Everett Silvertips
| Everett Silvertips | |
|---|---|
| File:Everett Silvertips Logo.svg | |
| City | Everett, Washington |
| League | Western Hockey League |
| Conference | Western |
| Division | U.S. |
| Founded | 2003–04 |
| Home arena | Comcast Arena at Everett |
| Colours | Forest Green, Copper, Silver, White |
| General manager |  Doug Soetaert |
| Head coach |  Mark Ferner |
| Website | www.everettsilvertips.com |
The Everett Silvertips are a major junior ice hockey team in the Western Hockey League (WHL) that plays in Everett, Washington. They joined the league as an expansion team for the 2003–04 WHL season. The team name comes from the silvertip bear. The team plays at the Comcast Arena at Everett, a $71.5 million dollar multipurpose complex built in 2003 that seats 8,300 (or 8,513 with standing room only seats included) for hockey . Notable NHL alumni include Peter Mueller and Zach Hamill.
History
- Division titles won: 2003–04, 2005–06, 2006–2007
- Conference titles won: 2003-04
- Regular season titles won: 2006–07
Immediate success
During the Silvertips' inaugural season in the U.S. Division of the WHL, the team solidified its place as one of the greatest expansion hockey teams in history after breaking a minimum of 10 junior hockey records for an expansion team in its first year. Under the direction of General Manager Doug Soetaert and Head Coach Kevin Constantine, the team won the U.S. Division title with a record of 35–26–8–2, while setting a record for a first year team in any of the major junior hockey leagues (the OHL, QMJHL, and WHL) by earning 80 points in the regular season standings, eclipsing the old record set by the 1982-1983 Longueuil Chevaliers of the QMJHL. Constantine received the Dunc McCallum Memorial Trophy from the league as the 2003–2004 Coach of the Year.
In the 2004 playoffs, the Silvertips swept the Spokane Chiefs 4–0 in the First Round before defeating the Vancouver Giants 4-2 in the Western Conference Semi-Finals. The team then played the Kelowna Rockets, the regular season champions and reigning WHL champions, for the Western Conference title. After falling behind in the series 3-1, the Silvertips improbably won three straight games in overtime to win its first Western Conference title, earning the chance to play the Medicine Hat Tigers for the WHL championship. The Tigers would go on to sweep the series 4–0, marking an end to the Silvertips' stellar first season.
2004–2005 season
Fresh off the success of its successful inaugural season, the 2004–2005 team was the youngest in the league. At one time, the team had a minimum of eight 16-year old rookies on the active game-day roster. With such youth and inexperience, the team was projected to falter but still managed to make the playoffs for a second consecutive season. After defeating the Portland Winter Hawks in seven games during a tough first-round playoff series, the Silvertips finished their second season in the WHL on a tough note by being swept by the Kootenay Ice 4-0 in the Western Conference Semi-Finals.
2005–2006 season
The 2005–2006 season marked the second time the team had won the U.S. Division title, in only its third season of existence. After defeating the Tri-City Americans 4-1 in the First Round of the WHL playoffs, and the Kelowna Rockets 4-2 in the Western Conference Semi-Finals, the Silvertips' playoff run came to an end when the Silvertips were swept by the Vancouver Giants 4-0 in the Western Conference Finals. However, the Silvertips once again exceeded expectations by reaching the final four of the WHL Playoffs for the second time in only three seasons of existence.
Silvertips forward Peter Mueller won the Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy for top rookie in the league, becoming to the first Silvertips player to win that award.
2006–2007 season
The 2006–2007 season was one of the team's most successful to date. The team entered the season as the pre-season #1 team in the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) "Top Ten" Rankings. The team remained on the CHL "Top Ten" Rankings list the entire regular season, being selected #1 overall for 13 of the 25 weeks the rankings were selected, never falling lower than #5. The team captured its third U.S. Division title in only four seasons of existence. The team was also awarded the Scotty Munro Memorial Trophy for having the best record in the WHL during the regular season, posting a record of 54–15–1–2 (111 points). Silvertips forward Zach Hamill became the first Everett Silvertip to lead the WHL in points with 32 goals and 61 assists for 93 points, winning the Bob Clarke Trophy. Silvertips forward Kyle Beach won the Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy for top rookie in the league.
