Dennis Williams Earns 200th Career WHL Win
October 13, 2022 – Western Hockey League (WHL) – Everett Silvertips News Release
EVERETT, Wash. – Everett Silvertips head coach Dennis Williams earned his 200th career Western Hockey League victory Wednesday night in a 6-2 win over the Edmonton Oil Kings. His career record as head coach in the WHL has now improved to 200-63-22.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to be around some great players and staff,” commented Williams after the game. “It’s been a great experience since day one… Every day, I’m the lucky one that gets to come to the rink and coach these games. To get to watch how hard they competed and battled on a Wednesday night, that makes you more proud as a coach.”
Williams, 43, is in his sixth year behind the bench of the Silvertips and his second in the dual role of head coach and general manager. Since his taking the reins as head coach in 2017-18, the Silvertips have won four U.S. Division titles, three Western Conference #1 seeds in postseason play and a Western Conference Championship in 2018. He has twice won the WHL Western Conference Coach of the Year and was the recipient of the 2022 U.S. Division Coach of the Year Award in 2021-22.
The Silvertips hold a record of 209-67-12-12 since 2017-18, with Williams missing time to coach with Hockey Canada at the U17 World Hockey Challenge and the 2022 World Junior Championship. No WHL team has a better record in that span, with the closest team being the Portland Winterhawks at 195-79-27.
Under his guidance, 11 Silvertips have been drafted to the National Hockey League, most recently Ben Hemmerling (Vegas Golden Knights, sixth round, 177th overall) and Ryan Hofer (Washington Capitals, sixth round, 181st overall) in the 2022 NHL Draft. Sixteen alums have signed professional contracts in the NHL or AHL. Additionally, four Silvertips made their NHL debut during the 2021-22 season.
Heading into the 2022-23 campaign, the Silvertips boasted both the best powerplay (24.8%) and the best penalty kill (82.4%) in the Western Conference since 2017-18. Everett also leads the WHL in goals-against average (2.29) in that span and ranks third in goals-per-game (3.63).
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