Road Tips: Day Eleven
There are several things that are now evident after the Silvertips’ 3-2 OT loss to Calgary to conclude a 4-1-1 roadtrip:
The goaltending has come together. Thomas Heemskerk, as he has done throughout the entire trip, gave the team another terrific 60+ minutes in goal and finished up the trip with 125 saves on 130 shots, good for a .962 save percentage. Kent Simpson has been a terrific complement to Heemskerk, continuing to show quickness around the crease. Statistically, Silvertip goalies have ranked among the top two or three goaltending tandems in the league with a .921 save percentage thus far.
The penalty kill has improved. Limping into the trip as the second-worst kill in the WHL, the Silvertips did not allow a power play goal until the final game of the swing and finished 26 of 28 overall, moving past 10 teams on the PK. Everett’s penalty killing on the road is ranked 5th in the WHL at 83%.
Byron Froese has added finesse to his game. Always regarded as a hard worker, someone who pays the price to score goals around the net, and being strong on faceoffs, Froese continues to add a touch of flair to his overall package, producing several of the team’s highlight reel plays throughout the trip. His one-timed fake slapshot/pass to Maxwell to tie the game in the second period was one of the season’s early highlights, complementing his scorer’s touch in Medicine Hat when he cut through the defense to wire a wristshot up high into the back of the net to give the Silvertips the lead in the third period. He was among the most impressive forwards between amongst the Silvertips and their opponents this trip.
Looking to build on the experience of a successful roadtrip, the ‘Tips need to channel all the focus and work ethic they displayed during the Calgary game and replicate it on Tuesday in Spokane, where the Chiefs will provide a tough battle.
The bus ride home passed without much to report on – we left the Saddledome at 9:55 mountain time and after a showing of Transformers 2, the DVD was turned off and the players were encouraged to get to sleep quickly, which they were more than happy to comply with. A 3 AM border crossing in Eastport, Idaho brought the players shuffling off the bus into the customs offices, and after returning to the bus and falling to sleep once again, many of us were awoken to the sound of rain crashing against the bus through the Snoqualmie Pass and into Issaquah. A soggy commute through the eastside brought us back to Comcast Arena at just before 10 AM, ending an eleven hour drive and a trip in which further puzzle pieces of the 2009-10 season were revealed and assembled.
We’ll see you back at Comcast Arena on Friday night! Thanks for reading Road Tips!
