Salmon Arm goalie Adam Clark allowed just two goals on 76 shots as he backstopped the Silverbacks to a pair of wins over the Trail Smoke Eaters on the weekend.
Clark was perfect in a 4-0 shut out Friday night then put in a 41 save performance in a 5-2 victory over the Smokies on Saturday. Despite outshooting the ‘Backs in both games, Trail had a hard time solving the hulking six-foot-five New Hampshire University commit.
With the two division losses and its third in the last three games, Trail falls a point behind Salmon Arm and Vernon in the fight for a playoff spot in the Interior division.
Evan Anderson scored the winner, when he stole the puck from a Smokie defender and slipped it by goalie Lyndon Stanwood at 17:02 of the second period for a 3-1 Silverbacks lead.
Ryan Schwalbe opened the scoring at 5:01 in the first, wristing a shot by Stanwood to put the ‘Backs up 1-0. The Smokies would tie it less than a minute later after Brent Baltus finished a nice passing play with Garrett McMullen and Scott Davidson.
However, Steve Iacobellis scored his first of two on the night, converting a pass from new captain Brandon Mistal to put the ‘Backs up for good.
Baltus notched his second of the night, at 8:35 of the third to make it 3-2 but Iacobellis and Anderson each added their second of the night to finish the scoring, to make the final 5-2.
The shots were 43-34 in favour Trail.
On Friday night, the Smokies had a rare off game at home, as they looked sluggish and had a hard time generating any meaningful offensive opportunities. Salmon Arm scored two power-play goals and a short-handed marker, and Clark stopped all 28 shots to lead the ‘Backs to their fourth win in a row.
The Smokies went 0-for-13 on the power play on the weekend, and will need a much improved effort when they hit the road for three games next weekend. The Smokies play the Powell River Kings Friday, Coquitlam Express Saturday, and Chilliwack Chiefs Sunday.
