Photo Courtesy of the Toledo Walleye [https://deweb-519a7.b-cdn.net/post-images/8a043bb5-4be1-4f70-bce4-59f85e328a0e.jpeg] Photo Courtesy of the Toledo Walleye The Kansas City Mavericks now know who their opponent will be in the Western Conference Finals [https://thehockeynews.com/echl/game-day/knight-monsters-inaugural-season-ends-mavericks-clinch-western-conference-finals-berth]. The Toledo Walleye [https://www.toledowalleye.com/]advanced with a 5-3 victory over the Fort Wayne Komets [https://komets.com/]on Saturday to capture the Central Division crown and set up a showdown with the Mavericks. Toledo took the Division Finals series 4-2. The first period was scoreless, although there were numerous penalties on both sides. Fort Wayne had four power play opportunities, while the Walleye had two power plays of their own. The Komets began the second period on another power play, and this time they capitalized. James Stefan potted the first goal of the game at the :35 mark, with assists from Blake Murray and Kyle Mayhew. The Walleye responded at 7:08 of the middle frame, as Dylan Moulton got his first of the playoffs to tie the game 1-1. Brandon Hawkins and Trenton Bliss picked up assists on the play. Fort Wayne jumped back in front 16 seconds later when their captain, Jack Dugan, scored with helpers from Murray and Ethan Keppen. The back-and-forth continued as Tyler Spezia kept his hot streak going on the power play at 11:04, tying the score once again 2-2. Hawkins and Bliss assisted for the second consecutive goal. Toledo got its first lead of the night with less than a minute left in the second as Moulton scored his second goal of the evening. Once again, the combination of Hawkins and Bliss picked up the apples. Spezia also got his second of the night at 3:26 of the third period on a breakaway to put the Walleye up 4-2. Bliss and Hawkins got their fourth assists of the night. The Komets made it a one-goal game at 14:58 with Josh Groll getting on the board. But as the Huntington Center roared and became the 7th man to push the Fish to victory, they sealed the deal with an empty-net goal from Matt Anderson. Bliss broke the single playoff game assist record with his fifth of the night. The Walleye went from trailing 2-1 in the series to win three straight games and capture the Central Division. Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals against the Mavericks is next Thursday, with puck drop set for 7:05 Pm CT at Cable Dahmer Arena.
