2018 ECHL Conference Finals Thread

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From: The ECHL > Game Center > Playoffs > Playoff Brackets

Scores Updated - 5/19/2018

Eastern Conference Finals - Adirondack Thunder vs. Florida Everblades ... Florida wins series 4-1 ... Florida wins E.A. "Bud" Gingher Trophy as Eastern Conference champions

Fri. May 11, 2018 - 7:30PM ... ADK (3) @ FLA (4)
Sat. May 12, 2018 - 7:00PM ... ADK (3) @ FLA (2) (1OT)
Wed. May 16, 2018 - 7:00PM ... FLA (3) @ ADK (2)
Fri. May 18, 2018 - 7:00PM ... FLA (7) @ ADK (3)
Sat. May 19, 2018 - 7:00PM ... FLA (3) @ ADK (2)
Mon. May 21, 2018 - 7:30PM* ... ADK @ FLA
Wed. May 23, 2018 - 7:30PM* ... ADK @ FLA

*if necessary


Western Conference Finals - Fort Wayne Komets vs. Colorado Eagles

Sat. May 12, 2018 - 7:05PM ... FW (2) @ COL (3) (1OT)
Sun. May 13, 2018 - 7:05PM ... FW (3) @ COL (2)
Wed. May 16, 2018 - 7:30PM ... COL (2) @ FW (4)
Fri. May 18, 2018 - 8:00PM ... COL (2) @ FW (1)
Sat. May 19, 2018 - 7:30PM ... COL (4) @ FW (3) (2OT)
Tue. May 22, 2018 - 7:05PM ... FW @ COL
Wed. May 23, 2018 - 7:05PM* ... FW @ COL

*if necessary

Click to read more...

 

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From: The ECHL > News

Eastern Conference Finals Preview

May 10, 2018
jbabik

Series Matchup Sheet

Two of the top three teams in the Eastern Conference during the regular season meet with a spot in the Kelly Cup Finals up for grabs. Florida captured the Brabham Cup as ECHL regular-season champions with a 53-13-6 record for 112 points while Adirondack was third in the conference with a record of 41-24-7 for 89 points.

Florida is making its fifth-ever appearance in the Conference Finals, and its first since 2012 when the Everblades went on to capture the Kelly Cup title in five games over Las Vegas. The Everblades defeated Atlanta 4 games to 0 in the South Division Semifinals and Orlando 4 games to 1 in the South Division Finals. Florida leads the postseason in both goals per game (4.00) and goals-against per game (1.89) through two rounds. The Everblades are 4-0 at home in the playoffs, and have outscored their opponents 16-5.

Michael Kirkpatrick leads the Everblades, and is second overall in the postseason, with seven goals while Mitchell Heard has posted a team-best 13 points (4g-9a), which also ranks second through two rounds. Zack Kamrass is tied for first among defensemen with 10 points (1g-9a) and Martin Ouellette ranks second with a 1.42 goals-against average and third with a .947 save percentage.

Adirondack has reached the Kelly Cup Playoffs in each of its three seasons in the ECHL, and is appearing in the Conference Finals for the first time. The Thunder have won a pair of six-game series in the first two rounds, defeating Worcester in the North Division Semifinals and Manchester in the North Division Finals. Adirondack has fared well on the road in the postseason, posting a 4-1 record away from home, including a triple overtime win at Manchester to clinch the second round series in the ninth-longest game in ECHL history.

Ryan Schmelzer is second among rookies, and tied for third overall in the postseason, with six goals, while James Henry’s 12 assists are tops among all players in the playoffs. Colton White is third among defensemen with eight points (2g-6a) and Drew Fielding ranks second among goaltenders with a .955 save percentage and fourth with a 1.55 goals-against average.

Adirondack went 2-0-1 against the Everblades in the regular season while Florida was 1-1-1 against the Thunder. Brian Ward led Adirondack with four goals and seven points while Fielding appeared in all three games posting a 3.25 goals-against average. Florida was led by Justin Kea and Steven Lorentz, who both scored two goals in the three games against the Thunder. ...

 

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From: The ECHL > News

Western Conference Finals Preview

May 10, 2018
jbabik

Series Matchup Sheet

The defending Kelly Cup champion Colorado Eagles will take on the Fort Wayne Komets in the 2018 Western Conference Finals.

The Eagles eliminated Wichita 4 games to 2 in the Mountain Division Semifinals before defeating Idaho 4 games to 0 in the Mountain Division Finals. Colorado has gone 5-0 on the road in the playoffs, outscoring its opponents 16-8. The Eagles are second on the penalty kill in the postseason at 91.5 percent (43-for-47).

J.C. Beaudin ranks first in the playoffs with eight goals and is tied for third with 12 points while Matt Register, the Most Valuable Player of the 2017 Kelly Cup Playoffs, is tied for first among defensemen with 10 points (0g-10a). In goal, Joe Cannata has posted an 8-2 record with two shutouts, a 2.08 goals-against average and a save percentage of .924.

Fort Wayne is appearing in the Western Conference Finals for the second time in the last three years. The Komets defeated Cincinnati 4 games to 1 in the Central Division Semifinals and Toledo 4 games to 2 in the Central Division Finals. The Komets, who led the ECHL in the regular season with 4.03 goals per game, have carried over the offensive success to the playoffs as they rank second through two rounds with 3.55 goals per game.

