Mark Ferner was fired as head coach of the WHL's Everett Silvertips on Tuesday morning.

Ferner, 47, is a former Kamloops Blazers head coach and assistant coach. He also played for the Kamloops Junior Oilers, who morphed into the Blazers.

The Silvertips also fired assistant coach Chris Hartsburg.

General manager Garry Davidson has taken over as interim head coach and said he will stay in place through the end of this season. Former Silvertips defenceman Mitch Love stays on as assistant coach. There aren't any plans to add to the coaching staff until this season is over.

Nick Patterson, who covers the Silvertips for the Everett Herald, reported on his blog that "the crux of the change was a difference in philosophies between Davidson and Ferner. . . . Davidson is a proponent of attacking, offensive hockey. Ferner is a proponent of hard-working, defensively responsible hockey."

Ferner was in his second season as the Silvertips' head coach. They were 16-24-2 - in their last 10 they were 5-5-0 - and in possession of the Western Conference's eighth and final playoff spot. They are one point ahead of the Prince George Cougars and five behind the Seattle Thunderbirds.

Ferner, a native of Regina who grew up in Kamloops, signed on as the fourth head coach in Silvertips history on July 6, 2011. But he was hired by then-general manager Doug Soetaert, who was fired in February and replaced by Davidson, who had been the Portland Winterhawks' director of player personnel.

There was speculation at the time that Davidson would relieve Ferner of his duties over the summer. But Davidson chose to move forward with his coaching staff intact.

Last season, the Silvertips finished the regular season at 22-40-10 and were swept from the first round of the playoffs by the Tri-City Americans.

Before signing with the Silvertips, Ferner was the general manager and head coach of the BCHL's Vernon Vipers. In four seasons, he helped the Vipers to three straight BCHL championships and two RBC Cup titles.

Prior to that, he was the head coach of the Blazers, taking over during the 2004-05 season and being fired 16 games into 2005-06. He also worked with the Blazers as an assistant coach and as associate coach.

The Silvertips are at home to the Victoria Royals on Friday and the Winterhawks on Saturday as they begin a five-game homestand.

Everett pays its final visit of the season to Kamloops on Jan. 23.

gdrinnan@kamloopsnews.ca

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