Western Hockey League Playoffs Round 2: Preview, Predictions
Western Hockey League Playoffs Round 2: WHL Road to Memorial Cup – Previews & Predictions
Western Hockey League Playoffs opening round came to a finish back on Monday with Kelowna eliminating Kamloops.
Seattle and Everett are set to face-off in round two after being the lone pair of teams that swept first round opponents.
WHL second round match-ups begin tomorrow (Thursday, April 7th) with one game, while two more face-off on Friday, and the last series kicks off on Saturday.
Western Hockey League Playoffs: Round 1 Recap
Brandon defeats Edmonton 4-2
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The Oil Kings won the first two games in Brandon, putting the WHL powerhouse Wheat Kings on their heels early. Brandon stomped back to win the next four straight, including a 10-3 victory in game six to put an exclamation mark on a series that began horribly wrong.
Moose Jaw defeats Prince Albert 4-1
Moose Jaw handled the Raiders in four of five games. Prince Albert dominated in game three with a 7-3 victory, but were shutout the final two games 5-0 and 7-0. The Warriors outscored Prince Albert 22-11.
Regina defeats Lethbridge 4-1
The first Wild-Card spot Regina Pats knocked off the Eastern Conference’s second best team in convincing fashion. Lethbridge took game one 6-3, only to drop the next four games straight. Regina outscored Lethbridge 14-10 over a five game span.
Red Deer defeats Calgary 4-1
After splitting the first two games, the Rebels took the next three en route to a series win. This match-up was a close low-scoring affair in which Red Deer outscored the Hitman 16-12. Regardless of how Red Deer does, they’ve got an automatic berth to the Memorial Cup as tournament host.
Victoria defeats Spokane 4-2
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Union and Blue
The WHL’s best team (Victoria) was given more of a challenge than expected from their first round opponent. They dropped games three and five to the Chiefs before eventually closing things off on Sunday in a 6-2 victory over Spokane.
Kelowna defeats Kamloops 4-3
Neither team won back-to-back games in this series with a literal back-and-forth match-up which resulted in the Rockets taking game seven in OT with a 2-1 victory. This was the lone series that went the distance.
Seattle defeats Prince George 4-0
The Thunderbirds won a dominating sweep outscoring the Cougars 16-6 in four straight. Seattle will face-off against the only other team to sweep an opponent, Everett, ensuring both teams are well rested when things kick off on Friday.
Everett defeats Portland 4-0
Everett Silvertips won convincingly without top draft eligible goalie Carter Hart as these US Division 2nd and 3rd place teams squared off. Hart eventually returned in the final game of the series. The Winterhawks were outscored 15-6 by Everett.
More puck prose: NHL Mock Draft 3.5: Rounds 1-7
Western Hockey League Playoffs Round Two: Preview, Predictions
Eastern Conference
Brandon Wheat Kings vs. Moose Jaw Warriors
Notable Players:
Brett Howden, MJ (2016 Draft) – 5gp 11pts
