The main camp is wrapped up, as is the preseason, the 22-man roster has been set – all that’s left is to start the regular season.
A water main break on Saturday morning flooded the lower part of Kal Tire Place, in Vernon, and forced the Vipers to cancel their final exhibition game against the Silverbacks.
As a result of the flooding in Vernon, the ‘Backs final preseason game was played out at the Shaw Centre on Friday night.
With an older and more experienced roster, the Silverbacks blanked the Vipers 1-0 in front of their home crowd.
Trevin Kozlowski, the rookie goaltender from southern California has impressed throughout the camp and preseason, which was highlighted by his 28-save shutout performance on Friday.
The game remained scoreless up until the midway point of the second period when White Rock-native Ben Evanish scored just after a Vernon goalie change.
“They scored off a giveaway midway through the second period,” said Vipers’ head coach/GM Mark Ferner.
“They went backdoor, tap-in and it was Cole Demers’ first shot, poor kid.”
The ’Backs continued to hem the Vipers in their own zone and create a flurry of offensive chances. Unfortunately, the Silverbacks could not increase their lead as Vipers goaltender Demers was equal to the task and shut out the ’Backs after conceding the second-period goal.
On Monday, the Silverbacks took a break from the ice to enjoy themselves and took part in a team-building scavenger hunt exercise.
The scavenger hunt took the teams of players around uptown and downtown Salmon Arm and wrapped up at Canoe Beach.
The Silverbacks strength this season just might be the club’s depth in every position.
In goal, both Michael Botiz and Trevin Kozlowski impressed and there should be healthy competition between the duo for playing time.
The return of eight players to the Silverbacks should bring leadership, maturity and stability to the squad. Silverbacks GM Troy Mick worked hard in the off-season to bolster the blueline, and the addition of Carter Cochrane will undoubtably help add stability to the defence core, alongside Cam Trott and Ryley Booth.
New players in the line up such as Ben Evanish, Justin Wilson, Nathan Iannone and Josh Latta should provide a spark of energy and enthusiasm.
“I’ve been really impressed by the level of skill and character shown by our players throughout camp and pre-season,” said head coach Brandon West.
“We are big, fast, strong and posses a high skill set and can compete with any team in the league.”
The Silverbacks will kick off the 2016-17 season at home to the Vipers on Friday, Sept. 9 at 7 p.m.
