By Marc Fitzgerald

Chilliwack Chiefs V. Salmon Arm Silverbacks

7pm – Shaw Centre – 89.5 The Hawk/895thehawk.com

Season Series: Chilliwack has dominated the head to head matchup between the two, winning all five games, including one in overtime. Tuesday’s game marks the first half of a weeklong ‘home and home’ with Salmon Arm, as the two teams will meet again on February 28^th at Prospera Centre. The Chiefs won’t play again after tonight until that game on the 28^th.

 Last Meeting: The Chiefs scored three times in the 2^nd period en route to a 4-1 win over the Silverbacks in the ‘Arm back on December 17^th. Chilliwack’s top line of Malcolm Gould, Derek Huisman, and David Bondra were instrumental, combining for 10 points, including a Gould hat-trick. Huisman would finish with a goal and three assists, and Bondra chipped in with three helpers as well.  Mitch Gillam made 22 saves for the win in the second to last game before the Christmas break.

The Rundown: Chilliwack enters this game with a playoff spot in their possession – but not by much. The boys lead the Vernon Vipers by just a single point with eight games remaining. Chilliwack also holds a game in hand on Vernon going into tonight. As we all know, games in hand mean nothing if you don’t win them.

The Chiefs should have some confidence, coming off a galvanizing 4-3 overtime win over the Westside Warriors on Sunday afternoon. Malcolm Gould scored twice in that game, including the overtime winner. The North Vancouver native is on fire, with seven goals, and fourteen points in his last ten games. He has collected at least one point in nine of his last ten – and he had a big night at the Shaw Centre on December 17^th the last time these teams met, with a hat-trick. Look for the Gould-Huisman-Bondra line to keep it going tonight.

It doesn’t appear that either Shea Laurent or Tyler Miller will be fit to play on D for the Chiefs Tuesday, which means Kody Dhaliwal may see some time on the blueline for the fourth straight game, depending on what Harvey Smyl decides with potential affiliate player callups. There’s a few defensemen he could call on, including Robert Jang, Rylan Bechtel, or Terrence Limbert. All three have gotten some experience on the back end with the Chiefs this season. However, a thirteenth forward won’t be a luxury for this trip, as Matthieu Tibbett will stay behind to work on a knee that was re-aggravated in the win over Westside on Sunday.

Getting back to Dhaliwal, he’ll be facing his former Silverback teammates for the first time since being acquired at the trade deadline on January 10^th. On the other side, defenseman Mike Berry will face his former Chilliwack team as well. Berry suited up for 34 games with the Chiefs this year until he was shipped off at the deadline.

As for the Silverbacks, their season of change and rebuilding continues, as Colin O’Hara’s club has won only two of their past ten games. Morgan Zulinick and Devin Mueller are still looked upon to create most of the offense, as the two are the Backs’ top scorers this season. They have yet to beat the Chiefs this year, and are winless in two tries against Chilliwack on their home ice at the Shaw Centre.  

Comments

Posted by: loveinchilliwack on February 22 2012 12:45 PM

The Chiefs are in need of gaining some momentum as the season is winding down. This is a weaker team so Chilliwack should be able to grab the 2 points. I hope they don't underestimate this team.