DULUTH, GA – Mike Ferrantino scored twice and added an assist to help lead the Florida Everblades (19-6-1-2, 41 points) to a 5-2 victory over the Atlanta Gladiators (12-14-4-1, 29 points) Thursday night at the Infinite Energy Arena. The win extends Florida’s South Division lead to four points.
Jumping out to an early lead, the Everblades netted the first goal of the game just 51-seconds into the contest. Earning a faceoff inside the Atlanta zone, Ferrantino won the draw and sent the puck back to Curt Gogol. Corralling the puck, Gogol swiftly wristed a shot towards goal that managed to beat Atlanta goaltender Kent Patterson.
Continuing to up the offensive pressure, the Everblades needed just over two-minutes to take a commanding 2-0 lead. Rushing into the attacking zone, Danny New sent a feed right down towards the front of goal. Picking up the puck in between the circles, Ferrantino snapped a quick shot over the glove of Kent Patterson and into the net.
Extending their lead to 3-0 just over a minute later, the game was placed firmly in the Everblades grasp thanks to a great hustle play from Brendan O’Donnell. While Atlanta goaltender Patterson was able to stop the initial shot from Michael Kirkpatrick, the rebound sent the puck right to the stick of the oncoming O’Donnell. Making a quick move, O’Donnell backhanded the puck high into the net.
As the period neared its end, the Everblades added a fourth goal. Scoring right as a four-on-four period ended, Ferrantino picked up the loose puck and turned it into the net for a power play goal. The goal was also the last piece of action for Atlanta netminder Patterson who was replaced with just over two-minutes remaining in the first period by Jay Williams.
Coming out of the intermission, the Gladiators knew they needed to find some early momentum. Thanks to this renewed offensive push, Atlanta finally managed to get on the board just under three minutes into the middle period. Screening Florida goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic, Trevor Mingoia got just enough of his stick on a shot from Justin Buzzeo to tip the puck through the five-hole and into the net.
Earning a four-on-three power play midway through the third period, the Gladiators again cut into the Everblades lead thanks to a solid shot from Cason Hohmann. Getting the puck at the left wing circle, Hohmann fired his shot through an open lane and towards the net. Bouncing off the glove of Alex Nedeljkovic, the puck just managed to trickle across the goal line, making the score 4-2.
Now down by only two, Atlanta began to push more and more in hopes of again cutting into the Everblades lead. While the remaining part of the period was filled with penalties to both teams, the Gladiators could not find a way to close the gap. With Atlanta pulling their goaltender late in the game, Logan Roe took advantage and scored the empty netter to clinch the Everblades 5-2 win.
Returning goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic played extremely well in net for the Everblades, earning the win after stopping 30 of the 32 shots he faced. Patterson had an extremely tough night in goal for Atlanta, suffering the loss after allowing four goals on 12 shots. Williams played well in relief for the Gladiators, stopping each of the 25 shots he faced.
Returning to the Infinite Energy Arena tomorrow night, the Florida Everblades will once again face off against the rival Atlanta Gladiators. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:35 p.m. Eastern time.
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