Well, how’s that for a playoff opener? Breathless up-and-down action, and Everett was well worth its 4-2 victory. Here are a few of my thoughts and observations:

– Peter Mueller looked like he’d never been gone. Everett’s star center, who was rested to recover from illness the final two weeks of the regular season, looked every bit the eighth overall pick in the NHL draft. His first two set ups for goals were things of beauty.

– Spokane looked like a team that hadn’t seen the playoffs since 2004. Many of the players were a little out of sorts early on, including 17-year-old rookie goaltender Dustin Tokarski. The Chiefs also missed a couple of wide-open opportunities, with Judd Blackwater the worst offender when he drew iron on an unguarded net midway through the second period. Blackwater could have made the score 2-1 and turned it into a different game.

– Spokane defenseman Jared Cowen may have been the first overall pick in the 2006 bantam draft, but Everett’s Jeff Regier, a second rounder from that same draft, looked more comfortable. Cowen saw a limited number of shifts and drew two penalties, while Regier took a regular shift and appeared right at home.

– Everett has to be careful about going into a shell after building a lead. Part of the reason the Tips took penalties in the third period is because Spokane had the puck the majority of the time. Usually it’s the team without the puck that takes penalties.

Anyway, on to Game 2. Hopefully it’s as entertaining as Game 1.