After defeating the Spokane Chiefs 4-2 in the First Round of the WHL playoffs, the Silvertips' playoff run came to an abrupt end when the Prince George Cougars defeated the Silvertips 4-2 during the Western Conference Semi-Finals after the Silvertips led the series 2-0.
2007–2008 season
The 2007-2008 season began a transition period for the franchise. Constantine left during the preceding offseason to become Head Coach of the Houston Aeros AHL team. Assistant Head Coach John Becanic became Head Coach, with Jay Varady promoted to Becanic's former position. Six of the team's 10 leading scorers from the 06-07 season, as well as the backup goaltender, left the team early in the season, mostly through trades and graduation from the WHL. These departures included Peter Mueller, who joined the Phoenix Coyotes NHL team full-time. The transition from Constantine's defensive-centered coaching style to Becanic's coaching style for the returning players, and the team struggled at times during the season.
The Silvertips ended the regular season fourth in the U.S. Division and sixth in the Western Conference. The team was swept by the Spokane Chiefs, the eventual Memorial Cup Champions, 4-0 in the First Round of the WHL playoffs. This marked the first time the Silvertips lost in the First Round of the WHL playoffs but kept alive the team's ominous history of losing four straight games to be ousted from a playoff round.
2008–2009 season
The 2008-2009 season was one that began with low expectations. NHL-drafted players such as Zach Hamill, Leland Irving, and Dan Gendur—as well as 2007-08 Team Captain Jonathan Harty—left the team. Finding sufficient scoring, defense, and goaltending was in doubt. Graham Potuer and Taylor Ellington were the only remaining players from the team's very good crop of players taken in the 1988-born WHL Bantam Draft that had marked the team's success during the previous three seasons. The team had its youngest roster in franchise history.
Fortunately, just as rookies helped salvage the franchise's 2004-05 season, rookies helped salvage a potentially disastrous 2008-09 season. The most successful example of this might be the emergence of rookie Forwards Kellan Tochkin, Byron Froese, and Tyler Maxwell, nicknamed the "Kid Line". The three players combined for 177 points, making it one of the most successful rookie lines in WHL history. The trio was led by Tochkin, whose 74 points in 72 games led the team, as well as all WHL rookies, in scoring. In addition to the "Kid Line", rookie 16-year old goaltender Kent Simpson also exceeded expectations, and was later assisted by acquired goaltender Thomas Heemskerk.
The team record was above .500 for the first half of the season, but the roster's young and inexperience caught up in the second half of the season. The team ended its regular season with a 27-36-7-2 record, the first losing record in the franchise's history. However, if the emergence and success of the team's rookies had not occurred, the team's record would have likely been much worse.
The Silvertips ended the regular season fourth in the U.S. Division and seventh in the Western Conference. The team lost to the Tri-City Americans, the two-time U.S. Division Champions, 4-1 in the First Round of the WHL playoffs. This marked the first time the Silvertips had been ousted from the playoffs without losing four straight games.
Shortly after the 2008-09 season ended, Head Coach John Becanic was fired. Several months later, GM Doug Soetaert announced the hiring of former NHL and OHL coach Craig Hartsburg as the team's new Head Coach, marking the beginning of a new era for the franchise.
After the 2010-11 season, Hartsburg stepped down from the coaching position to pursue a coaching career with the Calgary Flames. 2011-12 Mark Ferner was hired by General Manager Doug Soetart to be Everett's head coach following 4 successive years as the head coach of the BCHL's Vernon Vipers
On February 2, 2012 General Manager Doug Soetart was fired by the Everett Silvertips with no immediate replacement named.
