A first-place finish in the B.C. WHL91Ƶs Division is still within reach for the Kelowna Rockets.
But after a loss on home ice on Wednesday night, they91Ƶll need some help to overtake the Prince George Cougars.
Carter Hart stopped 26 shots to lead the Everett Silvertips at Prospera Place, ending the Rockets91Ƶ seven-game winning streak.
After building up a 3-1 lead through 40 minutes, Everett shut the Rockets down in the third period, allowing just five shots on Hart.
91ƵI don91Ƶt think we played a good enough game to win,91Ƶ said Rockets head coach Jason Smith. 91ƵWe were in the game but we were struggling to get anything going because we weren91Ƶt executing well enough.91Ƶ
91ƵWhen you91Ƶre chasing the game against them and get behind, it91Ƶs a tough team to play against,91Ƶ Smith added. 91ƵThey play really well defensively, they block lots of shots, they make it hard for you to get the puck to the net.91Ƶ
91ƵTips defenceman Kevin Davis beat Michael Herringer with a shot from the point to open the scoring at 5:30 of the first period.
The Rockets answered just 11 seconds later when Dillon Dube converted a feed from Carsen Twarynski for his 20th of the season.
But Aaron Irving91Ƶs 18th goal of the season, another blast from the blueline, midway through the opening period put Everett ahead to stay.
A pair of goals by Dominic Zwerger, the second into an empty net at 18:54 of the third, rounded out the scoring.
91ƵYou can take this as a lesson and move forward,91Ƶ Jason Smith said of his team91Ƶs first loss since Feb. 25 to the Seattle Thunderbirds. 91ƵWe talked about it in the room after the game that we got away from a little bit of the detail, the structure and executing at the level that allows you to have success.91Ƶ
The Rockets (43-22-5-0) remain two points back (93-91) of the Cougars with two games to play. Kelowna will play a home-and-home against the Vancouver Giants to close out the regular season, while Prince George will do the same against Kamloops.
If the Rockets and Cougars finish tied for first, Kelowna would win the B.C. Division based on the season series between the teams.
Kelowna will host Vancouver Friday, then close out the regular season against the Giants Saturday in Langley.