It’s been nearly two months since the Everett Silvertips started looking to backfill its head coach and general manager positions, and yeaahh this is definitely taking longer than it’s needed to.
The organization is showing signs of making these critical decisions, though, as well as a decision regarding their highly touted defensive prospect very shortly.
Silvertips chief operating officer Zoran Rajcic spoke with The Everett Herald this week, indicating that both the general manager and head coaching positions have been filled as of now, and the organization is waiting for the right time to announce both hires.
They’ve made it known they will go with two separate candidates to fill two positions instead of just having one person wear both hats like it was for three years under the recently departed Dennis Williams. Signs are pointing to the positions potentially being filled from within, too.
General manager
There have been plenty of candidates that have been on the Silvertips’ radar, according to Rajcic, but judging by the timing of what he’s said, and looking at some of the moves being made by the organization, it’s becoming apparent that these decisions (at least on the GM role) might have been made a while ago.
Mike Fraser has been the acting GM since Williams’ departure, and it’s worth noting that the organization has allowed him to take charge at the draft, in transactions and signings, such as 2024 first-rounder Mirco Dufour and second-rounder Jaxon Pisani, in his time as the interim GM.
Fraser has been a part of the Silvertips organization for six seasons now, initially hired on as the team’s head scout before the 2018-19 season. He later transitioned to the front office as the assistant GM before 2022-23.
While it’s entirely possible they go with an outside hire, the familiarity and already existing rapport Fraser has with the team and its operations might be enough for him to be considered the favorite to land the position.
Head coach
It’s not often a position of this caliber becomes available, as this is just the second time in 11 seasons a head coaching change has been made in Everett. The Silvertips have shown in taking their time that they are committed to making sure they get the hire right.
An internal hire would make sense here as well, with both assistants in Mike Field and Dean DeSilva having various experience levels throughout each of their respective coaching careers that warrant consideration.
Field notably was the associate head coach at Arizona State University for eight seasons before being brought under Williams at the beginning of last season.
Meanwhile, DeSilva has been an assistant coach in the WHL since 2018-19, but has never been a full-time head coach at any level. Much like Fraser, they might look favorably at his familiarity with the organization and his pre-existing relationships with players on the current roster.
And that brings on another point with just how important this hire is for Everett, with how much talent the current defensive-minded group features. And that’s not to mention that the next coach will likely coach exceptional defense prospect Landon DuPont during his impending Silvertips tenure. Getting a defensive-oriented mind at the helm can help alleviate the struggles the Silvertips had in these past playoffs with clogging the middle of the ice, and it could make the group even stronger than it already is.
Everett is one of just two WHL teams remaining with a vacancy at head coach, with division rival Spokane being the other.
Landon DuPont, Silvertips nearing a deal
While DuPont is the last 2024 first-rounder left unsigned to his WHL club, it’s becoming more and more evident an agreement between the Silvertips and him is imminent.
The indication is that the exceptional status defenseman from Calgary, Alberta, has enjoyed what he’s experienced from his time spent with the Silvertips organization thus far and is looking forward to the prospect of joining the club as soon as possible.
What’s the hold up? As far as is known, the decision for DuPont has nothing to do with the organization itself, but seemingly, according to Rajcic, is an issue of negotiations between his family and the WHL itself.
A player of DuPont’s caliber is more than worth the wait, and he is still expected to start the 2024-25 season with the Silvertips.
Other notable moves
With all this going on, the Silvertips have rather quietly been rebuilding with some newfound structural pieces.
It’s unlikely that Ben Hemmerling or Austin Roest make returns to the organization, as they each signed respective entry-level NHL contracts. Additionally, players like Tyler Palmer, Teague Patton, Dexter Whittle, Cade Zaplitny are leaving either due to graduating out of the WHL or signing elsewhere.
To compensate for the losses, Everett has made some quality acquisitions. This included during the draft, where the Silvertips took advantage of an offloading Medicine Hat and acquired Tigers forward and captain Tyler MacKenzie, who played in all 68 games in 2023-24, tallying 16 goals and 31 assists.
He adds a sense of leadership and experience that the organization will be looking to replenish with the losses of the aforementioned Hemmerling and Roest. He will likely be one of the three overagers to crack the Silvertips lineup come opening night.
In addition to MacKenzie, the Silvertips made a couple other trades, as they added to the forward group again this week by acquiring ’06-born forward Raiden Zacharias from Regina.
They also bolstered their goaltending by acquiring ’06-born netminder Jesse Sanche from Kamloops.
Replacing the likes of Hemmerling, Roest, and the rest of the moving-on overagers is never an easy task to accomplish. But if the Silvertips have proven anything across their history of never missing the playoffs, it’s that they know exactly how to replenish and reload, and they will continue to do so throughout the rest of this offseason.
Sound Of Hockey will have more on these topics as news breaks.
Header photo: Landon DuPont poses in WHL gear. (Jenn Pierce/WHL)