Stay or Go: Silvertips discuss plans for next season
Published 8:38 am Thursday, June 4, 2026
EVERETT — The Everett Silvertips held their exit meetings at Angel of the Winds Arena on Tuesday, and The Herald spoke 1-on-1 with nearly every player to discuss the past season, but also check in on their plans for the future.
Defenseman Brek Liske and forward Matias Vanhanen were not present, as they went to Buffalo for the 2026 NHL Scouting Combine, but each player’s status for next season will partially depend on the development plan from the organization that selects them.
As of now, there’s no indication either one is planning to depart, but the situation will be worth monitoring coming out of the NHL Draft later this month. Should they return to Everett, both players would once again be significant pieces.
Here is what to expect for the players that will stay and those who will go:
OVERAGERS
Rylan Gould, F (Bemidji State – NCAA)
Zackary Shantz, F (St. Cloud State – NCAA)
Nolan Chastko, F/D (University of Manitoba – U Sports)
The three overagers had no choice but to depart Everett after this season, and all three will be pursuing opportunities in college.
Gould started the year at Michigan Tech, but decided to return to the WHL after just six games. After using up his final year of eligibility and winning a championship, he’s going to give the NCAA another shot.
“I’ve been doing school (online at Southern New Hampshire University) during this whole year to remain eligible,” Gould said. “I knew that I wanted to kind of go back to the NCAA route, just when the opportunity came up with Bemidji, I feel like I couldn’t pass it down.
“They’re amazing people. It has a lot of similarities to here, I find, and these are the kind of people I want to be around and surround myself with.”
Meanwhile, Shantz will be part of a new era at St. Cloud State, who hired Wisconsin assistant and former Huskies captain Nick Oliver to take over the program in April following Brett Larson’s switch to the University of Minnesota after eight years as head coach.
“They just have a plan, and I like that they’re kind of like a ‘family-first’ sort of thing,” Shantz said. “Just like facilities, and they’re such a first-class organization. I’m just super excited.”
Chastko will not be going the NCAA route, but will still play at school in Winnipeg. He said becoming a professional hockey player is the goal, but that as a self-proclaimed “nerd for school,” he wanted to set himself up with a prime educational opportunity.
“There’s a really good opportunity there for me to play right away, which was something that I was definitely looking for,” Chastko said. “And then the second thing, which is equally as important to me, is the academic side, and they got one of the best business schools in the country, so that was a no-brainer there.”
GONE
Julius Miettinen, F (Seattle Kraken/Coachella Valley Firebirds – NHL/AHL)
Tarin Smith, D (University of Minnesota – NCAA)
Anders Miller, G (Lake Superior State – NCAA)
Raiden LeGall, G (Minnesota State – NCAA)
The writing was on the wall when Miettinen signed his entry-level contract with Seattle in October, and the 20-year-old Finn does not have anything left to prove in the WHL after scoring 35 goals and 76 points in the regular season before leading the league with 27 points in 18 postseason games to be named WHL Playoff MVP.
The 2024 second-round pick will attempt to make the NHL roster out of training camp in the fall, but he will otherwise be eligible to play in the AHL with Coachella Valley.
“Hopefully that’s going to be my place next year in Seattle,” Miettinen said. “It’s going to be pretty cool to see what the future brings.”
Smith will be joining the Golden Gophers next season, where he expects to play a significant role in their defensive corps. He decided between a handful of schools, but the commitment Minnesota displayed is what won him over.
“Out of nowhere, I got a phone call from the Minnesota guys,” Smith said. “They were like, ‘Hey, we’re interested.’ … I was like, ‘Awesome, can we set up a Zoom call with my parents?’ And then, bam, they flew out here and took us out to dinner the next day.
“I got to spend some time on that campus in the summer at the World Junior Showcase, and I think that also helped the process because I obviously didn’t have time to go on visits or anything.”
The Silvertips will have an entirely new goalie tandem in 2026-27, as both Miller and LeGall are set to move on.
In this new era of junior hockey, Miller views the NCAA as the natural next step in his progression.
“I feel like it’s kind of the next level to go to,” Miller said. “I feel like they have an opportunity for me to go battle for a starting spot there, and any opportunity at the next level that I can have a chance to go take in net, I mean, that’s an opportunity you want to take.”
LeGall, who did not appear in the postseason, is excited for a fresh start in Mankato, which developed four-year starter Dryden McKay into a Hobey Baker winner in 2022. McKay is listed at six feet, 183 pounds, practically the exact same size as LeGall (6-0, 181 pounds)
“They’ve had a lot of goalie success, especially in developing smaller goalies like myself,” LeGall said. “… Sort of just trying to go in there, learn everything I can my first year and sort of just keep going for the next four years.”
LIKELY GONE
Landon DuPont, D (NCAA)
Carter Bear, F (Detroit Red Wings/Grand Rapids Griffins – NHL/AHL)
Shea Busch, F (Penn State – NCAA)
DuPont told The Herald he will make a decision on his future sometime this month, and while it’s widely expected that he will go to the NCAA, the defenseman himself said a return is still on the table.
“There’s a couple options. Obviously school being a big option, seeing other guys go to school and whatnot,” DuPont said. “But Everett’s truly a special place to play, and it would be hard to leave.”
It’s probably safe to bump Bear up to the ‘Gone’ category; he said the plan for him is to make the jump to professional hockey, either with the Red Wings or in the AHL with the Grand Rapids Griffins. However, if for some reason those options don’t work out for the upcoming season, he could return to the Silvertips.
“I’m with Detroit and they have plans for me,” Bear said. “I’m going to trust them with my whole life because they’re an Original Six hockey team. I trust them that they know what they’re doing with me. … Obviously, I want to be a pro, so that’s one of my motivations, and they want me to be the player that they want to be, and I believe in that.
