ECHL Florida Everblades

Blades Dumped by Checkers 8-0

December 28, 2008 - ECHL (ECHL)
Florida Everblades News Release


CHARLOTTE, NC - The Florida Everblades (19-7-2) dropped their second straight road decision after the Charlotte Checkers (15-12-2) handed the Everblades the largest margin of defeat in team history with an 8-0 win on Sunday afternoon at Time Warner Cable Arena. Goaltender Jeff Jakaitis earned his third shutout of the season stopping all 32 shots he faced and Lee Falardeau chipped in offensively with a hat-trick.

The Charlotte Checkers came out fast to open the game and eventually carried a 2-0 lead into the first intermission. Mike Bayrack got Charlotte out to a quick start scoring just 22 seconds into the game with a wrist shot from the right circle that sailed past Florida goaltender David Leggio.

The Checkers increased their lead to two at 12:39 when Peter Tsimikalis completed a 2-on-1 rush by tapping home a loose puck at the right post after Leggio made a save on Bayrack's initial shot.

Charlotte extended their lead with a late second period goal when Falardeau dug the puck loose in the right corner and skated to the high slot where his wrist shot sailed over the glove of Leggio with just 2:18 remaining in the period to carry a 3-0 lead into the second intermission.

The Checkers blew the game open with three third period goals in a span of 2:10 midway through the frame, then added two more late third period goals. Falardeau began the barrage with his second of the game at 7:02. Tsimikalis then notched his second goal of the night and 10th of the season at 8:27. That chased Leggio from the net in favor of Anton Khudobin. The goaltending switch unfortunately had no effect as Michel Leveille added a goal of his own at 9:12.

Leading 6-0 Charlotte continued to have their way adding their seventh goal at 14:39 on David Rutherford's sixth goal of the year, then finishing off the scoring on the hat-trick goal by Falardeau with 1:13 remaining in the game and the Checkers short-handed.

In all the five third period goals signaled the most goals allowed in one period by the Everblades this season and the eight-goal loss matched the eight-goal loss by the Everblades to the Columbia Inferno during the 2002-03 season as the widest margin of defeat in the clubs history.

Leggio (8-3-1) ended up suffering the loss allowing five goals on 32 shots in the 48:27 he played. Khudobin finished off the game playing the final 11:33 allowing three goals on six shots.

On the power play, the Everblades finished the night 0-of-5, while Charlotte closed out the game 0-of-4.

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ECHL Stories from December 28, 2008


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