Florida Everblades Vs. Kansas City Mavericks ECHL Kelly Cup Finals Game 1: Standouts And Top Performers

The Florida Everblades took Game 1 of the ECHL Kelly Cup Finals with an emphatic 8-1 victory over the Kansas City Mavericks on Friday night. Standouts and top performers from the contest.

The Florida Everblades took Game 1 of the ECHL Kelly Cup Finals with an emphatic 8-1 victory over the Kansas City Mavericks on Friday night. Florida opened the scoring at the three-minute mark of the first period and improved to 12-0 this postseason when scoring first. 

The Everblades scored three times in the opening 20 minutes, with Bobo Carpenter, Oliver Chau, and Cole Moberg all finding the back of the net. The Mavericks tied the game on Jeremy McKenna's marker at the 6:26 mark.

However, the Everblades scored four times in the second period and have now outscored their opponents 29-12 in the middle frame this postseason. Carpenter and Chau added their second goals of the night, while Riese Zmolek and Logan Lambdin also scored. 

Zmolek added his second of the game early in the third period to round out the scoring. Florida goaltender Cam Johnson stopped 34 of 35 to pick up his 13th win of the Kelly Cup Playoffs.

Let's look at our standouts and top performers from Friday's Game 1 of the ECHL Kelly Cup Finals.

#19 Bobo Carpenter, F

Carpenter has shown up in some big moments this postseason, and Game 1 of the ECHL Kelly Cup Finals was no different, finishing with three points, a +3 plus/minus rating, and 11 shots on goal. The Everblades forward scored the all-important first goal three minutes into the game. Carpenter added his second score on an official's review in the second period and tallied the primary assist on Oliver Chau's second goal.

#20 Oliver Chau, F

Chau matched Carpenter's effort with his best game of the postseason. The Florida forward broke a 1-1 tie with a backhanded goal on a breakaway in the first period. He added his second of the game, a shorthanded tally, in the middle frame and collected the primary assist on Riese Zmolek's marker in that four-goal second period for the Everblades.

#2 Cole Moberg, D

Moberg should win an award for the prettiest goal of the ECHL Playoffs. The Florida defenseman made it a 3-1 lead for the visitors on an absolute bomb from the point late in the first period. The puck caught the top left corner of the net and promptly popped Cale Morris's water bottle off. Moberg registered a +3 plus/minus rating and two shots on goal.

#33 Cam Johnson, G

Johnson turned in his 15th straight outing allowing three or fewer goals. The Florida goaltender collected his 13th win of the 2024 Kelly Cup Playoffs, stopping 34 of 35 shots on goal on Friday night. Johnson turned aside all 27 over the final 40 minutes and played a critical role in helping the Everblades kill off all four of Kansas City's power plays in the third period.

#12 Jeremy McKenna, F

There were few bright spots for Kansas City on Friday night, but Jeremy McKenna continued his scoring touch. The Mavericks forward redirected Nate Knoepke's shot from near the blueline, which found the back of the net to tie the game at 1-1 in the first period. Including his hat trick in Game 6 against Toledo, McKenna now has four goals in his last two games and nine in the playoffs overall.