Everett Silvertips eliminate Vees, advance to 2026 WHL Championship Series

For the third time in franchise history, the Everett Silvertips will battle for WHL glory.

The Silvertips completed a sweep of the B.C. Division Penticton Vees with a 4-2 comeback win in Game 4 on Tuesday night.

Penticton carried a hard-fought 2-1 lead into the final period with hopes of extending their season, but Jesse Heslop breathed new life into the game as he shovelled a loose puck into the Vees net with under nine minutes remaining.

Two minutes later, 2026 NHL Draft-eligible Matias Vanhanen (NHL CSS: 54)  gave Everett its first lead of the night.

His 10th goal of the playoffs would stand as the series-winner.

Fellow Finn and Seattle Kraken prospect Julius Miettinen iced the Western Conference Championship with an empty net goal, while Anders Miller steered aside 26 of 28 shots.

Vanhanen and Miettinen are tied for most goals in the 2026 WHL Playoffs.

The powerhouse Silvertips have captured back-to-back Scotty Munro Memorial Trophies as regular-season champions, but are eager to drop ‘regular season’ from that sentence.

Everett is coming off its best regular season in franchise history with a whopping 57-8-2-1 record.

Angel of the Winds Arena has become a fortress on Possession Sound, with the Tips going 6-0-0  at home in the postseason.

This marks Everett’s third trip to the WHL Championship Series and first since 2018.

The Tips burst onto the scene in their inaugural season by capturing the U.S. Division title and advancing to the 2004 WHL Championship Series, where they fell to the Medicine Hat Tigers in four straight.

They’d have to wait until 2018 to have another crack at the title, but were ultimately felled by the Swift Current Broncos in six games.

Now, Everett will await the winner of the Eastern Conference Championship, where the Medicine Hat Tigers hold a 2-1 series lead over the Prince Albert Raiders.