Silverbacks Beat Vipers Again:

This is posted on the Vipers website:

Silverbacks beat Vipers again

by Don Klepp | Added 2010-11-12

In the first two games of the season for the Vipers and the Salmon Arm Silverbacks, the ‘Backs handed the defending Canadian champions two defeats. Their third straight win over the Vipers, by a score of 3-2, came Friday night in Vernon.

Salmon Arm got off to a great start, with a goal just 21 seconds into the contest. A high tempo three-way passing play was finished off by Devin Gannon’s tap in at Blake Voth’s crease.

The Silverbacks continued to press the Vipers in the early going as they registered the first four shots of the game. They nearly added to their lead on a power play following Darren Nowick’s tripping penalty at 7:03, but they just missed on three back door passes with a man open at the edge of the crease.

Gradually, though, the Vipers worked their way into the contest and they counted the last 12 shots of the period. Two of those shots were converted into goals just nine seconds apart.

Aaron Hadley, on the heels of a two-goal game in the Vipers’ last game, scored both first-period markers.

The first one came at 18:09, following a coast to coast rush by fellow Vernonite, Max Mowat. Hadley tapped in Mowat’s cross crease pass.

On the ensuing faceoff, John Knisley won the draw back to Max Mowat, who returned the disk to Knisley. Quickly, Knisley skated the puck forward and set up Hadley’s 7th goal of the season.

The goalies came to the fore early in the second period. First, Matt Cassidy picked off an errant Viper defensive zone pass. Cassidy’s shot seemed destined to go in, but Blake Voth fired out his right pad to deny Cassidy.

Then, Bryce Kakoske made a series of great moves, stick handling through the Silverback defenders, but Chase Martin got an arm on Kakoske’s shot.

In the middle part of the period, Salmon Arm regained the lead with two goals from a bad at 11:47. Paul DeJersey, in his first game as a Silverback, shot from the right boards deep in the Viper zone. The puck hit Blake Voth’s shoulder and fell into the net.

Nearly two minutes later, Devin Gannon collected his second of the night when his hopeful sharp angle flip went in off the side of Voth’s pad. At that point, Mark Ferner sent Bryton Udy to replace Voth in the Viper net.

Penalty killing formed the story for the remainder of the game. In the middle part of the third period, Salmon Arm had a five-on-three power play for nearly two minutes, but Bryton Udy’s strong goaltending and disciplined work by the Viper defenders kept the Silverbacks at bay.

Meanwhile, the ‘Backs displayed some fine PK work of their own. In the end, the Vipers went scoreless on eight power plays, largely due to aggressive defending by the visitors