Sorry if you were hoping for more, but at least you clicked on the post.
So here we are on the eve of the Everett Silvertips playoff opener.
Prospects Gianni Fairbrother and Ethan Browne have joined the team in the past two days:
Teachable moment with @WHLsilvertips GM Garry Davidson and top bantam pick @ethanbrowne01 pic.twitter.com/eNfHNKWY6l
— Jesse Geleynse (@JesseGeleynse) March 23, 2017
Fellow prospect Dawson Butt is also on the postseason roster and he was recently named a NAPHL third-team All-Star while competing for the 16U Junior Silvertips AAA team this season. Junior Tips coach Turner Stevenson was named Coach of the Year.
I don’t know how much any of the call-ups will play, but the Tips are certainly hurting for centers. Both Riley Sutter and Devon Skoleski missed practice this week with upper body injuries they suffered Sunday at Tri-City. Head coach Kevin Constantine describes their chances of playing this weekend as “minuscule” and the odds of them playing remain small when the series shifts to Victoria next week.
“If there is anything that was a bit frustrating it was going into Tri(-City) and losing two of our top three centers in the last game, a fairly meaningless game to us standings-wise – important for Tri(-City),” Constantine said. “And it’s hockey and things happen.
“That was really frustrating because center is such a key position and losing a couple guys who may be able to come back during the series, but certainly won’t start the series,” Constantine continued. “The way you start a series generally determines the winner, so there is that little bit of frustration. But all of that being said, that’s what we as a coaching staff enjoy. We enjoy a challenge. We’ve had similar adversity all year. I think our schedule at the beginning of the year was challenging and we figured it out and got it done.”
The Tips have won six of seven first-round series under Constantine and he is the only bench boss to ever coach the Tips to a postseason series victory. Nevertheless, Victoria is a formidable opponent. The Royals may be the eighth seed, but they are still the defending Scotty Munro champions and only finished 20 points behind Everett in the Western Conference standings.
“They were the best team in the regular season in the WHL last year and the vast majority of those players are still here, so that core of being able to accomplish something is something they’re very good at,” Constantine said.
“On top of that they’ve had some injuries and the mumps have gone through their coaching staff and team, so they haven’t been themselves down the stretch,” he continued. “So I’m not sure our series against them this past week is really what this series will be like because they are not the team they will be in the playoffs because they will get players back from injuries, their coaching staff is back. They’re going to be a tough opponent for all of those reasons.”
The key to it all? Well, it starts in net with Carter Hart.
For the latest Silvertips news follow Jesse Geleynse on Twitter.
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