Rockets right there early, but game slips away

“I thought we had a really good first period,” associate coach Don Hay said. “We did a lot of the things we talked about. They got the first one, but I liked our push.”

The Silvertips opened the scoring on the power play, and it didn’t take long. Shea Busch scored just 16 seconds into the man advantage midway through the first period to make it 1–0.

Still, the Rockets didn’t look rattled.

They kept it close, traded chances, and went to the second period down just a goal. It felt manageable.

Then they got exactly the start they needed.

Just 23 seconds into the second, Ty Halaburda jumped on a loose puck right after a power play ended and snapped it home. Unassisted. Tie game, 1–1.

At that point, it felt like Kelowna had grabbed a bit of momentum.

It didn’t last.

“They’re a hard-checking team,” Hay said. “They don’t give you a lot. You have to earn everything against them.”

That’s where the game started to turn.

Everett pushed. Not in a flashy way, just steady. They kept pucks alive, won battles, and made Kelowna defend over and over again.

Leading scorer Matias Vanhanen put the Tips back in front midway through the second, finishing around the net after the Rockets couldn’t clear the zone.

“We got outmuscled a bit there,” Hay said. “They get pucks to the net and stay on them.”

It was still a one-goal game. Still within reach.

Then came the mistake.

A turnover turned into a quick chance the other way, and Julius Miettinen made no mistake on a breakaway late in the period. Just like that, it was 3–1.

“That was the backbreaker,” Hay said. “We got caught, and their top guys made a great play. That’s what happens this time of year.”

Through 40 minutes, Kelowna was still hanging around on the scoreboard.

But the game didn’t feel even anymore.

The Rockets had just two shots on goal in the final 20 minutes. Everett had 16.

“It’s not good enough,” Hay said. “We have to find a way to get more pucks to the net.”

Kelowna had a couple of power plays, chances to get back into it, but nothing really got going.

“You hate to have a power play, and it takes your energy away,” Hay said about a unit that ended the night 0 for 5. “We didn’t generate enough. Not enough shots, not enough pressure.”

A lot of that had to do with how Everett plays.

“They just wear you down,” Hay said. “You’re going back for pucks all the time, and eventually you make a mistake. And it costs you.”

That’s what it looked like.

“We fanned on a lot of pucks,” Hay said. “We bobbled plays, especially on the power play. Your skilled guys have to make plays that matter, and we didn’t do that enough.”

Harrison Boettiger made several big saves, especially early in the third, to keep the Rockets within a couple.

“I thought our goalie was our best player,” Hay said. “He gave us a chance with some big saves.”

But there wasn’t enough push in front of him.

“Did we have enough guys going? No,” Hay said. “We need more players playing at their best.”

That showed up in the matchups, too. Everett’s top lines found ways to win their shifts, while Kelowna struggled to create anything sustained.

“That’s two lines that outplayed us,” Hay said. “We have to be better there.”

The final shots were 40–22 Everett.

“They play at a level that most teams have trouble keeping up with,” Hay said. “And as the game goes on, they get stronger in that.”

There’s no time to sit on it in the playoffs. Adjustments have to come quickly.

“Our mentality has to change a bit,” Hay said. “More urgency, more intensity. We’ve got to find a way to get out of the corners and get pucks back to the net.”

Game two goes Saturday night before the series shifts to Kelowna for games three and four this Tuesday and Wednesday.

by Regan Bartel

Rockets right there early, but game slips away

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