Eight to two. A season in which the Silvertips were the top-ranked team in North America and posted the best record in the league was on the line, and Everett loses 8-2. It was a rather ignominious end for the Tips, who lost their best-of-seven second-round series to Prince George 4-2, and an unexpected early exit from the playoffs.
However, I can’t say the loss was a surprise (though the magnitude was a bit shocking). There just didn’t seem to be any way back after giving up that 3-0 third-period lead in Game 5. That was just too big a mental hurdle to overcome.
You have to give credit to Prince George. The Cougars played some inspired hockey in the series, and Prince George’s top players were every bit as good as their reputations. Devin Setoguchi had five goals and six assists in the six games, Nick Drazenovic had seven goals and four assists, Jared Walker three goals and eight assists. Those three ran roughshod over Everett all series long.
Some odds and ends:
– This is the first time in franchise history Everett wasn’t swept out of the playoffs. However, considering the Tips lost four straight to end it, it sort of still qualifies, doesn’t it?
– It’s also the first time in franchise history the Tips lost a playoff series to a lower seed. Everett is now 7-4 all time in playoff series, 2-1 as the high seed and 5-3 as the low seed.
– Everett’s players took the loss without many tears. After the game the players were well composed, considering they had just suffered a huge upset. But then the fact the season was ending probably sunk in early in the second period when it was 6-0.
– Peter Mueller finished as the team’s leading scorer in the playoffs with 16 points (seven goals, nine assists) in 12 games. Leland Irving didn’t take the loss Monday, so he still finished with a winning record at 6-5. However, his goals against average (2.82) and save percentage (.887) took significant dips during the playoffs.
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