BLOG: Everett Silvertips previews and notes on the eve of Round 2

Round 2 of the WHL playoffs starts Friday night at 7:35.

Postseason round of “Mustache Boy” here on the eve of Round 2: pic.twitter.com/IYkS5L7LrY

— Jesse Geleynse (@JesseGeleynse) April 5, 2018

The Everett Silvertips have reached the second round for the fourth straight season and are looking to advance to the conference finals for the first time since 2006. The Tips are playing host to the Portland Winterhawks beginning Friday. The Winterhawks knocked out the Tips in the second round in 2015 and Everett returned the favor in the first round in 2016.

The Tips finished the regular season 5-5 against the Winterhawks and the teams are very evenly matched. Herald columnist Nick Patterson wrote Thursday that the Tips will try to beat the Winterhawks at their own game. I have this preview story in Friday’s Herald that breaks down both teams.

“We know they’re a very good hockey club, well-coached, lots of skill,” head coach Dennis Williams said. “I’m sure they learned a lot about themselves in a tough, seven-game series and we’re going to have to play a smart, disciplined hockey game. We can’t turn pucks over. Their forwards are some of the best, not only in the U.S. Division, but probably in the whole Western Hockey League.”

For a successful postseason run a team needs multiple heroes. I took a look at one of Everett’s unlikely heroes in Friday’s Herald. Nick also has a Friday column addressing the flaws in the WHL playoff format that pits Everett and Portland, the top two teams in the Western Conference, against one another in the second round.

The snipes, the plays, the game-winning strikes, our latest Insurance Goals of the Week feature a little bit of everything you like. 😎😎😎 pic.twitter.com/EojexNreKr

— The WHL (@TheWHL) April 5, 2018

Colleague Andy Eide and I also recorded another episode of the ThunderTips hockey podcast Thursday where we broke down what happened in the Seattle-Everett first-round series and looked ahead to the Portland-Everett series:

For additional coverage you can read this piece from the WHL website and give a listen to this WHL Unfiltered podcast from the guys over at Dub Network. Tips color commentator Justin Morrison joins the Unfiltered podcast.

For the latest Silvertips news follow Jesse Geleynse on Twitter.