KÄLBLE’S OT GAME-WINNER LIFTS EVERBLADES PAST ATLANTA 5-4

ESTERO, Fla. – Lukas Kälble scored the overtime winner for the Florida Everblades in an exciting 5-4 overtime decision over the Atlanta Gladiators Friday night at Hertz Arena.Xavier Cormier scored his first professional goal, while Ben Masella and Cam Darcy both scored their first goals of the season. Kobe Roth had the other Everblades tally, extending his point streak to four games.Dominic Franco potted two helpers which moved his point streak up to five, the longest by an Everblades player this season.Evan Fitzpatrick picked up the win for Florida, making 25 saves in his first start as an Everblade at Hertz Arena.With the victory, head coach Brad Ralph became the franchise’s leader in regular-season wins, getting his 283rdvictory behind the club’s bench.

SCORING SUMMARY – Click for full box score   1st Period5:47     Atlanta    S. Shin 3 (K. Oliver, B. Schultz)8:14     Florida X. Cormier 1 PP (K. Roth, R. Calisti)15:17   Florida B. Masella 1 PP (S. Leblanc, D. Franco)2nd Period7:10     Atlanta M. Pelech 3 PP (E. Neiley, D. Topatigh)       10:55   Atlanta    C. Sylvester 3 (M. Pelech, E. Neiley)15:15   Florida    K. Roth 4 (S. Leblanc)3rd Period2:51     Florida    C. Darcy 1 (O. Chau, J. Pendenza)18:24   Atlanta    C. Sylvester 4 (G. Guertler)Overtime1:41     Florida    L. Kälble 2 (D. Franco)GOALTENDERSAtlanta – David Tendeck, 30 SavesFlorida – Evan Fitzpatrick, 25 Saves

TEAM STATISTICSShots on Goal – Atlanta 29, Florida 35Power Plays – Atlanta 1-4, Florida 2-3Shorthanded Goals – Atlanta 0, Florida 0Penalties (Minutes) – Atlanta 3 (6), Florida 4 (8)

NEWS AND NOTES

• In his seventh season in The Swamp, Everblades head coach Brad Ralph won his 283rd regular-season game behind the Florida bench, giving him sole possession of the franchise’s coaching record for regular-season victories. Ralph (283-105-42) moved ahead of Gerry Fleming (282-162-60), the Everblades head coach from 2001-2008.
• For the first time this season, 10 different Everblades registered at least one point, led by two-point efforts from Stefan Leblanc, Kobe Roth and Dominic Franco.
• With goals on their first two power-play opportunities of the contest, the Everblades turned in their first multiple power-play goal effort of the season.
• Xavier Cormier’s first-period marker was the first goal of his professional career. 
• With assists on first-period goals by Cormier and Ben Masella, respectively, Roth extended his point streak to four games and Franco ran his point streak to five games.
• Roth added a second-period goal to log his first multi-point game as a pro.
• Cam Darcy’s third-period goal was his first tally in a Blades sweater.
• Leblanc appeared in his 250th professional game.
• Tonight’s start in goal marked Evan Fitzpatrick’s Hertz Arena debut as an Everblade.

NEXT GAME 

The Everblades and Gladiators will wrap up the current three-game set Saturday night at Hertz Arena, with the puck scheduled to drop at 7:00 p.m. The South Division foes will lock horns for the fifth time this season, with the teams alternating wins and losses to knot the season series at two games apiece.

Saturday night is a special event indeed, as Swampee celebrates his 25th birthday! As part of the festivities, there is a crossbody bag giveaway courtesy of Arthrex and the always popular Saturday Tailgate Party with Live Music and bounce houses for the kids!

JOIN THE FUNPurchase a new Voucher 12 package that allows you to use 12 tickets in any quantity during the 2022-23 season to earn the exclusive benefits of being a Blades 365 Member! To view the Blades 365 Membership savings, benefits and options click HERE.Everblades put the FUN in FUNdraising! There is no handling of money or tickets and no limit to the amount of money your group can make with the Everblades easy-to-run online Fundraiser! For more information, or to reserve a Fundraiser Night at an Everblades regular season home game, call or text (239) 948-7825.Calling all Everblades fans! Be among the first hockey fans in Southwest Florida to show off your pride in the newly-crowned Kelly Cup Champion Florida Everblades! Grab the newest and hottest merchandise by checking out the entire collection that is available online by visiting shop.floridaeverblades.com or at the Hertz Arena Pro Shop!JOIN THE CONVERSATIONWatch every Florida Everblades game on FloHockey.TV. Listen to the exciting game action on ESPN Southwest Florida on 770 AM, 98.1 FM, 104.3 FM and online at https://espnswfl.com.Stay up to date by following the Florida Everblades on Social Media with all the latest news, scores and promotions on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Tiktok, and Twitter.   

The Florida Everblades are the proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Florida Panthers and the AHL's Charlotte Checkers.

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