When the Seattle Thunderbirds scored their first goal against the Everett Silvertips on Tuesday at accesso ShoWare Center, perhaps it would be a sign of what was to come.
Just two minutes into the game, with Seattle on a power play, Thunderbirds forward Brayden Shuurman possessed the puck in the right circle. He snapped it into the netfront towards teammate Nathan Pilling, but the pass overshot the target.
Lucky for Seattle, it deflected off Silvertips defenseman Kaden Hammell’s left skate and back past goalie Jesse Sanche to give the Thunderbirds a 1-0 lead at 2:11 of the first period.
Everett would recover and score three in a row to take a 3-1 lead, but subsequently allowed five unanswered goals as Seattle claimed a 6-3 win to take a 2-1 series lead in the first round of the WHL Playoffs.
Forwards Austin Roest and Dominik Rymon each had a goal and an assist for Everett, and defenseman Tarin Smith chipped in two assists. Sanche stopped 34 of 40 shots in the loss. Meanwhile, Pilling and forward Braeden Cootes each had a goal and two assists for Seattle.
After going down 1-0, Shea Busch tied it at 12:38 of the first period. He took several hacks at a backdoor feed from Julius Miettinen to push the puck past Thunderbirds goalie Scott Ratzlaff.
The Silvertips took a 3-1 lead in the second period after two power-play goals. Roest scored first at 3:56, backhanding a rebound to the top of the net. Rymon scored the other at 7:59, finishing a one-timer from the right circle during a 5-on-3 power play.
Pilling cut it to 3-2 at 9:23 off a centering pass into the slot, and defenseman Ashton Cumby tied it 3-3 at 15:21 with a one-timer from the point. Before the intermission, the Thunderbirds retook the lead when Cootes deked his way into the middle and beat Sanche with a wrister.
Antonio Martorana added an insurance tally at 5:29 of the third period after Pilling stole the puck off Hammell’s stick. His backhand shot ricocheted off Smith’s skate and back towards Martorana on the left, who hammered it home. Simon Lovsin closed out the night with a goal at 13:43, sliding the puck through Sanche’s legs off a Seattle offensive zone faceoff win.
Despite being the top seed in the Western Conference facing off against the eighth seed, Everett trails the series 2-1. It doesn’t help that the Silvertips are without their top two scorers from the regular season. Carter Bear was injured in early March with a lower-leg injury that will keep him out long-term, while Tyler MacKenzie exited early during Everett’s 3-2 overtime win in Game 2 last Saturday, and could be spotted wearing a sling on his shoulder.
MacKenzie just came up to the press level where the scratches sit wearing a hoodie and with his left arm in a sling.
Bad sign for the #Silvertips
— Joe Pohoryles (@Joe_Poho) March 30, 2025
After losing 3-2 in Game 1 before tying the series, the Silvertips will once again attempt to tie the series in Game 4 on Friday in Kent.
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Bear named to the WHL Western Conference Second All-Star Team
The WHL announced that injured Everett Silvertips forward Carter Bear was selected to the Western Conference Second All-Star Team on Tuesday. The 18-year-old forward led the Silvertips with 40 goals and 82 points in 56 games this season, which was cut short due to a lower-leg injury he sustained against the Portland Winterhawks on March 9.
Bear, who is expected to be selected in the first round of the 2025 NHL Draft this summer, finished tied for seventh in the league in goals. He was the only member of the Silvertips to be named to either First- or Second-Team.
Seattle goalie Scott Ratzlaff received First-Team honors, and the 20-year-old netminder is giving Everett a tough go in the first round playoff series between the Silvertips and Thunderbirds, which Seattle leads 2-1 after winning 6-3 in Game 3 on Tuesday.
The full list of the 2025 WHL First and Second All-Star teams are listed below:
WHL Western Conference All-Star Teams:
(*= First-Team selection)
Goaltenders— Scott Ratzlaff, Seattle*; Joshua Ravensbergen, Prince George
Defensemen— Tyson Jugnauth, Portland*; Mazden Leslie, Vancouver*; Viliam Kmec, Prince George; Justin Kipkie, Victoria
Forwards— Andrew Cristall, Spokane*; Berkly Catton, Spokane*; Kyle Chyzowski, Portland*; Carter Bear, Everett; Emmitt Finnie, Kamloops; Shea Van Olm, Spokane
WHL Eastern Conference All-Star Teams:
(*= First-Team selection)
Goaltenders— Max Hildebrand, Prince Albert*; Daniel Hauser, Calgary
Defensemen— Tanner Molendyk, Medicine Hat*; Noah Chadwick, Lethbridge*; Luke Shipley, Brandon; Carter Yakemchuk, Calgary
Forwards— Gavin McKenna, Medicine Hat*; Oliver Tulk, Calgary*; Ben Kindel, Calgary*; Brayden Yager, Lethbridge; Oasiz Wiesblatt, Medicine Hat; Gracyn Sawchyn, Edmonton
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