Silvertips Blank Rockets, Reach Memorial Cup Semi-Final

Published on May 28, 2026 under Western Hockey League (WHL) News Release

Goaltenders Harrison Boettiger of the Kelowna Rockets and Anders Miller of the Everett Silvertips
(, Credit: Steve Dunsmoor / CHL)

Making their first Memorial Cup appearance in franchise history, the WHL Champion Silvertips secured their place in Friday's semi-final, eliminated the host Rockets and ensured there would be no tie-breaker game Thursday.

Kayd Ruedig, Jaxon Pisani, Matias Vanhanen and Detroit Red Wings prospect Carter Bear scored for the Silvertips, while Anders Miller turned aside all 28 shots he faced to record the shutout.

Kelowna starter Josh Banini made eight saves before he was replaced by Harrison Boettiger, who stopped 22 of 23 shots in relief.

"Great performance by Anders and some key timely offence," said Everett head coach Steve Hamilton. "Overall, I'm really proud of our group."

The victory also continued a season-long trend for Everett, which has not lost back-to-back games in 2025-26. With the win, the Silvertips will now meet the Chicoutimi Saguenéens - who they defeated 5-3 earlier in the tournament - in Friday's semi-final.

"We didn't want to be in a position where we were leaving our fate going forward in someone else's hands," Hamilton said.

Wednesday's matchup was also a rematch of a 2026 WHL Playoffs second-round series between the two clubs, which saw Everett eliminate Kelowna in five games on its way to the first Ed Chynoweth Cup title in franchise history.

Ruedig opened the scoring 7:22 into the first period when he threw the puck toward the net from along the right-side boards. The puck struck Kelowna defenceman Rowan Guest in the left arm before finding its way past Banini.

Everett doubled its lead just 25 seconds later through Pisani, who scored his first career goal with a point shot that beat Banini high.

"It was pretty surreal and obviously very cool to do it at the biggest junior hockey tournament that there is," Pisani said.

Vanhanen's impressive tournament continued early in the second period as he scored his third goal of the event just 63 seconds into the frame. The Finnish forward used his speed to create separation before firing a wrist shot past Banini, ending the Kelowna goaltender's night.

A top prospect for the 2026 NHL Draft, Vanhanen has now scored three times in three games at the 2026 Memorial Cup. During the 2025-26 regular season, he recorded 66 assists - the sixth-highest single-season total by a CHL rookie since 2000 and the most by a WHL rookie since 1997-98.

Bear added Everett's fourth goal with 6:53 remaining in regulation. After his initial shot from the slot was stopped, Bear collected the rebound, spun and fired home his second goal of the tournament.

Everett defenceman Landon DuPont, the first WHL player granted Exceptional Player Status to compete at the Memorial Cup and a top prospect for the 2027 NHL Draft, was held out of the game after taking warmups.

"He's a little nicked up," Hamilton said. "You never want to put a guy in a situation where he's not capable of being himself. We just felt tonight wasn't a fit to get him in there, but a couple of days could go a long way with him. So we'll see where we're at come Friday."

The winner of Friday's semi-final will advance to Sunday's championship game, where the OHL Champion Kitchener Rangers await. Kitchener earned a direct berth in the final after finishing the round robin with a perfect 3-0 record. Since 2000, teams that have gone 3-0 in the Memorial Cup round robin are 9-3 in the championship game, though each of the last two 3-0 teams has fallen in the final.

Every game of the 2026 Memorial Cup will air in Canada on TSN and RDS, with live streaming available on TSN.ca, the TSN app, RDS.ca, and the RDS app. In the United States, fans can watch every game on NHL Network, while viewers outside Canada can stream the tournament live on Victory+.

2026 Memorial Cup schedule

May 22 - Game 1: Kitchener 5-0 Kelowna

May 23 - Game 2: Everett 5-3 Chicoutimi

May 24 - Game 3: Chicoutimi 3-2 Kelowna (OT)

May 25 - Game 4: Kitchener 6-2 Everett

May 26 - Game 5: Kitchener 3-2 Chicoutimi

May 27 - Game 6: Everett 4-0 Kelowna

May 29 - Semi-final: Chicoutimi vs. Everett - 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT

May 31 - Championship Game - 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT

Goaltenders Harrison Boettiger of the Kelowna Rockets and Anders Miller of the Everett Silvertips (Steve Dunsmoor / CHL)

Western Hockey League Stories from May 28, 2026

• Warriors Announce Three-Year Partnership with HK Henderson: Navacord for Alumni Golf Tournament - Moose Jaw Warriors
• Silvertips Blank Rockets, Reach Memorial Cup Semi-Final - WHL
• Silvertips End Rockets Season in 4-0 Loss at the 2026 Memorial Cup - Kelowna Rockets

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