Everblades Derail Worcester 3-1

ESTERO, Fla. – Captain Joe Pendenza snapped a 1-1 tie in the closing minutes of the second period, and the red-hot Oliver Chau collected three points to lift the Florida Everblades to a 3-1 victory over the Worcester Railers Wednesday night at Hertz Arena.

In the first meeting between the Everblades and the Railers since 2021, the Blades wasted little time getting on the board, scoring the only goal of the opening period just 5:12 into the contest. Sean Josling registered his 13^th goal of the season, tipping in a blast from blueliner Evan Nause, while Chau also earned a secondary assist.

Florida’s 1-0 lead held deep into the second period, but Worcester’s Jake Pivonka took advantage of the first power-play opportunity claimed by either team, tying the game at 1-1 at the 17:06 mark, just 34 seconds into the visitors’ man-up opportunity.

The Everblades restored the one-goal lead by the end of the middle stanza, thanks to Pendenza’s 16^th goal of the season just over a minute later at 18:14. Pendenza converted the pretty tic-tac-toe tally off passes from Josling and Chau, both of whom registered their second points of the evening to give the good guys a 2-1 lead after 40 minutes.

Dual fighting majors for Florida’s Cam Hausinger and Worcester’s Pivonka at 1:35 of the final frame sparked the Everblades, as the Greenshirts doubled the lead to two goals. Chau picked up his third point of the night – and seventh in the last three games – with a power-play goal at the 2:56 mark, his 17^th goal of the campaign, which came off assists by Will Reilly and Pendenza to give the Blades a 3-1 lead that they would not relinquish.

Florida outshot the visitors from New England by a 37-24 margin, due in large part by a 30-16 edge over the final two periods. The victorious Cam Johnson (16-10-4-2) made 23 saves, while his counterpart between the pipes, Worcester’s John Muse (10-5-1-0), made 34 saves in a busy evening.

The three-game set against the Railers continues Friday, February 23 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, February 24 at 7:00 p.m. Puck drop for Friday’s game will be 7:30 p.m., while Saturday’s matchup will begin at 7:00 p.m. 

It’s slated to be busy couple of days on the promotions front, as Friday’s game is Star Wars Night with the team wearing Star Wars specialty jerseys that can be bid on using the Dash Auction App. It is also a 239 Friday, with two tickets, two churros and a game program available for the special price of $39. 

Saturday’s contest is also First Responders Night, presented by the Cape Coral Professional Firefighters with Blades players donning specialty jerseys for MDA and also available to be bid on using the Dash Auction App. Saturday also features a pre-game tailgate with live music.

Visit floridaeverblades.com for more information and to purchase tickets. 
 

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BLADES BITS

Wednesday’s victory improved the Everblades all-time record versus the Railers to 3-1, with both previous wins coming in Worcester early in the 2021-22 season. The Blades picked up a 4-2 victory in the DCU Center on November 6, 2021 and closed out a two-game set the following night by a 4-1 count. Previously, the Everblades fell 3-2 to the Railers on January 28, 2018. Until this series, the teams have never faced each other in Estero.

With two helpers and a goal in the contest, Oliver Chau continues to make plays for the Blades giving him five assists and seven points in the last three games, while also running his point total to 12 over the last eight contests. 

Chau’s first-period assist helped Sean Josling snapped a mini-streak of two game without a goal. Josling would add an assist in the second frame, chalking up his second two-point outing of February.

Defenseman Evan Nause picked up his first point since tallying a pair of helpers on back-to-back goals in his Everblades debut on December 28, helping to lift Florida to a 6-4 victory over first-place Greenville.

Joe Pendenza had two points, tickling the twine for the first time since February 3 against Savannah and also adding an assist on the Blades’ final goal.

Wednesday Night’s Scoresheet 

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