YEAR BY YEAR RECORDS
TRIAL BY FIRE The youngest team in Silvertips history had plenty of growing up to do during a 12-day trip through central Canada against the WHL’s talented East Division. Buoyed by a collective effort in a 4-1 win at Regina in which Daniel Bartek posted a hat trick - two goals of which were scored shorthanded - and 23 saves by Shane Barrie, the tone of the trip was set midway through the second period when three separate Silvertips went down to block rapid fire Colten Teubert slap shots in one of the year’s best defensive efforts. Byron Froese, Tyler Maxwell and Kellan Tochkin combined for 11 points in a 5-2 win at Moose Jaw before the Silvertips concluded the long swing led by several jarring Taylor Ellington hits in a physical 3-2 win at Swift Current. With a 3-1-2-0 record and a robust penalty kill, the road trip proved to be a unifying experience for a team that started the season with 13 rookies. ROAD WARRIORS Though the 2008-09 Silvertips did not find as much success on the road as they did at home, several key road victories helped define the team’s efforts away from Everett. With wins in Vancouver in both October and March, the Silvertips finished 2-1 at Pacific Coliseum to post a winning record in the home of their B.C. Division rivals for the third time in four years. On October 15, two late third-period goals by Kellan Tochkin tied the game at three before Matthew Ius won it in the ninth round of the shootout. On March 13, the ‘Tips jumped out to a 2-0 lead before the Giants stormed back with three unanswered goals to take a 3-2 lead early in the third period. After Tochkin tied it a few minutes later, Byron Froese netted the game-winner as Everett knocked off Vancouver 5-3 in front of 12,141 fans. Following the game, British Columbia native Taylor Ellington signed a three-year contract with the Vancouver Canucks to complete a storybook evening. That win came less than two weeks after a clutch Silvertips performance earned Everett’s first two points at the Thunderbirds’ new arena in Kent as Shane Harper tied the game late in regulation before providing the only goal of the shootout. It was the Silvertips’ first win on the road against the Thunderbirds since January 27, 2007. ABNEY, FROESE SELECTED IN NHL DRAFT The Silvertips produced eight NHL draft picks between 2006 and 2008, and the 2009 NHL Draft would prove to continue that recent trend. In the third round the Edmonton Oilers selected forward Cameron Abney with the 82nd overall pick, and then forward Byron Froese was selected by the Chicago Blackhawks in the fourth round (119th Overall) THANK YOU TAYLOR, GRAHAM AND DANIEL The youth on the 2008-09 Silvertips was well balanced by the leadership of tested veterans who unified the locker room and defended their teammates on the ice. 20-year-old defensive stalwarts and alternate captains Taylor Ellington and Graham Potuer were among the most relied-upon defensemen in the Western Hockey League, often logging upwards of 25 minutes of ice time per game. Whereas Ellington helped set the team’s physical pace as one of the league’s premier hitters, Potuer was also able to find his own physical niche en route to blocking over 2,200 shots in his Everett career. Both Potuer and Ellington finished their WHL careers as five-year veterans of the Everett Silvertips, and Ellington’s 287 career games played were the most in club history when he moved on from the program. Daniel Bartek, who was acquired from the Brandon Wheat Kings prior to the season, endured several injuries due to the “jam” in his game and the complete effort he devoted night in and night out. Another stellar shot blocker, Bartek’s two-way game was evident through his excellence on special teams as he led the Silvertips in shorthanded goals and finished among the leaders in powerplay goals.