everett grabbed control of the game with two goals in the first five minutes, Poulter sneaking a backhand wraparound past Owsley to make it 1-0 1 minute 44 seconds in, and Tochkin scoring on the rebound on the power play at 4:32.

The Tips then put it away with two more goals in the second, Harper scoring when released by Hunt at 3:35, and Hunt poking in his own rebound on a five-on-three at 9:52.

Tri-City got on the board at 12:43 in the third on Plouffe’s one-timer during a four-on-three advantage, then the Americans scored again with 43 seconds remaining when Adam Hughesman’s shot deflected in off Messier.

Earlier games

Jonathan Parker had a goal and an assist as the Seattle Thunderbirds built a three-goal lead and hung on to defeat the Prince George Cougars 3-2 in the morning game. … Radim Valchar scored twice as the Portland Winterhawks held off the Spokane Chiefs 3-2 in the afternoon game.

Silvertips 4, Americans 2

Tri-City 0 0 2—2

Everett 2 2 0—4

First Period—1, Everett, Poulter 1 (Abney), 1:44. 2, Everett, Tochkin 1 (Froese, Theriau), 4:32 (pp). Penalties—McPhee, Tri-City (tripping), 3:08; Rankin, Tri-City (hooking), 7:26; Harper, Everett (interference), 9:37; Hunt, Everett (tripping), 17:22.

Second Period—3, Everett, Harper 1 (Hunt, Dailey), 3:35. 4, Everett, Hunt 1 (Harper, Murray), 9:52 (pp). Penalties—Hunt, Everett (hooking), 0:54; Rankin, Tri-City (interference), 5:19; Moser, Tri-City (hooking), 8:55; Prokop, Tri-City (boarding), 9:25; Abney, Everett (interference), 11:37; Sohor, Everett (interference), 15:25.

Third Period—5, Tri-City, Plouffe 1 (Dow, Reddick), 12:43 (pp). 6, Tri-City, J. Messier 1 (Hughesman), 19:17. Penalties—Dow, Tri-City (tripping), 3:09; Plouffe, Tri-City (cross-checking), 3:55; Tochkin, Everett (interference), 11:29; Hughesman, Tri-City (hooking), 11:57; Theriau, Everett (roughing), 12:32; Werbowski, Tri-City (interference), 15:37.

Shots on goal—Tri-City 8-13-13—34. Everett 9-11-6—26. Power-play opportunities—Tri-City 1 of 7. Everett 2 of 8.

Goalies—Tri-City, Owsley 0-1 (26 shots, 22 saves). Everett, Simpson 1-0 (34 shots, 32 saves).