ESTERO, Fla. – The Savannah Ghost Pirates held on for a narrow 2-1 win over the Florida Everblades in front of 5,781 fans on Wednesday night.

In the first meeting of the season between the two south division rivals, the teams stayed tied at zero in a fast, defensive affair until late in the second period. Faking a drop pass, Will Riedell got himself space in the attacking zone and used it to put his sixth goal of the season off the post and in to open the scoring at 16:29 of the second period. 

In the third, the Ghost Pirates extended their lead with Liam Walsh finishing off a rush to extend the lead at 7:37 up to 2-0 with his seventh of the campaign. The Blades got back within one on a power play thanks to Jesse Lansdell bashing home a rebound to make it a one-goal game. 

Despite furious last-minute pressure, Florida was unable to tie the game and game one of the season series goes to Savannah. Evan Cormier improved his record to 10-5-1 with a 23-save performance for a win against his former club, while Cam Johnson suffered the loss despite a 20-save night. 

Saturday’s Gamesheet

BLADES BITS

• Cole Moberg got an assist in the loss and led the team with four shots on goal. He now has three points in four games since returning from injury and is now on a two-game point streak.
• Four players on Savannah’s roster played for the Everblades last season and faced Florida for the first time: Cormier, Dennis Cesana, Nathan Staios, and Kai Schwindt.
• Florida and Savannah play each other ten more times this season, including two more meetings this week at Hertz Arena. The Everblades won the 12-game season series last year with an 8-3-1 record.

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