EVERETT – The Kelowna Rockets are in unfamiliar territory. They find themselves staring straight into the abyss.
So long the overlords of the WHL, the Rockets are in the unusual position of having to dig themselves out of a hole. The Everett Silvertips hold a commanding 3-1 lead in their best-of-seven second-round playoff series, putting this group of Kelowna players in a position they’ve never experienced before.
“It’s a lot different,” Kelowna forward Troy Ofukany said. “For most of the playoffs last year we were in the driver’s seat. But I think we’ve got a lot of older guys and a lot of experience, so I think we’re going to come through in the next three games here.”
The Rockets must win three straight to keep their season alive, but if Kelowna pulls it off it’ll be a first for this group. During Kelowna’s reign atop the league the past three seasons, the Rockets won 11 of their 12 playoff series. Just twice in those 12 series did Kelowna lose at least three games – in an epic Western Conference finals in 2004 when Everett prevailed in Game 7, and in the second round in 2004 when the Rockets beat Seattle in Game 7. In neither of those series did the Rockets face elimination as early as Game 5. The last time Kelowna was down 3-1 in a series was against Kootenay in the 2003 Western Conference finals, and the Rockets promptly lost that series in the following game.
“It’s a little different situation for them,” Everett center Mark Kress said. “But I’m guaranteeing that they’ll never give up.”
Kelowna may not give up, but the mood was certainly somber outside the Rockets’ locker room at the Everett Events Center after Game 4, a game in which the Tips overcame a 2-0 deficit to win 3-2 on Jason Fransoo’s goal with 1 minute, 20 seconds remaining. And Kelowna has no experience to draw upon for facing this type of adversity.
“As long as there’s a game to play, you keep playing and you play hard,” Kelowna coach Jeff Truitt responded when asked about his team facing a new situation. “That’s what we’re expecting out of our guys (tonight).”
Although these Rockets have never come back from a 3-1 deficit, they are acutely aware that it can be done. In that Western Conference championship series in 2004 Everett fell behind Kelowna 3-1, but the Tips won three straight overtime games for an unlikely series victory. Ten current Rockets were part of that series two years ago.
This time the roles are exactly reversed.
“It’s a little eerie,” Everett defenseman Shaun Heshka said. “I kind of thought about it (Wednesday) night, sitting there and saying that we’re looking pretty good in this series right now. Then it kind of hits you that we did the same thing to them a couple years ago. They’re definitely a team that’s capable of doing the same to us, so we can’t go into this game lightly.”
On Everett’s side is a strong history of closing out series when given the chance. The Tips are 5-2 in franchise history in possible clinching games, and Everett has won every series in which it reached an advancement game. Both of Everett’s losses in possible clinching games came last year in the first round, when the Tips lost two straight after going ahead 3-1 against Portland. Everett eventually won that series in Game 7.
Now the Tips just have to make sure history doesn’t repeat itself.
“We were in that position when we were down 3-1 in our inaugural season,” Kress said. “Hopefully it won’t turn out the way it did for us.”
Slap shots: Five Everett players are among the 115 players invited to the NHL Draft Combine on May 30-June 3 in Toronto. The players invited are forwards Peter Mueller, Brady Calla and Ondrej Fiala, defenseman Graham Potuer, and goaltender Leland Irving. Everett’s five players are the most invited from any team in the Canadian Hockey League. … Should Everett lose Game 5, tickets for Sunday’s Game 6 at the Everett Events Center will go on sale immediately upon Game 5’s completion. Tickets will be available by calling 866-332-8499 or online at www.everettsilvertips.com. The Events Center box office will open for ticket sales at 10 a.m. Saturday.
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