U.S. Division Playoff Preview

If the U.S. Division bracket of the WHL Playoffs is as exciting as the regular season stretch run was then we are all going to be in for a treat.

It came down to the final weekend but the Everett Silvertips were able to hold off the Seattle Thunderbirds and win their second division title in three years. A big 5-2 win over the Victoria Royals at home this past Saturday clinched the banner for them as Seattle had lost to Portland.

The Thunderbirds finished off their schedule by blowing out Vancouver which gave them 46 wins, most in the division and Western Conference. Meanwhile, Tri-City scored twice in the final two minutes against Everett on Sunday to pick up a big win in overtime that allowed them to jump ahead of the Portland Winterhawks in the standing. As a result, the Winterhawks are off to play Prince George in round one of the B.C. Division bracket.

It took 72 games to decide the match ups but now the reset button is pushed, all the records go to even, and the playoffs are here. Here’s a look at the U.S. Division’s first round match ups.

Everett Silvertips (44-16-9-3, 1st place U.S. Division) versus Victoria Royals (37-29-5-1, 2nd wild card)

Head to head: Everett 4-0

Power Play: EVT 20.7% (11th) VIC 20.3% (13th)

Penalty Kill: EVT 85.8% (1st) VIC 78.3% (13th)

EstFC: EVT 53.25% VIC 49.06%

PDO: EVT 101.39 VIC 101.01

Key Players: Everett Patrick Bajkov, RW, (29-49-78), Dominic Zwerger, LW, (28-47-75), Noah Juulsen, D, (12-22-34), Carter Hart, G, (1.99 GAA, .927 SV) Victoria Matthew Phillips, C, (50-40-90), Jack Walker, LW, (31-41-72), Tyler Soy, C, (25-30-55), Griffen Outhouse, G, (2.85 GAA, .915 SV)

The Silvertips started the season on fire and led the division from the start. They ran into a bit of a struggle in late January which allowed Seattle to make things interesting in the race for the top seed. Everett was able to rebound however and enters the playoffs as not only the division top dog, but also the Western Conference top seed.

You know what you’re going to get with the Everett Silvertips. They play a tight defensive game, allowing little room on the ice, and will block shots like crazy. If you are able to get through their defense you then just have to deal with the reigning CHL Goalie of the Year, Carter Hart. The Philadelphia Flyers prospect turned in another spectacular season back-stopping the Silvertips and turned in a career best nine shutouts. Overall, scoring goals is not easy when playing Everett as they allowed the fewest in the WHL.

The question with the Silvertips has always been about whether or not they can score enough goals. This season they were and have some dangerous players. Bajkov turned in a career year and the early season acquisition of Zwerger has been a home run for the Silvertips. Riley Sutter is a player to watch as the 2018 NHL Draft eligible potted 20 this season and is a force on the power play.

A year after winning the Scotty Munro trophy the exepectations were high for the Royals coming into the season. They never could quite put it together on a consistent basis however and having to deal with some injuries, they stumbled down the stretch to lose their last seven games.

Coach Dave Lowry’s group can still skate and still score however. Phillips had a monster season and you have to wonder how much better the Royals might have been had Soy not missed 28 games this year. If they’re going to pull off the first-round upset here, those top guns are going to have to stay patient and find a way to hit the back of the net. Phillips and Soy were held scoreless against Everett during the regular season and Walker only scored in one of the four games. That has to change if the Royals hope to win.

In net, the Royals have a good one in Outhouse. After splitting time in the net last year, Outhouse took over and appeared in 63 games for Victoria and picked up 34 of the Royals’ 37 wins.

Prediction

This has been a bad match up for the Royals this season. Victoria will have its hands full in this one as the Silvertips have shown that they can slow down the Royals speed up front. Everett will play disciplined and Victoria will have to try and stay out of the penalty box. The margin of error is slim here, give up a couple of goals to the Silvertips and Hart and company will take care of the rest. Silvertips in 5.

Seattle Thunderbirds (46-20-4-2, 2nd U.S. Division) versus Tri-City Americans (41-28-3-0, 3rd U.S. Division)

Head to head: Seattle 6-2

Power Play: SEA 22.2% (8th) TC 24.8% (4th)

Penalty Kill: SEA 83.3% (3rd) TC 78.5% (12th)

EstFC: SEA 54% TC 46.07%

PDO: SEA 99.76 TC 102.22

Key Players: Seattle Mathew Barzal, C, (10-69-79), Ryan Gropp, LW, (35-49-85), Ethan Bear, D, (28-42-70), Rylan Toth, G, (2.75 GAA, .902 SV) Tri-City Morgan Geekie, C, (35-55-90), Tyler Sandhu, RW, (23-60-83), Parker Wotherspoon, D, (10-56-66), Rylan Parenteau, G, (3.28 GAA, .900 SV)

For the second straight season the Thunderbirds went on a second half tear and won 28 of their last 36 games. Barzal is the ring leader for Seattle and his 69 assists in only 41 games has been pretty impressive. His status for this series is still up in the air as he’s been in isolation for a couple of weeks while the team awaits the results of mumps tests.

Injuries have been a constant theme for Seattle and  the club is hopeful that both Barzal and Toth will be able to go in Game 1. If they do, it will be the first time that the Thunderbirds will have iced a full roster all season. They can score and have a ton of depth up front with Barzal, Gropp, Keegan Kolesar, Sami Moilanen and Scott Eansor. On the back end they are led by Bear and his giant slap shot along with Turner Ottenbreit who ended the year with a plus-45.

Toth missed the last four games of the season with a lower body injury but the team is hopeful he’ll be able to return. After getting traded to Seattle from Red Deer just before the season, Toth spent the first half getting used to his surroundings. Since New Year’s, he’s rounded into form and was named WHL Goalie of the Month in January.

Tri-City has been a streaky team all season but ended with three straight and are one of the top scoring teams in the Western Conference. They will be without 2017 NHL Draft eligible prospect Michael Rasmussen, who is out with a wrist injury. Even without Rasmussen, there is a lot of firepower with six other players who topped the 20-goal mark. Their power play is one of the toughest in the league and if Seattle gives them too many chances, they could extend this series.

Goaltending has been inconsistent for the Americans all year long and it will need to step it up here. Parenteau was brought in and the 20-year old has been solid but has shared some time with Evan Sarthou. Of the Western Conference playoff teams, only Portland has allowed more goals than Tri-City, which could be a problem considering the snipers they will be facing in Seattle.

Prediction

Tri-City won two of the last three head-to-head match ups between these two clubs but are in tough with a good Seattle team. The Thunderbirds have only lost eight home games this season and have home ice. They haven’t lost back-to-back games since mid December and if they are finally healthy, will be a handful. The Thunderbirds are the better possession team here, have the most experience and will prevail. Seattle in five