Everett Silvertips

The Everett Silvertips are an American major junior ice hockey team based in Everett, Washington. The team plays in the U.S. Division of the Western Conference of the Western Hockey League (WHL), and hosts games at Angel of the Winds Arena. The Silvertips joined the WHL as an expansion team ahead of the 2003–04 season. The team has not missed the playoffs in its 21-year history; Everett twice advanced to the league championship playoff series, but has not won the Ed Chynoweth Cup.

History

The city of Everett, with plans to build a new downtown arena complex, applied for a WHL franchise and was awarded conditional approval for an expansion franchise from the league in 2001. With the new team falling within the territorial rights of the Seattle Thunderbirds, Seattle ownership was given right of first refusal to purchase the new team; Bill Yuill decided to sell the Thunderbirds in order to take over the new expansion club. The new multi-million dollar complex, the Everett Events Centre, was completed ahead of the team's inaugural season, offering a seating capacity of 8,200. In 2003, the team hired former National Hockey League coach Kevin Constantine to be its first head coach.

Beginning play in the 2003–04 season with a roster built through an expansion draft, the Silvertips rapidly established themselves as the best expansion team in league history. By January, Everett posted its 19th win of the season, breaking the previous expansion record of 18 wins posted by the 1995–96 Calgary Hitmen. The team would go on to win 35 games and finish atop the U.S. Division standings. In the playoffs, the Silvertips advanced all the way to the league final, upsetting the defending champion and heavily-favored Kelowna Rockets in the Western Conference final, with defender Mitch Love opening the series with an overtime goal. The team faced the Medicine Hat Tigers in the championship series, losing four straight games to fall short of the title. By the end of the year, the Silvertips, who earned a reputation as a disciplined defensive team, had set new records for an expansion team in every category. Constantine was named the league's coach-of-the-year.

Three seasons later, the Silvertips won the Scotty Munro Memorial Trophy for the best regular season record after its 54-win, 111-point season, before losing in the second round of the playoffs. That season, the team's first ever bantam draft selection, Zach Hamill, became the first Silvertip to lead the WHL in scoring.

The team's success on the ice translated into fan support, and the Silvertips earned a reputation for drawing strong crowds—more than a decade into the team's history, the Silvertips were in the top half of the league in attendance.

Everett established itself as a perennial playoff team, and in 2017–18, led by goaltender Carter Hart and coach Dennis Williams, the Silvertips made a second run to the league championship series. After a 47-win season, the team's best since 2007, Everett faced the Swift Current Broncos in the playoff finals, ultimately losing the series in six games. Hart's dominant season—he was named the league's best player, on top of being named its best goaltender for a third straight season—added to the team's historic reputation for exceptional goaltending. After Hart turned professional, Dustin Wolf was named top goaltender two years in a row.

Ahead of the 2024 playoffs, it was announced that long-time coach and manager Williams would be leaving the Silvertips after the season.

Rivals

The Silvertips have formed an enduring rivalry with the nearby Seattle Thunderbirds. The teams have met regularly in the playoffs, including a three-year stretch between 2016 and 2018 where the winner of the series between the two made it all the way to the championship series.

Name and logos

The team adopted the "Silvertips" name after the grizzly bears of the Pacific Northwest. The team opted for a green and silver color-scheme. Ahead of their inaugural season, the team introduced a bear mascot, Lincoln, named after the aircraft carrier , which was stationed at Naval Station Everett at the time.

Season-by-season record

''Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime losses, SOL = Shootout losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against''

WHL Championship history

* Scotty Munro Memorial Trophy (2): 2006–07, 2024–25
*Conference Champions (2): 2003–04, 2017–18
*Regular season Division titles (10): 2003–04, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2014–15, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2020–21, 2021–22, 2024–25

WHL Championship series results:
* 2003–04: Loss, 0–4 vs Medicine Hat Tigers
* 2017–18: Loss, 2–4 vs Swift Current Broncos

Players

First round NHL draft picks

List of Silvertips players selected in the first round of the NHL entry draft.

NHL alumni

List of Silvertips who went on to play in the NHL:

* Riley Armstrong
* Ivan Baranka
* Jake Christiansen
* Connor Dewar
* Landon Ferraro
* Byron Froese
* Gage Goncalves
* Radko Gudas
* Zach Hamill
* Shane Harper
* Carter Hart
* Shaun Heshka
* Leland Irving
* Noah Juulsen
* Jujhar Khaira
* Bryce Kindopp
* Mirco Mueller
* Peter Mueller
* Ryan Murray
* Garrett Pilon
* Rasmus Rissanen
* Nikita Scherbak
* Kent Simpson
* Mike Wall
* Dustin Wolf
* Olen Zellweger

Retired numbers

Players who have had their numbers retired by the Silvertips:

Awards

* Four Broncos Memorial Trophy
** Carter Hart: 2017–18
*Bob Clarke Trophy (WHL top scorer)
** Zach Hamill: 2006–07
* Daryl K. (Doc) Seaman Trophy (WHL scholastic player of the year)
**Brian King: 2016–17
** Dustin Wolf: 2018–19
* Del Wilson Trophy (WHL goaltender of the year)
**Carter Hart: 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18
**Dustin Wolf: 2019–20, 2020–21
* Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy (WHL rookie of the year)
** Peter Mueller: 2005–06
** Kyle Beach: 2006–07
* Dunc McCallum Memorial Trophy (WHL coach of the year)
** Kevin Constantine: 2003–04

Notes

External links

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{{Washington Sports

2003 establishments in Washington (state)
Amateur ice hockey teams in Washington (state)
Ice hockey clubs established in 2003
Sports in Everett, Washington
Western Hockey League teams