Steve Hamilton has experienced the thrill of winning a WHL championship and a Memorial Cup as an assistant coach with the Edmonton Oil Kings 14 years ago. Now, he is the head coach of the Everett Silvertips, leading his own team on a deep playoff run.
Hamilton, 52, took over for Derek Laxdal when he left the Oil Kings, coached them for four seasons, then spent six years with the Calgary Hitmen until his contract was not renewed in 2024. After considering a return to teaching, he found his way to Everett, making a difficult family decision to move alone while his wife Nancy and three children supported him.
The Silvertips lost in the 2025 playoffs due to injuries but are now in the WHL final against the Prince Albert Raiders, starting Friday. Everett has never won a WHL championship, having reached the finals in 2004 and 2018. This year's matchup features two dominant teams: Everett is 69-9-3 overall, while Prince Albert is 64-13-6. Everett is 12-1 in the playoffs, and Prince Albert is 12-3. They played once in the regular season, with the Raiders winning 4-1.
“We were on a seven games in 10 days run, and P.A. was the last one. Really impressive team. There’s a lot of similarities. We were 1-2 in the league in goals against and 2-3 in goals for. It’ll be a war, and that’s what it should be at this time of year,” said Hamilton.
Hamilton’s top defenseman, Landon DuPont, 16, is projected as the first-overall NHL draft pick in 2027, while Prince Albert’s Daxon Rudolph, 18, is expected to go in the top eight of the 2026 draft. Hamilton’s family will join him for the final. “Two-thirds of the kids are making it down this weekend. My daughter just finished her degree in neuroscience with a 4.0. Humble brag from dad,” he said of Samantha. His middle daughter Kaleigh is at the University of Alberta on the track team, and his son Ty is graduating high school and played U18 AAA hockey.
Everett, a city of about 110,000 people 40 kilometres north of Seattle, and Prince Albert, a city of about 38,000 residents 140 kilometres north of Saskatoon, are far apart geographically—19 hours by bus. However, the teams will travel from Vancouver to Saskatoon by air for the WHL final.
