The Florida Everblades have advanced to their third straight ECHL Kelly Cup Finals. Standouts and top performers from Game 6.
The Florida Everblades topped the Adirondack Thunder 4-3 in Game 6 of the ECHL Eastern Conference Finals on Tuesday night. With the win, the Everblades took the series four games to two and have advanced to the franchise's third straight Kelly Cup Finals.
Florida will face the Western Conference-champion Kansas City Mavericks in the Finals, who knocked off the Toledo Walleye in six games. Florida will look to become the first team in ECHL history to win three straight Kelly Cup championships.
The Everblades scored a goal in both the first and second periods to take a 2-0 lead. Adirondack responded with a goal late in the middle frame to cut the deficit in half. Florida scored on two breakaways less than three minutes apart in the third period to take a 4-1 lead. The Thunder went back-to-back with goals less than two minutes apart to make it a one-goal game again. However, Florida managed to hang on.
Let's look at our standouts and top performers from Tuesday's Game 6.
Florida Everblades
#44 Josh Ho-Sang, F
Active in all three zones, Ho-Sang was Florida's catalyst on Tuesday, especially in the first period. He was sound defensively in his own zone, jumped a pass in the neutral zone for an offensive chance the other way, and opened the scoring with his first postseason goal on Logan Lambdin's pass from below the net. Ho-Sang accumulated 13 assists, including four multi-assist games, thus far in the playoffs. It was nice to see him rewarded with a goal for his efforts.
#33 Cam Johnson, G
Johnson allowed three or fewer goals for the 14th straight appearance. He saw his shutout bid end on Filip Engaras's tally in the second period but turned aside 26 of 29 overall. Much credit is deserved to Johnson for staying composed in a hostile environment when Adirondack scored two quick goals to make it a one-goal game in the third period. The Thunder threw everything they had at the Florida netminder. Now, he will look to backstop the Everblades to their third straight Kelly Cup championship.
#22 Joe Pendenza, D
Pendenza found the back of the net for the first time since Game 2 of the South Division Finals. The Everblades captain won a footrace and buried a shorthanded breakaway to give Florida a 4-1 lead in the third period. At the time, it felt like a dagger. After Adirondack's quick response, Pendenza's efforts proved to be the difference in the final score.
Adirondack Thunder
#61 Filip Engaras, F
Engaras finished the 2024 Kelly Cup Playoffs with seven goals and tallied his second multi-goal effort on Tuesday night. The Adirondack forward got his team on the board on an absolute bomb just two seconds into the Thunder's power play in the second period. He helped lead the comeback bid in the third period, with his forecheck in Florida's defensive zone leading to a turnover, and he was rewarded with a tap-in score off a rebound for his second goal of the night. Engaras had an opportunity to tie the game late in regulation, but his stick was lifted before he could get a shot off.
#10 Ryan Smith, F
Without a goal on Tuesday, Ryan Smith finished tied for the most goals (9) in a single playoff run. However, the Thunder forward led the way with a team-high six shots on goal. Smith nearly found the back of the net near the midway point of the second period, but his shot drew iron.