“Even if I do come back, don’t come back, I can’t wait to go ahead and watch these guys in the future. … The goal is to play pro next year, for sure, but if nothing works out, it’s probably Everett, for sure. But you never know.”
As for Busch, he intends to fulfill his commitment in State College this season, but he is waiting on the Nittany Lions to finalize their roster decisions for 2026-27.
“It’s still up in the air a little bit, but I think that is the plan for next season, to be playing there (at Penn State),” Busch said. “We’ll see how it goes. … If I’m not going there, I’ll be coming back here.”
“A lot of things happen in college hockey,” he continued. “A lot of guys coming in and out of teams with transfer portal and stuff, so we’ll see where the cards land.”
UNCERTAIN
Jesse Heslop, F
The longest-tenured Silvertip is still on the fence about his future. The 20-year-old forward said he pushed everything to the side in order to focus on this season as Everett pursued a WHL Championship and the Memorial Cup.
“I wouldn’t say I’m really leaning one way or the other right now, but there’s definitely a good chance I come back,” Heslop said. “… I’ve talked to quite a few schools, but like I touched on, I kind of just told them, ‘Hey, I need to focus on this year, and then we can talk after.’ So I got to talk to them and see if that’s a fit for me, or if there’s better options.”
LIKELY RETURN
Luke Vlooswyk, D
Mattias Uyeda, D
Vlooswyk joined the Silvertips in January right before the trade deadline, and the Philadelphia Flyers prospect played a key role in helping the team to its first Ed Chynoweth Cup.
The 2025 fifth-round pick will spend time in Philadelphia this offseason, and will try to make a strong impression in training camp, but the 19-year-old practically confirmed he will be back in Everett next season.
“(It’s) a little bit up in the air, but I’m pretty certain that I’m going to be back,” Vlooswyk said. “This year was all about winning, and I think next year’s going to be a really good– we’re going to have a good team next year, but personally I think it’s going to be a big year of growth and a big summer, even though it is a short one. I’m looking forward to that.”
Uyeda made the full-time jump to the Silvertips from the Pacific Junior Hockey League coming out of the Christmas break, and he put his pursuit of an engineering degree at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver on hold to do so.
After proving he could handle the transition to Major Junior, Uyeda would like to come back next season. However, unlike most of the players on the roster, the decision will be in Everett’s hands.
“Ideally I’d love to come back and play here,” Uyeda said. “My heart’s here in Everett, and it’s the best organization you could ask to play for. So yeah, hopefully I’ll be back. If unfortunately I’m not, then yeah, I’m not too sure. But I’m looking forward to coming back.”
RETURN
Jaxsin Vaughan, F
Kayd Ruedig, D
Lukas Kaplan, F
Clarke Schaefer, F
Jaxon Pisani, D
Hunter Rudolph, F
Rhys Jamieson, F
Mirco Dufour, F
Henri Ament, F
All of the above confirmed they will return to Angel of the Winds Arena in the fall, and each will have opportunities to seize a larger role.
Vaughan is a front-runner to inherit the captaincy from Smith. If Heslop departs, Vaughan would be the only player who wore a letter this season that returned. It did not take long for the 20-year-old to realize he wanted to stay.
“There was some stuff, some schools and stuff, but I don’t think I could leave here a year early,” Vaughan said. “It’s paradise here for me. Amazing staff, and lots of the boys are coming back, so yeah, I’m excited to come back here.”
Ruedig played for three different WHL teams in 2025-26, and after winning the WHL Championship in Everett, he’s hoping to stay in one place next season.
“I feel like there’s a lot of key guys, but I also think that our D-corps is going to be really strong next year,” Ruedig said. “… We’ve still got lots of young guys that played with us this year. They’re going to take huge steps next year.”
Kaplan and Schaefer have been best friends since early childhood, and have played together for 14 seasons at various levels, according to Kaplan. That will continue in 2026-27. Schaefer’s season was cut short due to a shoulder injury, but he has resumed skating and expects to be fully healthy by the beginning of October.
“It’s going to be a great locker room again,” Schaefer said. “We’re going to bring new guys in, and we’re going to be a competitive team next year.”
Pisani is committed to Providence College, and while he is not yet sure when he will be enrolling, he’s looking forward to a potential increased role in Everett next season.
“Just take it year by year,” Pisani said. “I’m not 100 percent sure when I’ll go, but yeah, just looking forward to next year with the group of guys we have.”
Rudolph, Jamieson and Dufour all rotated in fourth-line roles alongside Chastko, and all three played in the Memorial Cup Championship on May 31. All three felt like their bottom-six roles allowed them to round out other areas of their game, and they will look to move up the lineup next year.
“I learned a lot just to be more physical and not everything’s about scoring or getting your points and stuff,” Jamieson said. “It’s the stuff that goes behind or unseen, just finishing checks, getting an extra touch on a guy, they help so much, so just building on that.”
Ament did not appear in the postseason, but he scored four goals and one assist in 45 games during the regular season. The 19-year-old is committed to Cornell University for 2027-28, but will look to make a splash in what should be his final year in Everett.
“I want to make a little bit more of an impact,” Ament said. “Maybe have a little bit of a bigger role, so I’m going to attack the offseason, for sure. Take it day by day, but live in the moment and just do the best I can.”
Additionally, forward Reid Nicol, whom the Silvertips selected with the fifth overall pick in last year’s WHL Prospects Draft, should take on a full-time role after appearing in six games this season. Defenseman Logan Lepinski will be in a similar position after appearing in four games.