Brayden Point, MJ (TB) – 5gp 10pts
John Quenneville, Brandon (NJ) – 6gp 9pts
Jayce Hawryluk, Brandon (FLA) – 6gp 9pts
Nolan Patrick, Brandon (2017 Draft) – 6gp 8pts
Noah Gregor, MJ (2016 Draft) – 5gp 7pts
Reid Duke, Brandon (MIN) – 6gp 7pts
Kale Clague, Brandon (2016 Draft) – 6gp 6pts
Tanner Kaspick, Brandon (2016 Draft) – 6gp 3pts
Macoy Erkamps, Brandon (OTT) – 6gp 2pts
Ivan Provorov, Brandon (PHI) – 6gp 2pts
Goalies:
Jason Papirny, Brandon – (4-2-0) 2.02GAA .921 save percentage
Zach Sawchenko, Moose Jaw (2016 Draft) – (4-1-0) 2.01GAA .942 save percentage
Prediction:
Moose Jaw wins series 4-3
Red Deer Rebels vs. Regina Pats
Notable Players:
Adam Brooks, Regina (2016 Draft) – 5gp 14pts
Sam Steel, Regina (2016 Draft) – 5gp 9pts
Adam Helewka, Red Deer (SJ) – 5gp 7pts
Austin Wagner, Regina (LA) – 5gp 6pts
Jake DeBrusk, Red Deer (BOS) – 5gp 5pts
Michael Spacek, Red Deer (WPG) – 5gp 4pts
Connor Hobbs, Regina (VAN) – 5gp 3pts
Jeff De Wit, Red Deer (2016 Draft) – 5gp 3pts
Adam Musil, Red Deer (STL) – 5gp 3pts
Colby Williams, Regina (WSH) – 5gp 2pts
Haydn Fleury, Red Deer (CAR) – 5gp 2pts
Brandon Hagel, Red Deer (2016 Draft) – 5gp 2pts
Sergey Zborovskiy, Regina (NYR) – 5gp 1pt
Ivan Nikolishin, Red Deer (2016 Draft) – 2gp 0pts
Josh Mahura, Red Deer (2016 Draft) – 5gp 0pts
Goalies:
Trevor Martin, Red Deer – (4-1-0) 2.21GAA .927 save percentage
Tyler Brown, Regina – (4-1-0) 2.00GAA .935 save percentage
Prediction:
Regina wins series 4-3
Western Conference
Victoria Royals vs. Kelowna Rockets
Notable Players:
Tyler Soy, Victoria (2016 Draft) – 6gp 9pts
Vladimir Bobylev, Victoria (2016 Draft) – 5gp 7pts
Tomas Soustal, Kelowna (2016 Draft) – 7gp 6pts
Rourke Chartier, Kelowna (SJ) – 7gp 5pts
Matthew Phillips, Victoria (2016 Draft) – 6gp 4pts
Lucas Johansen, Kelowna (2016 Draft) – 7gp 4pts
Justin Kirkland, Kelowna (NSH) – 7gp 4pts
Dillon Dube, Kelowna (2016 Draft) – 7gp 4pts
Joe Hicketts, Victoria (DET) – 1gp 3pts
Chaz Reddekopp, Victoria (LA) – 6gp 3pts
Devante Stephens, Kelowna (BUF) – 7gp 0pts
Goalies:
Griffen Outhouse, Victoria – (2-1-0) 2.51GAA .901 save percentage
Coleman Vollrath, Victoria – (2-1-0) 3.67GAA .887 save percentage
Michael Herringer, Kelowna – (4-3-0) 2.39GAA .930 save percentage
Prediction:
Kelowna wins series 4-2
Seattle Thunderbirds vs. Everett Silvertips
Notable Players:
Matthew Barzal, Seattle (NYI) – 4gp 7pts
Matt Fonteyne, Everett (2016 Draft) – 4gp 5pts
Ethan Bear, Seattle (EDM) – 4gp 4pts
Kevin Davis, Everett (2016 Draft) – 4gp 4pts
Keegan Kolesar, Seattle (CLB) – 3gp 3pts
Alexander True, Seattle (2016 Draft) – 4gp 3pts
Nolan Volcan, Seattle (2016 Draft) – 4gp 3pts
Patrick Bajkov, Everett (2016 Draft) – 4gp 3pts
Brycen Martin, Everett (BUF) – 4gp 2pts
Noah Juulsen, Everett (MTL) – 4gp 1pt
Goalies:
Landon Bow, Seattle – (4-0-0) 1.43GAA .935 save percentage
Mario Petit, Everett – (3-0-0) 1.33GAA .953 save percentage
Carter Hart, Everett – (1-0-0) 2.00GAA .933 save percentage
Prediction:
Everett wins series 4-2
Next: QMJHL Playoffs Round 2 Preview, Predictions
WHL Conference Finals Prediction
Moose Jaw vs. Regina (EAST)
Kelowna vs. Everett (WEST)