The Silvertips’ 11th season in the WHL saw a resurgence that placed Everett back among the contenders in the top half of the Western Conference. Upon the return of original Head Coach Kevin Constantine to the franchise, the Silvertips tied for second place in the US Division and fourth in the Western Conference with a 39-23-7-3 record and 88 points. Led by one of the strongest overage trios the organization has known and supported by a core of exciting young talent, Everett became one of the WHL’s top defensive clubs while also scoring the third-most goals of any Silvertips team. Despite falling in their first playoff series against the rival Seattle Thunderbirds in the postseason, the Silvertips were one of the WHL’s biggest success stories in 2013-14 and set the stage for exciting years to come.
EVERETT’S EXCITING RENAISSANCE
After three straight seasons of finishing below .500 in the standings and securing the last playoff spot in the Western Conference, the Silvertips were the surprise story of the first half of 2013-14. The ‘Tips earned victories in 20 of their first 28 games, finishing November with the WHL’s best record (20-4-4-0) and making multiple appearances in the CHL/BMO Top 10 Rankings. A rash of injuries and player absences from international competition spurned that early momentum and dropped Everett back within the pack midway through the season, but the ‘Tips caught fire again to finish the regular season on an 11-0-0-2 tear that included a nine-game winning streak. Tying for second place in the U.S. Division and fourth in the West with 88 points, the Silvertips posted the third-highest total point in franchise history and engineered a 31-point improvement on their 2012-13 campaign.
KC PICKS UP WHERE HE LEFT OFF
The Silvertips announced on June 13, 2013 that the coach who led them to three U.S. Division titles, a WHL regular season title and a Western Conference Championship between 2003 and 2007 would step behind the bench once again. Original Silvertips Head Coach Kevin Constantine had returned after six years away to lead the franchise for a second time, helping the team adopt a new style of play and turn in immediate results. The Silvertips were the WHL’s fifth-best defensive club (surrendering nearly a full goal-per-game less than the two prior seasons), and finished just behind Edmonton for second in shots against per game. At the opposite end of the ice, Everett’s 218 goals were the third-most in team history and another marked improvement over recent years. Their disciplined structure helped the ‘Tips to a 26-6-1-1 record (.794%) when scoring the first goal of a game and a 32-1 mark (.970%) when leading after two periods of play.
WINQUIST’S RECORD-BREAKING SEASON
Fifth-year Silvertips forward Josh Winquist produced likely the best offensive season in franchise history as an overager in 2013-14. Winquist set a new single-season franchise record with 47 goals, topping the previous record of 42 set by Shane Harper in 2009-10 to become the first Silvertip to finish among the WHL’s top-five goal scorers. He contributed 46 assists in 67 games to finish the year with 93 points, equaling Zach Hamill’s team record achieved in 2006-07. Winquist also broke Hamill’s team record with an 18-game point streak from October 20 to December 3 with 40 points (16g/24a) in that span. By season’s end, Winquist had climbed into second all-time in Silvertips career goals (101), assists (115) and points (216) and third in games played (301). He was named a Western Conference Second Team All-Star and earned WHL Player of the Month honors for November 2013.
16 & PROVEN
Everett still iced a young roster in 2013-14 and was the only WHL team to carry four 16-year-olds throughout the season. All four 1997-born skaters proved not only worthy of their roster spots, but became reliable impact players. On defense, the intelligent play of smooth-skating 2012 first-round Bantam pick Kevin Davis (1g/8a) and the physicality of gritty Noah Juulsen (2g/8a, +12 rating) belied their ages. Both logged significant minutes while playing regular shifts on Everett’s defense corps, including during high-pressure shorthanded situations and occasionally on the power play. Up front, Patrick Bajkov provided a surprise scoring boost with nine goals and 19 points in the regular season (plus three more goals in the playoffs), while Matt Fonteyne (4g/5a) showed his versatility in a variety of different ways and was called upon to fill the role of veteran center Kohl Bauml due to injury late in the year.
ROOKIES IN NAME ONLY
Forwards Ivan Nikolishin and Jujhar Khaira may have been rookies in 2013-14, but both brought experience and made an impact greater than that of most first-year players. Nikolishin was selected in the second round of the 2013 CHL Import Draft and came to Everett from his native Russia for his 17-year-old season. A highly skilled player with natural offensive instincts, Nikolishin finished second on the team and among all WHL rookies in scoring with 59 points on 18 goals and 41 assists while playing in all 72 games. His 33 power play points (9g/24a) led all first-year players, while his 18 goals tied for fifth. Khaira was assigned to the Silvertips for his 19-year-old season after leaving Michigan Tech University to sign an NHL contract with the Edmonton Oilers. A sizable power forward from Surrey, BC who was often nearly impossible to knock off the puck, Khaira scored 16 goals and totaled 43 points to go with a +5 rating and 59 penalty minutes in 59 games.
THANK YOU JOSH, MANRAJ AND MATT!
Two longtime members of the Silvertips and one impactful newcomer saw their junior careers come to a close as Everett’s three overagers in 2013-14. Five-year Silvertips forward Josh Winquist (St. Albert, AB) got better and better throughout his entire junior career, consistently achieving new statistical milestones all the way through the record-breaking overage campaign outlined above. Armed with great vision, play making ability and an always-dangerous shot, he joined former teammate Shane Harper as the only two players in team history to skate in 300 career games, record 200 points and score 100 goals for the club.
Center Manraj Hayer (Vancouver, BC) spent four seasons in green & silver, the last two of which he served as an Alternate Captain for the club. The speedy and skilled Hayer was always tough for opponents to handle and made his linemates better when he was on the ice, a point illustrated by Everett’s 34-12-5-2 record with him in the lineup in 2013-14. Despite being plagued by injuries for much of his career, he finished with over 100 career points in nearly 200 games and posted career highs with 43 points and a +11 rating in his final season.
Defenseman Matt Pufahl (Saskatoon, SK) may have been new to Everett for his last junior campaign after stints with Red Deer and Saskatoon, but he’ll be remembered as a former team captain who enjoyed one of the best offensive seasons ever by a ‘Tips blueliner. Acquired from the Blades in an off-season trade, Pufahl was promptly named Silvertips captain in October and immediately became a leader both on and off the ice. He quarterbacked Everett’s top power play unit on his way to a career high 50 points, including 15 goals to more than double his previous best. Pufahl reached 100 career points and 200 career games played in 2013-14.
FINAL REGULAR SEASON SCORING STATS