Season-by-season record
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties OTL = Overtime losses Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
| Season | GP | W | L | T | OTL | GF | GA | Points | Finish | Playoffs |
| 2003–04 | 72 | 35 | 27 | 8 | 2 | 157 | 153 | 80 | 1st U.S. | Lost final |
| 2004–05 | 72 | 33 | 28 | 9 | 2 | 167 | 149 | 77 | 3rd U.S. | Lost Western Conference semi-final |
| Season | GP | W | L | OTL | SOL | GF | GA | Points | Finish | |
| 2005–06 | 72 | 40 | 27 | 2 | 3 | 203 | 158 | 85 | 1st U.S. | Lost Western Conference final |
| 2006–07 | 72 | 54 | 15 | 1 | 2 | 239 | 142 | 111 | 1st U.S. | Lost Western Conference semi-final |
| 2007–08 | 72 | 39 | 30 | 0 | 3 | 205 | 198 | 81 | 4th U.S. | Lost Western Conference quarter-final |
| 2008–09 | 72 | 27 | 36 | 7 | 2 | 199 | 259 | 63 | 4th U.S. | Lost Western Conference quarter-final |
| 2009–10 | 72 | 46 | 21 | 3 | 2 | 232 | 175 | 97 | 2nd U.S. | Lost Western Conference quarter-final |
| 2010–11 | 72 | 28 | 33 | 7 | 4 | 172 | 218 | 67 | 4th U.S. | Lost Western Conference quarter-final |
Team records
| Team records for a single season | ||
| Statistic | Total | Season |
|---|---|---|
| Most points | 111 | 2006–07 |
| Least points | 63 | 2008–09 |
| Most wins | 54 | 2006–07 |
| Least wins | 27 | 2008–09 |
| Most goals for | 239 | 2006–07 |
| Least goals for | 157 | 2003–04 |
| Most goals against | 259 | 2008–09 |
| Least goals against | 142 | 2006–07 |
| Most PIM | 1499 | 2006–07 |
| Least PIM | 1013 | 2005–06 |
| Individual player records for a single season | |||
| Statistic | Player | Total | Season |
|---|---|---|---|
| Most goals | Shane Harper | 42 | 2009–10 |
| Most assists | Zach Hamill | 61 | 2006–07 |
| Most points | Zach Hamill | 93 | 2006–07 |
| Most points, rookie | Kellan Tochkin | 74 | 2008-09 |
| Most points, defenceman | Shaun Heshka | 59 | 2005–06 |
| Best Plus/Minus | Radko Gudas | +45 | 2009–10 |
| Most PIM | Kyle Beach | 222 | 2007–08 |
| Best GAA (goalie) | David Reekie | 1.77 | 2006–07 |
| Most Wins (goalie) | Leland Irving | 37 | 2005–06 |
| Goalies = Minimum 1440 minutes played during season | |||
Current roster
NHL draftees
2006 NHL Entry Draft
1st Round
- 8. Phoenix Coyotes Peter Mueller Bloomington, MN
- 26. Calgary Flames Leland Irving Swan Hills, AB
2nd Round
- 40. Minnesota Wild Ondrej Fiala Stenberk, CZE
3rd Round
- 73. Florida Panthers Brady Calla Kelowna, B.C.
2007 NHL Entry Draft
1st Round
- 8. Boston Bruins Zach Hamill Port Coquitlam, BC
2nd Round
- 41. Vancouver Canucks Taylor Ellington Victoria, BC
7th Round
- 206. Vancouver Canucks Dan Gendur Victoria, BC
2008 NHL Entry Draft
1st Round
- 11. Chicago Blackhawks Kyle Beach Kelowna, BC
2009 NHL Entry Draft
3rd Round
- 82. Edmonton Oilers Cameron Abney Aldergrove, BC
4th Round
- 119. Chicago Blackhawks Byron Froese Winkler, MB
2010 NHL Entry Draft
2nd Round
- 58. Chicago Blackhawks Kent Simpson Edmonton, AB
3rd Round
- 66. Tampa Bay Lightning Radko Gudas Prague, CZE
4th Round
- 109. Dallas Stars Alex Theriau Duncan, BC
