Was the trio of Kohll Bauml, Ben Beker and Brayden Low the best overage group in Silvertips franchise history? Probably not. Don’t get me wrong, it was a good group. Bauml scored 30 goals and was named the team’s MVP. Betker was a horse on defense and earned an NHL contract. Low was as good a character guy as one could ask for. But as a group they probably didn’t have quite as much impact on the game as a couple previous groups, including last season’s trio of Joshua Winquist, Manraj Hayer and Matt Pufahl.
However, while it may not have been the best overage group Everett’s ever had, it may have been the most important.
I was struck during exit meetings by how complimentary Everett coach Kevin Constantine was about the leadership group of this season’s team. He said it was the best captaincy group he ever had in Everett. Well, these three guys were the captaincy group, with Bauml being the captain and Betker and Low serving as alternates.
Why was the leadership group so good? I think a big reason is because all three overagers were true Silvertips. Bauml, Betker and Low were, for all intents and purposes, lifetime Silvertips when it comes to their WHL careers. Betker and Low combined to appear in six games with Portland, but otherwise the trio played a total of 655 games for Everett over the course of 10 seasons. These guys identify themselves as Silvertips, and they truly cared about the fate of the team and the franchise. No other overage group in franchise history included three players who could be called lifetime Silvertips. The only other time the trio consisted of three players who each spent three or more seasons with Everett was the 2005-06 group, made up of original Silvertips Torrie Wheat, Mark Kress and Shaun Heshka.
This season’s group also lived through the rough years. All three arrived in Everett when the Tips were going through their dark ages of finishing eighth in the Western Conference three straight seasons. They knew all too well the bitter taste of defeat, and when the chance at success was placed in front of them they gave everything they had to the cause. Bauml played the last month of the season and the playoffs with a shoulder injury that greatly diminished his effectiveness both in scoring and in the faceoff circle. Betker overcame a shoulder injury of his own during the first round of the playoffs, returning to play 30 minutes a game in the second round. Low had one of his fingers mangled from blocking a shot during the regular season, but I don’t think he missed a single game because of it.
One could almost say Everett’s overagers willed the Tips to the division title. Their absence as players will be felt next season, but their leadership is what will truly be missed.
Next: 2014-15 review: Coaching
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