Round 3 Preview: Vees vs Silvertips
Published on April 22, 2026 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Penticton Vees News Release
Penticton Vees left wing Brittan Alstead and defenceman Ethan Weber
(Penticton Vees, Credit: Cherie Morgan)
PENTICTON, BC - The Penticton Vees are off to the Western Conference Final in their inaugural WHL season after taking down the Prince George Cougars in six games in Round 2.
The Vees will face off with the #1 Ranked CHL team in the country, the Everett Silvertips, in Round 3 starting Thursday in Everett.
Tale of the Tape
Brick Walls Between The Pipes
The Vees and Cougars goaltenders are big reasons why these two teams are still playing here in Round 3.
AJ Reyelts: The Vees goaltender was dominant in the back half of the series with the Cougars stopping 25 shots in a 1-0 Game 5 win and 40-of-42 shots in the Vees 3-2 OT victory to send them to the third round. Reyelts is 8-2 in the post-season with a 2.44 GAA and a .914 save percentage. Against the Silvertips this season the native of Proctor, MN went 1-1-1-0 with a .929 save percentage and one shutout.
Anders Miller: Miller has been outstanding in the post-season starting all nine Silvertips games. He's 8-0-1 so far in the playoffs with a league leading 1.55 GAA (among starters) and a .948 save percentage. Miller made two appearances against the Vees this season going 1-1 with a .870 save percentage.
Defensive Domination
The Vees and the Silvertips were two of the best teams in the league in regular season with the Silvertips having the second-least goals against in the league (173) and the Vees having the third-least (188). So far in the playoffs both teams have had major contributions from the back end. Nolan Steveson leads all Vees defencemen with seven points (2g, 5a) while three different Vees defencemen have scored game winning goals in their eight playoff wins. Landon DuPont continues to turn heads in his 16 year-old season. He leads the WHL in points by a defencemen with 13 (3g, 10a) including the dagger in their Round 2 battle with the Kelowna Rockets, striking in OT in Game 5.
Head-To-Head
The Vees went 1-2-1-0 against the Silvertips in the regular season. Their one victory was a 7-0 road win to hand Everett their first regulation loss of the year after they had started the season 10-0-1. Despite Everett taking three of the four meetings each team scored 15 goals in the four games. The Vees were 0-2 at home and 1-0-1 on the road against the Silvertips in the regular season.
Players to Watch
Penticton: Vees forward Jacob Kvasnicka put the dagger in the hearts of the Cougars, picking up the OT winner in game six for his seventh goal of the post-season. Kvasnicka leads all Vees with 13 playoff points. Louie Wehmann had a dominating second-round. He used a three assist performance to will the Vees back into the series against Prince George in Game 3 when the Vees were down 2-0 in the series and 2-0 in the second period. Overall, Wehmann is tied for second on the Vees in points with 11 so far.
Everett: Landon DuPont: Even at 16 years-old DuPont is one of the most dangerous defencemen in the WHL. He leads all defenders in points and is trusted to play big minutes each and every night. Matias Vanhanen has continued on from his excellent regular season where he registered 87 points. In the post-season Vanhanen leads the Silvertips with 14 points (7g, 7a).
Playoff Leading Scorers
Penticton
Jacob Kvasnicka - 13 points (7g, 6a)
Ryden Evers - 11 points (6g, 5a)
Louie Wehmann - 11 points (5g, 6a)
Brady Birnie - 8 points (6g, 2a)
Matteo Danis - 8 points (1g 7a)
Silvertips
Matias Vanhanen - 14 points (7g, 7a)
Landon DuPont - 13 points (3g, 10a)
Julius Miettinen - 12 points (8g, 4a)
Carter Bear - 12 points (2g, 10a)
Brek Liske - 8 points (3g, 5a)
The Vees and Silvertips kick off the Western Conference Final Thursday in Everett with Game 2 coming Saturday. Penticton returns home for Games 3 and 4 Monday and Tuesday.
Images from this story
 Penticton Vees left wing Brittan Alstead and defenceman Ethan Weber (Cherie Morgan) |
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