Rockets open second round tonight against Silvertips

The Kelowna Rockets open their second-round WHL playoff series tonight against the Everett Silvertips.

Game 1 goes at 7:05 p.m. PST in Everett, as Kelowna takes on the league-leading Silvertips after sweeping the Kamloops Blazers in Round 1.

Everett also advanced via a first-round sweep of Portland and finished the regular season atop the WHL standings, setting up a top-seed matchup in Round 2.

It’s the first playoff meeting between the clubs since 2010, when Kelowna won a seven-game series. The Rockets went 0-3-1-0 against Everett in the regular season.

Kelowna finished fourth in the Western Conference at 38-21-6-3 and outscored Kamloops 21-8 in the opening round. Forward Tij Iginla led the way with 10 points in four games, while rookie Vojtech Cihar also added 10 points. Goaltender Harrison Boettiger posted a .934 save percentage in the sweep.

Everett enters Round 2 following a 57-8-2-1 record in the regular season, and outscoring Portland 25-5 in the opening round.