Gabriel Desjardins is tied for third with six goals, and scored the game-winning goal in each of the final three games of the series against Toledo. Desjardins’ 15 points leads all players in the Kelly Cup Playoffs. Daniel Maggio’s four goals are tied for first among defensemen while Bobby Shea is tied for third among blueliners with three goals and tied for fourth with seven points. Michael Houser is 8-3 in his 11 appearances in goal and leads the postseason with 685 minutes played while ranking second with 307 saves.

The two clubs met once during the regular season with Fort Wayne skating away with a 4-3 win at Colorado on Nov. 8. Ryan Culkin and Zac Larazza both had a pair of assists in the win for the Komets while Ryan Harrison notched two helpers for the Eagles. ...

 

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From: The ECHL > News > Recent News

Officials named for Conference Finals
May 11, 2018
jbabik

The following eight referees and 10 linesmen have been selected to work the Conference Finals in the 2018 Kelly Cup Playoffs.

This will mark the sixth consecutive season that the ECHL will utilize a two-referee system for all games in the Conference Finals and Kelly Cup Finals.

Referees: Sean Fernandez (1st Conference Finals), Alex Normandin (1st), Chris Pontes (1st), Tyler Puddifant (3rd), Mike Sheehan (1st), Jonathan Sitarski (2nd), Stephen Thomson (2nd), Jeremy Tufts (2nd)

Linesmen: Jake Davis (1st Conference Finals), Michael Fusani (2nd), Robert Keltie (1st), Jesse Marquis (1st), Charlie O’Connor (4th), Patrick Richardson (5th), Kyle Richetelle (1st), J.P. Waleski (2nd), Christopher Williams (1st) and Chris Wilson (1st) ...

 

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Eastern Conference Finals begin tonight in Estero. The FLA Everblades are hosting the ADK Thunder for the first two games of a best-of-7.

 

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Adirondack gained a 2-1 lead in the 7th minute of the third period. But three straight goals by the host Everblades - including Micheal Kirkpatrick's unassisted shorthanded goal - put Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals out of reach for the Thunder. Final score: FLA 4 - ADK 3. Game 2 is on Saturday night.

 

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Terrence Wallin scores the overtime winner late in the first extra period on Saturday night, giving ADK the Game 2 win over Florida in Estero. The Eastern Conference Finals series now shifts to Upstate New York, with Game 3 on Wednesday night.

 

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Michael Joly scores for Colorado @ 3:25 into the first overtime period, to give Colorado the 3-2 victory in Game 1 of the Western Finals. Fort Wayne will try to even the series on Sunday night in Loveland.

 

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The Komets take a 3-1 lead late in the 2nd period, but then have to fend off a comeback by the Eagles for a 3-2 victory in Game 2 of the Western Conference Finals. This series now switches to Fort Wayne for the next three games starting on Wednesday night, with the teams tied at 1 game apiece.

 

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Sunday night pre-game scrum between Komets & Eagles ...



And the related story from the Denver Post ... WATCH: Colorado Eagles brawl with Fort Wayne Komets before playoff game starts

ETA: League punishment ensued ... ECHL announces fines, suspensions

 

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Some belated Conference Finals-related fodder ...
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From: The ECHL > News > Headlines

2018 Kelly Cup Playoffs Conference Finals: Goaltender Roundtable

May 14, 2018

With only four teams left competing to be the 2018 Kelly Cup champion, the ECHL caught up with a goaltender from each of those teams ahead of the start of the Conference Finals. They spoke about the keys to success so far, the transition from regular season to postseason and what is necessary to become a Kelly Cup champion. In this roundtable we spoke with:

Drew Fielding (Adirondack Thunder): 5W – 2L, .948 SV%, 1.86 GAA

Martin Ouellette (Florida Everblades): 8W – 1L, .937 SV%, 1.72 GAA

Joe Cannata (Colorado Eagles): 9W – 3L, .922 SV%, 2.15 GAA

Michael Houser (Fort Wayne Komets): 8W – 4L, .918 SV%, 2.40 GAA ...


Read the Q&A at: https://www.echl.com/2018-kelly-cup-playoffs-conference-finals-goaltender-roundtable

 

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Game 3 for each of the Conference Finals on Wednesday night, with both series tied 1-1. Series matchup summaries provided by the League HERE.

 

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In the East, FLA scored 2 in the first, ADK scored 2 in the second, and FLA scored the only goal in the third to take Game 3 by a score of 3-2 in Glens Falls. The Everblades now lead the series 2-1.

In the West, all scoring came in the 2nd & 3rd periods. Colorado pulled within 1 goal with 9 seconds left, but Fort Wayne burst that bubble with an ENG @ 19:55 of regulation to win 4-2. The Komets lead that series 2-1.

Next Conference Finals games are on Friday night, in New York & Indiana. Two very close series so far, with games being won by one or at most two goals.

 

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Two Game 4's tonight.

 

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The Everblades take a 2nd game in in Glens Falls, winning 7-3 on Friday night and gaining a 3-1 Eastern series lead. A possible deciding Game 5 will be played @ ADK on Saturday night.

 

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Congratulations to the Florida Everblades for moving on to the 2018 ECHL Finals, their first appearance since they won the Kelly Cup in 2012. The Blades scored 3 in the first period of Game 5 in Glens Falls, then held on for dear life to gain a 3-2 series-clinching win over Adirondack.

A good run by the Thunder through the playoffs, but they finally met an opponent they simply could not match.

 

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Brady Shaw scores the GWG @ 2:38 of the 2nd overtime period in Ft. Wayne to give Colorado a 4-3 victory in Games 5 of their Western Conference Finals series. The teams now return to Loveland for a Tuesday night Game 6, with the Eagles leading the series 3 games to 2.