The Everett Silvertips sent a loud message to the rest of the Memorial Cup field on Friday night, dismantling the Chicoutimi Saguenéens 6-1 in a one-sided semi-final that was never really in doubt after the opening minutes. From Jaxsin Vaughn’s early snipe to Landon DuPont’s two-goal explosion and a gritty fight that added some extra spice late in the second period, Everett controlled the game from start to finish with speed, physicality, and clinical finishing. Chicoutimi managed just one brief moment of hope with Tomas Lavoie’s goal, but the WHL champions were simply too deep, too fast, and too determined on this night, punching their ticket to the Memorial Cup final in convincing fashion.
Jaxsin Vaughn makes it a 1-0 game for the Silvertips at 7:56 of the first period the assist on the goal went to Lukas Kaplan.–Jaxsin Vaughn pounced on a sloppy turnover in the Chicoutimi zone, streaking in all alone before wiring a beauty glove-side past the goalie to open the scoring. That early snipe set the tone for Everett’s blowout and got the Silvertips rolling in what turned into a statement semi-final win.
Tomas Lavoie tied the game up for Chicoutimi at 12:01 of the first period. The assists on the goal went to Peteris Bulans and Nathan LeCompte.-=Tomas Lavoie made up for his earlier turnover in style, grabbing the puck at the left point, cutting hard toward the net, and ripping a quick wrister that snuck in short-side on Anders Miller. The puck ricocheted off the back bar so fast officials initially waved it off, but after a quick review it counted as the equalizer, giving Chicoutimi a brief spark in what became a tough night.
Landon Dupont gave the Silvertips a 2-1 lead at 13:59 of the first period. The assists on the goal went to Carter Bear and Shea Busch.–Landon DuPont took a crisp feed from Carter Bear behind the net, curled and dragged at the blueline to create space, then unloaded a heavy wrister through traffic that beat Lucas Beckman high to restore Everett’s lead. That highlight-reel snipe from the young D-man, just a day after turning 17, shifted the momentum right back to the Silvertips and kicked off his two-goal night.
Shots on goal in the first period were 9-6 Everett
Carter Bear makes it a 3-1 game for the Silvertips at 5:39 of the second period. The helpers on the goal went to Nolan Chastko and Luke Vlooswyk.–Carter Bear jumped on a loose puck in the neutral zone, turned on the jets for a partial breakaway, and made no mistake snapping it past Lucas Beckman to make it 3-1 early in the second. That opportunistic snipe, off feeds from Nolan Chastko and Luke Vlooswyk, kicked off Everett’s three-goal middle frame and basically sucked the life out of Chicoutimi’s comeback hopes.
Zackary Shantz gives the Tips a 4-1 lead at 12:35 of the second period. The assist on the goal went to Jesse Heslop.–Zackary Shantz cleaned up the garbage in front, banging home a rebound after Jesse Heslop’s one-timer rang off the post, then stuffing in the third chance off a defender’s leg to make it 4-1 midway through the second. That gritty, persistent finish from the veteran forward basically buried any hope Chicoutimi had left and turned the game into a full-on rout for the Silvertips.
Landon Dupont makes it a 5-1 game for the Silvertips on the Power Play at 18:38 of the second period. The assists on the goal went to Matias Vanhanen and Anders Miller.–Landon DuPont wired his second of the night on a 4-on-3 power play, snapping a one-timer from the left circle off a slick feed from Matias Vanhanen that flew past Lucas Beckman glove-side to make it 5-1. The 17-year-old phenom’s blistering shot, with goalie Anders Miller picking up the secondary assist, basically sealed the deal and capped a monster night for the young defenseman in his return from injury.
Jaxsin Vaughan and Liam Lefebvre had been chirping and jawing at each other all game after Vaughan laid a big hit on the Chicoutimi top scorer earlier. Late in the second period, right after both stepped out of the box from separate minors, the bad blood boiled over at center ice—they dropped the gloves and threw down in a spirited scrap, with Vaughan landing the cleaner shots and getting the edge before the linesmen jumped in. Both guys got game misconducts and were done for the night, but it was the perfect spark for Everett heading into a dominant third.
Shots on goal in the second period were 18-6 for Everett
Julius Miettinen gives the Silvertips a 6-1 lead just 45 seconds into the third period on the Power Play. Assists on the goal went to Rylan Gould and Matias Vanhanen.
Shots on goal in the third period were 14-9 for Chicoutimi. The Silvertips outshot Chicoutimi in the game 36-26.
Anders Miller stopped 25 of the 26 shots that he faced for the win for Silvertips. For Chicoutimi Lucas Beckman stopped 22 of the 28 shots that he faced. He was replaced after the 6th goal in the third period by Pont-Rouge, Quebec native Raphael Precourt who stopped all 8 shots that he faced.
Landon Dupont was named player of the game.
The Memorial Cup final will be played on Sunday May 31st. It will be Everett vs Kitchener.
