The 91原创 91原创 have hit some turbulent waters in the new year.
Counting Tuesday night鈥檚 5-2 home-ice loss to the Salmon Arm Silverbacks, 91原创鈥檚 junior A hockey team is 2-5 in January, and have slipped to second place in the B.C. Hockey League鈥檚 Mainland Division.
The 91原创 (20-14-10-2) now sit two points back of the Prince George Spruce Kings and Surrey Eagles, tied for top spot in the division with 54 points each.
All three of the aforementioned teams have clinched a playoff spot with the Chilliwack Chiefs sitting fourth, five points back of the 91原创 and the struggling Coquitlam Express occupying the division basement with a 13-29-1-3 mark.
Against the Silverbacks, the 91原创 were without their two main offensive weapons in captain Brendan Budy along with Angus Crookshank, who were playing in the CJHL Prospects Game in Mississauga, Ont. (Port Credit Memorial Arena).
Between Budy and Crookshank, that鈥檚 30 goals and 73 points missing from the 91原创鈥檚 lineup. Budy leads the 91原创 in scoring with 15 goals and 26 assists.
91原创 forwards Brendan Budy (138th) and Angus Crookshank (139th) respectively ranked for North American skaters by NHL for the 2018 NHL Draft. They鈥檒l both play in the Prospects game tomorrow night!
鈥� 91原创 91原创 (@91原创91原创)
Tuesday at the George Preston Recreation Centre (GPRC), the 91原创 erased a 2-0 third period deficit, only to see the Silverbacks score three unanswered goals (including an empty netter with 49 seconds to play in regulation).
The Silverbacks鈥� Justin Wilson snapped the 2-2 tie at the 14:25 mark of the third period.
Wilson鈥檚 marker turned out to be the game winner, with Salmon Arm鈥檚 Nick Unruh adding an insurance goal 3:44 later.
Then, with 91原创 goaltender Braedon Fleming on the bench for an extra attacker, the Silverbacks鈥� Tanner Campbell deposited the puck into the empty 91原创 net to cap the night鈥檚 scoring.
The goal was Campbell鈥檚 second of the night.
The Silverbacks outshot the 91原创 34-22.
After falling behind 2-0 after 40 minutes, the 91原创 rallied in the third on goals from Ethan Leyh and Sean Gulka on a power play to tie the game, but couldn鈥檛 find the net again after that.
Considering the number of affiliate players in his team鈥檚 lineup, 91原创 head coach Bobby Henderson was happy with the 鈥楳en鈥檚 resolve against the Silverbacks.
鈥淭hey played hard,鈥� Henderson said. 鈥淭o come back in the third and make a game of it, I was proud of the effort and character. Their go-ahead goal was unfortunate (for us) and then they got an empty netter. So it鈥檚 one of those nights. We were missing some pretty good players out of our lineup and the affiliates who came in worked hard and contributed.鈥�
Along with Budy and Crookshank, the 91原创 were minus forwards Trevor St. Jean (12 goals, 23 points), Brady Berger, and Tanner Versluis against the Silverbacks.
鈥淲e鈥檝e got all hands on deck and we鈥檙e trying to get through it,鈥� Henderson said. 鈥淎t this time of the year everybody鈥檚 bumped up and sick, and we鈥檒l push hard down the stretch and try to put ourselves in the the best position for the playoffs.鈥�
The 91原创 return to action with a pair of games this weekend.
On Friday, they host the Prince George Spruce Kings at the GPRC, with a 7 p.m. opening faceoff.
On Saturday, the 91原创 travel to Chilliwack鈥檚 Prospera Centre to take on the Chiefs with a 7 p.m. start time.
Prospects Game
Budy, Crookshank, and Team West defeated Team East 5-2.
Crookshank opened the scoring 13:08 into the opening frame, and delivered a beautiful setup to Chilliwack Chiefs鈥� forward Corey Andonovski to make it 2-1 Team West in the second period (Budy picked up the second assist on Andonovski鈥檚 goal).
Budy also posted a helper in the third period as both 91原创 finished with two points.
Rosters for the Prospects Game were chosen in partnership with NHL Central Scouting and are made up of players recommended by NHL Central Scouting.
The skaters and goalies play in front of scouts from all over the hockey world, including the NHL, NCAA, Major Junior and Canadian universities and colleges.
Budy and Crookshank are ranked 138th and 139th among North American skaters when NHL Central Scouting released its midseason rankings on Monday.
Both have a chance to get selected by NHL teams when the The 2018 NHL entry draft is held in Dallas June 22 and 23.
