GAME DAY: Merritt Centennials (16-22-3-1) at Salmon Arm Silverbacks (26-14-0-2)

Merritt Centennials – (16-22-3-1) 

Two games against Trail two wins. The Cents are rolling into Salmon Arm on a good note as Brian Passmore’s new additions are all chipping in while the original Cents are starting to get comfortable in their roles. A much better defensive squad gave up less than 30 shots in back-to-back games and just 6 goals in their last 3 games. Andrew Ballantyne has strung together seven good games in a row as he continues to solidify that starting goaltender role for Merritt. The Cents will have their hands full however in one of the toughest buildings to win the BCHL. Merritt better get used to it with two games in Salmon Arm and two games in Penticton down the stretch. 

Salmon Arm Silverbacks – (26-14-0-2) 

The Silverbacks are the 3rd best home team in the BCHL. At 16-3-1 the Shaw Centre was not kind to the Centennials in their last visit, losing 7-1 here in both teams’ only matchup. Salmon Arm dropped 6-4 and 5-4 decisions in West Kelowna and Vernon before coming home and beating the Vees 3-2 in overtime on Patrick Raftery’s first goal in the BCHL. Eli Pulver was back to his old tricks stopping 29 of 31 shots including 5 in overtime in the win.

Previous Meetings;

Both teams will be playing just their second game of the season against each other but this is the first of three in a row. The next two games will be played in Merritt in what could be a playoff preview if the cards fall in that direction. Both teams are hovering around .500 in their last ten games while the Cents are coming off the high of back-to-back wins and a huge road win the Silverbacks have sputtered at 5-5-0 their last ten games. Salmon Arm has also lost 4 of their last 6 games and will need to right the ship if they want to catch up to West Kelowna and possibly leave Vernon in the dust.

Merritt Centennials | Zach Amin Photography

Special Teams Comparison;

Cents PP: 29/142 (20.42%) (13th)     PK: 31/150 (79.33%) (7th)

Backs  PP: 29/123 (23.58%) (4th) PK: 23/120 (80.83%) (3rd)

Players to Watch:

Felsing led all BCHL players with four assists last week, leading his Centennials to back-to-back wins.

Felsing’s impressive campaign continues, adding to his total to now sit at 49 points in 42 games, which puts him in sixth in league scoring, while his 35 assists are third best in the BCHL.

Despite his team dropping two close games over the weekend, Cooksey put up a solid individual performance, scoring three goals and adding an assist for four points.

The Toronto product sits third on the team with 14 goals in 37 games, while his 11 assists give him 25 points on the year.

NVMA | Centennials.ca

Keys to Victory:

Key number 1 – Keep the good times rollin’ The team is feeling it right now. Probably the biggest win of the season last Saturday in Trail and a long happy bus ride home for the Cents. Will confidence and good vibes alone be enough to power them to their second straight road victory? It seems they have nowhere to go but up after a 7-1 loss here in their last visit.

Key Number 2 –  Keep up the defensive performance. Six goals against in three games and under 30 shots in back-to-back games is the best defensive stretch of the season for sure. If the Centennials can continue their defensive tightness in all zones they will have a much better chance to go toe to toe with one of the big dogs of the BCHL in the Salmon Arm Silverbacks.

Key number 3 – Continue putting pucks through the crease and getting rebounds or tips from the point. These kinds of offensive plays are the exact reason why the Cents have been able to see a rise in scoring lately. Most of their goals have come from 6-10 feet in front of the net of late. While Salmon Arm won’t be giving up easy ones, shots from the point can still result in tips or rebounds. That’s how Ray Hamlin scored the winner in Saturday’s 4-3 comeback win in Trail.