EVERETT — One major question for the Everett Silvertips entering the 2016-17 season was the same as it was a year ago: Where will the goals come from?
It was a legitimate query for a team that struggled to score last season and then lost four of its top six point producers from last year’s campaign.
Well, this year’s contingent is averaging 3.41 goals per game, nearly a goal better than last year’s 2.53 tally. That, coupled with the league’s stingiest defense is a big reason why the Tips are 13-2-2-0 and atop the U.S. Division and second in the Western Conference.
The Tips can thank the uptick in goal production partly due to the acquisition of Dominic Zwerger from the Spokane Chiefs two games into the season.
The 20-year-old Austrian has been everything the Tips expected. He has scored seven goals and tallied 11 assists in 16 games with Everett. He also had a 10-game point streak that is the longest in the league this season.
“I think we have some chemistry going already,” Zwerger said. “I feel pretty comfortable already. They welcomed me pretty well here and I respect that.”
The chemistry that Zwerger mentioned refers specifically to his linemates, Patrick Bajkov and Matt Fonteyne, though Fonteyne missed seven games with a shoulder injury before returning to the lineup last week.
“You don’t get a lot of players with his skill set,” Bajkov said. “I was pretty excited and I was lucky enough to be on a line with him, and it’s worked out pretty well so far.”
The Silvertips employ a detailed structure that typically takes anywhere from three-to-eight weeks to pick up, according to head coach Kevin Constantine. It’s been six weeks since Zwerger joined the Tips and his success has translated into point production.
“I think he’s caught on probably a little quicker than average because he’s older and because I think his hockey IQ is pretty high,” Constantine said. “I’d also give a little credit to Spokane. I think Don (Nachbaur) is a good coach and so I think he probably came here with whatever base of knowledge he had as a person, which I think is probably pretty high. But I think it didn’t hurt to play for a very successful coach also.”
Zwerger found himself trapped in an overage numbers game in Spokane as the Chiefs entered training camp with five players competing for three spots. Someone had to go and it wound up being the Austrian who led Spokane in goals last year with 27 as he totaled 55 points.
“It was definitely a shock at first for me — I didn’t realize I was going to get traded,” he said. “Then after I saw I got traded to Everett I was pumped. It was a good thing for me, I think. I knew they were good team, (I could) stay in the U.S. (Division), have a chance to do something good.”
His first game against his former team came on Oct. 14, and Zwerger didn’t disappoint as he had two assists in Everett’s 4-3 overtime victory over the Chiefs. He also added an assist in Spokane’s 2-1 win over Everett on Oct. 18.
“It was different at first, playing against guys you played with for four years, but in the second game I adjusted pretty good,” he said. “We’re still friends off the ice, but I guess there is no such thing as being friends on the ice. They’re my opponents, so I guess I have to play the game the same way I do every night. I have to be physical with them as well as they are physical with me.”
The addition of Zwerger has also increased the production of his linemates. Bajkov (seven goals, 14 assists) leads the team in points with 21, while Fonteyne (three goals, seven assists) is averaging better than one point in the nine games in which he’s played.
“(Zwerger’s) hands and his speed can make me and Fonzy a little quicker,” Bajkov said. “I think getting him was a huge (acquisition).”
An acquisition that has helped keep the Tips atop the U.S. Division standings.
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