Everblades crowned Kelly Cup Champions

ESTERO, Fla. – For the second time in franchise history, the Florida Everblades are Kelly Cup Champions.

Florida Everblades players celebrate their Kelly Cup cliniching win over the Toledo Walleye at Hertz Arena on Saturday night / Photo by Trina Kirk (PHN)

Zach Solow scored twice and Cam Johnson stopped 34-shots while being named the playoff’s Most Valuable Player as the Everblades defeated the Toledo Walleye 4-2 in front of a sellout crowd of 7,674 at Hertz Arena on Saturday night.

The Everblades took advantage of every shot in a high scoring first period, adding four goals on just seven shots.

The win was Florida’s 13th of it’s last 15 and sixth win of its final eight home games. Through four rounds of play, the Everblades only lost four times in 21-games.

Teetering on the brink of elemination, Toledo opened the scoring four-minutes in on Matt Berry’s fifth of the postseason, with assists coming from Ryan Lowney and Butrus Ghafari.

Four minutes later, Florida took over, scoring three times in three minutes.

Solow netted his first of the night on the power play, with a wrist-shot from the slot that found it’s way into the back of the net past Toledo’s Billy Christopoulous at 8:12. John McCarron and Jake McLaughlin picked up assists on the goal that tied the game at 1-1.

Matteo Gennaro added the go ahead goal at 10:57, taking a pass from Joe Pendenza before beating Christopoulos on the glove side on a shot from the left dot.

Keeping their foot on the gas, the Everblades added another goal just seven-seconds later.

On the ensuing face-off, Alex Aleardi gained control of the puck, before dropping a pass in heavy traffic. From there, Levko Koper slipped away from the Toledo Defense and zipped ahead, firing a shot from the low slot to suddenly make it a 3-1 lead. Koper’s fifth playoff goal would be the eventual game winner.:

The Florida Everblades and Toledo Walleye shake hands following the Everblades’ series-cliniching win / Photo by Trina Kirk (PHN)

John Albert pulled the Walleye back within one at 18:23, adding his sixth power play marker of the playoffs. Albert’s snap shot from just inside the left circle beat Johnson top shelf, glove side with the assists going to Brandon Hawkins and TJ Hensick.

Note done yet, Solow sent home a back-hander from the low right side at 18:51 to make it 4-2 on his team-leading ninth playoff goal. Koper and Aleardi were credited with assists on the play.

That score would prove to be the final, as the final two periods went scoreless.

Johnson locked things down the rest of the way, stopping 21-shots through the final 40-minutes of play, en route to his 15th win of the postseason. He finished the Kelly Cup Playoffs with a record of 15-3, and posted four shutouts, which is tied for second most in a single postseason in ECHL history.

Florida last claimed the Kelly Cup in 2012, when they defeated Las Vegas, 4-1 in the best-of-seven game series.

After a short off-season, the Florida Everblades will return to the ice to defend their championship on October 21 when they travel to Atlanta to open the 2022-23 ECHL season against the Atlanta Gladiators.