The defensemen stood tall from both sides in the first period with no goals being recorded. The Everblades outshot the Gladiators 9-6 and saw three power play opportunities. Atlanta came up empty in their lone man-advantage of the opening frame.
The Gladiators capitalized on their second power play attempt at 7:59 of the second period when Hugo Roy chipped in a rebound for a 1-0 Atlanta lead. Sanghoon Shin and Derek Nesbitt delivered the assists for the only goal leading up to the second intermission.
Penalty trouble bit the Everblades again in the third period after a Derek Nesbitt shot found the net just 40 seconds in to make the score 2-0 Atlanta. From there, the Blades raced in front with three goals 50 seconds apart between Levko Koper (1:19), Alex Aleardi (1:55) and Matteo Gennaro (2:09). Peter Bates provided damage control for Atlanta by tying the game 3-3 at the 9:33 mark.
The Everblades regained the lead at 4-3 courtesy of Joe Pendenza (12:45), beating Gladiators goaltender Chris Nell from the right circle. Pendenza got the job done from the same exact location 2:09 later for Florida’s fifth goal of the final period. That mark was the grand finale for the team as they went on to solidify the victory at 5-3. The win places the Blades in the #1 seed of the South Division for the first round of the Kelly Cup Playoffs.
With Florida Everblades release
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