The Florida Everblades are one win away from their third straight Kelly Cup Finals after shutting out the Adirondack Thunder in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Florida Everblades defeated the Adirondack Thunder 3-0 in Game 4 of the ECHL Eastern Conference Finals on Friday night. Goaltender Cam Johnson stopped all 24 shots on goal and collected his second consecutive shutout and third of the postseason.
Three different skaters found the back of the net, with Florida recording one goal in each period. With the win, the Everblades moved within one win from advancing to their third straight ECHL Kelly Cup Finals.
The first period on Friday looked identical to Wednesday's, with the Everblades dominating the entire 20 minutes. Florida outshot the Thunder 13-3 in the frame and opened the scoring on Bobo Carpenter's seventh goal of the playoffs with 5:30 left to play. Josh Ho-Sang collected the primary assist on the play, marking his league-leading 13th helper of the postseason.
The Everblades doubled their lead early in the second period on Mark Senden's goal. Carpenter led an odd-man rush into the offensive zone and fired a shot on net before the defender reached him. Adirondack goaltender Isaac Poulter turned aside the initial attempt, but Senden was in the right place, and his momentum pushed the puck into the net.
The goal marked the Florida forward's fourth goal of the Eastern Conference Finals and sixth of the playoffs. Oliver Chau picked up another secondary assist on the play after collecting his first helper on Carpenter's first-period tally. The Everblades carried a 2-0 lead and 24-10 shots-on-goal advantage into the final period of play.
Less than three minutes into the third period, Sean Josling recorded his first goal of the series to give Florida a 3-0 lead. Matt Wedman carried the puck around the Adirondack net and found Josling on the right-wing circle, who wristed his shot into the back of the net.
The Thunder put forth a much better effort in the third period, recording 14 of their 24 shots on goal in the frame, but Florida's Cam Johnson was up to the task. The Everblades will look to punch their ticket to the Kelly Cup Finals in Saturday's Game 5, with puck drop set for 7:00 p.m. EST from Estero, Florida.
Read More
Everblades Score Three In First Period To Back Cam Johnson's Shutout In Game 3
Kansas City Mavericks' Jack LaFontaine Enjoying Season Of Triumph And Challenge