Silvertips win special teams battle to hold off Kelowna in Game 2

Published 12:15 am Sunday, April 12, 2026

EVERETT — Even after the Everett Silvertips went 5-for-5 on the penalty kill during their 4-1 win against the Kelowna Rockets in Game 1 of the WHL Western Conference semifinals on Friday, coach Steve Hamilton lamented that his team took too many penalties. The deeper a team gets into the playoffs, the more dangerous it becomes to give an opponent’s power play so many chances.

Well, in Game 2 at Angel of the Winds Arena on Saturday, the Silvertips penalty kill and goaltender Anders Miller effectively said, ‘We’ll do you one better,’ finishing 6-for-6 while Miller stopped 37 shots in Everett’s 4-2 win. The top-seeded Silvertips took a 2-0 series lead as the series shifts to Kelowna for Games 3 and 4.

“They’re blocking anything,” Miller said of the penalty kill. “They’re cutting pass lanes, so they’re giving me an outside shot, and it’s all I got to really stop, so they’re doing a really good job in front of me.”

As the penalty kill more than held up its end of the bargain, the power play took advantage by scoring twice in three opportunities. Carter Bear scored the winning goal at 15:35 of the second period, rebounding Landon DuPont’s wide shot off the end boards. Julius Miettinen notched the insurance tally, fighting for position in the crease and slotting it in at 9:01 of the third period.

Hamilton expressed a desire for the team to be more disciplined after the whistle, and that they’ll have to balance playing hard with staying out of trouble between plays. At the same time, he praised the power play for being opportunistic against a Rockets team that has not given them many chances.

“If you’re only going to get two or three looks in the game, you better be good and dialed in, and that group has been really sharp,” Hamilton said. “Just different looks, and that’s all you can offer. And then ultimately, you got to win it at the net, and that second power-play goal is a prime example. (Miettinen) gets inside position and just brings home an ugly one, and that’s exactly what you need.”

Bear scored his first goal of the playoffs and tallied an assist, while DuPont added two helpers to lead the scoring. Forwards Hayden Paupanekis and Owen Folstrom scored the goals for Kelowna.

Zackary Shantz opened the scoring at 4:56 during 4-on-4 play. Brek Liske skated around a defender towards the right corner and fired a centering pass, which Shantz knocked in from the right post.

The Rockets nearly tied it up a few minutes later, with the puck knuckling over Miller’s glove towards the goal line, but Lukas Kaplan managed to clear it out of danger while standing in the crease. The shots remained at 9-8 in favor of Kelowna for a long stretch in the middle of the frame, as each side kept the puck out of danger areas in its defensive zone, but the Rockets picked up momentum on the power play after a DuPont cross-check at 15:08.

The Silvertips penalty kill cleared the opening faceoff, but Kelowna regrouped to maintain a long offensive zone possession. Miller made a glove save on Tij Iginla at 15:48, and had two more pad stops before Shantz made a block near the point. Alongside Shantz, Jesse Heslop and Liske, Kayd Ruedig survived the long shift when he cleared the puck out right before the penalty ended.

Before Everett could capitalize on the big kill, the Rockets tied it up at even strength. Amid a flurry around the net, Paupanekis swooped in and managed to pop the puck just across the goal line at 17:39. Officials took time to review the play, but ultimately confirmed the equalizer.

The Rockets finished the first period with a 20-11 shots advantage, which is not a position the Silvertips are used to being in. They ultimately outshot Kelowna 27-19 over the remaining two periods after making adjustments during the first intermission.

“We just talked about the key areas,” Hamilton said. “When a team’s bringing that much pressure, there’s two or three things we really got to dial in on, and we got better at that. It’s what I’ve always appreciated about our team is they take feedback, they put it into play, and we honestly needed that first period. We needed to get punched in the mouth a little bit, and recognize that— how hard it is. How hard it is to win.”

The Silvertips regained the lead just 1:19 into the second period, breaking into a 3-on-1 rush out of the neutral zone where Jaxsin Vaughan called his own number and rattled a shot into the cage.

“(In a) 3-on-1, you’re kind of always seeing guys looking for the pass,” Vaughan said. “I think the D-man kind of gave me a little bit of room, and then the goalie too is kind of maybe looking for (a) pass. He kind of gave me a little bit of room there, so I just trusted myself and my shot. And I know those guys won’t get too mad at me, especially if it goes in.”

Rylan Gould drew a penalty on an offensive zone entry moments later, and despite putting together a productive possession both on the 6-on-5 delayed penalty and the power play itself, Everett could not find what it needed to double the lead. Kelowna did not record a shot on goal in the second period until 6:37, with the Silvertips compiling eight in that span, but Folstrom tied it 2-2 on a net front redirect at 6:58.

The teams traded penalties through the remainder of the second period, and Miller made a sequence of big saves before Bear cashed in the go-ahead goal on the power play at 15:35.

Play halted midway through the third period after Vaughan laid a hit on Rockets forward Ty Halaburda along the boards that left the latter crumpled on the ice. Kelowna forward Nate Corbet immediately went after Vaughan, and the two dropped the gloves as trainers tended to Halaburda. Paramedics ultimately had to put a brace around Halaburda’s neck before taking him off the ice strapped in a stretcher. The Kelowna Rockets published an update later that night on X stating Halaburda is “alert and conscious, and will remain in Everett overnight for further evaluation.”

“It’s definitely a scary play, and I don’t mean to do that to anyone,” said Vaughan, who added that he’s hoping Halaburda has a fast recovery. “You don’t want to see any player like that. I guess it happens, but I’m not looking to do that to anyone. I think I find myself playing a pretty hard and honest game.”

Vaughan was not penalized for the hit, but he went to the box along with Corbet for the standard five minutes for fighting. Corbet received an extra unsportsmanlike conduct minor for instigating the fight, which put Everett on the power play. Miettinen finished with a greasy goal in front at 9:01, and the Silvertips held on down the stretch with one last penalty kill inside the final six minutes.

Everett has not lost yet this postseason, but it will face a motivated Rockets team on the road in Games 3 and 4, which will take place on Tuesday and Wednesday.

“We’re trying to keep the same thing going here that’s been working for us,” Vaughan said. “And that’s taking our game into other rinks and continuing to frustrate their players, and just focus on us, and be hard and be fast, and things will work out for us, I think.”