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Conference Finals Preview

May 14, 2015 - ECHL (ECHL) News Release


Teams that have combined to win five of the ECHL's 26 championships meet in the postseason for the first time as Toledo and South Carolina meet for the Eastern Conference championship.

Toledo is appearing in the Conference Finals for the first time since the Toledo Storm advanced in 2006. The Storm won Riley Cup championships in 1993 and 1994 - the last ECHL team to win back-to-back titles - while also advancing to the playoff semifinals in 1996.

South Carolina has captured a league record-tying three championships, claiming Kelly Cup titles in 1997, 2001 and 2009, and is appearing in the Conference Finals for the fifth time.

Toledo has reached this point with a pair of seven-game victories, defeating Wheeling in the North Division Semifinals and Fort Wayne in the North Division Finals. Each of the Walleye's four wins against Fort Wayne came at home, as the club has gone 5-2 at Huntington Center in the Kelly Cup Playoffs after posting an ECHL-best 26-6-4 mark on home ice during the regular season. Toledo won the Brabham Cup as ECHL regular-season champion after posting a League record 58-point improvement over the 2013-14 season. Toledo is led in the postseason by Shane Berschbach who leads all players in the playoffs with 19 points (6g-13a). Troy Schwab has added 16 points (7g-9a) and his seven goals are tied for second overall in the playoffs. Jeff Lerg, who was named to the All-ECHL Second Team, is tied for second in the playoffs with seven wins while ranking sixth with a 2.14 goals-against average and third with a .930 save percentage. Neil Conway has gone 1-1 in his two appearances and is fifth with a 2.07 goals-against average and leads the postseason with a .946 save percentage.

After defeating Reading in seven games in the East Division Semifinals, South Carolina advanced to the Conference Finals with a 4 games to 2 win over Florida in the East Division Finals. The Stingrays set an ECHL record during the regular season with a 23-game winning streak from Feb. 7-March 27, with the final win of the streak coming in a 5-3 victory at Toledo. South Carolina led the ECHL in the regular season with 25 road wins, and the strong play away from home has carried over to the postseason where the Stingrays have gone 5-1 on the road, including wins in all three games at Florida in the previous round. Joe Devin leads all players in the postseason with eight goals while Wayne Simpson ranks second with 18 points (6g-12a). Jeff Jakaitis, who won his second consecutive ECHL Goaltender of the Year award while also capturing League Most Valuable Player honors, leads the postseason with eight wins and has posted a 2.55 goals-against average and a .909 save percentage in 13 appearances.

This series is also a match-up of the last two winners of the ECHL Coach of the Year as South Carolina's Spencer Carbery captured the award last season and Toledo's Derek Lalonde was this year's honoree.

The two teams met four times in the regular season, with three of the meetings taking place at South Carolina, with the road team winning each game. Kyle Bonis led Toledo in the season series with six points (3g-3a) while South Carolina was led by Derek DeBlois who posted four points (2g-2a).

The winner of the Eastern Conference Finals receives the E.A. "Bud" Gingher Memorial Trophy. The trophy is named in recognition of E.A. "Bud" Gingher, who was Chairman of the ECHL Board of Governors from 1992-95. Gingher, who passed away in 2002, co-founded the Dayton Bombers in 1991 and owned the team for seven seasons, serving as President and Governor until selling the team in 1998. Gingher was inducted into the ECHL Hall of Fame in 2009.

Game 1 - Friday, May 15 at 7:35 p.m. ET at Toledo

Game 2 - Saturday, May 16 at 8:05 p.m. ET at Toledo

Game 3 - Wednesday, May 20 at 7:05 p.m. ET at South Carolina

Game 4 - Friday, May 22 at 7:05 p.m. ET at South Carolina

Game 5 - Saturday, May 23 at 7:05 p.m. ET at South Carolina (If Necessary)

Game 6 - Tuesday, May 26 at 7:35 p.m. ET at Toledo (If Necessary)

Game 7 - Wednesday, May 27 at 7:35 p.m. ET at Toledo (If Necessary)

Western Conference Finals (Best of Seven)

Allen Americans vs. Ontario Reign

Allen is the first expansion team to reach the Conference Finals since Idaho in 2004 while Ontario is making its first appearance in the Conference Finals in its fifth postseason appearance.

The Americans eliminated Tulsa in five games in the Central Division Semifinals before dispatching Rapid City 4 games to 2 in the Central Division Finals. Allen led the ECHL in the regular season with 4.06 goals per game and the offensive attack has carried over to the postseason with a playoff-leading 4.27 goals per game average. The third period has been the Americans' best during the playoffs as they have outscored their opponents 21-7 over the final 20 minutes. Greger Hanson leads Allen, and is tied for third overall in the playoffs, with 16 points (7g-9a) while Chad Costello (4g-11a), who won the ECHL regular-season scoring title with 125 points, and Spencer Asuchak (7g-8a) are tied for fifth with 15 points each. Riley Gill and Joel Rumpel have shared the goaltending duties for the Americans, with Gill recording five of the club's eight wins through two rounds.

Ontario has reached the Western Conference Finals with a 4 games to 3 win over Colorado in the Pacific Division Semifinals, a series in which the Reign won both Games 6 and 7 on home ice, and a 4 games to 1 win over Utah in the Pacific Division Finals. The Reign went 22-9-5 on home ice during the regular season and have gone 5-1 at home during the playoffs, with five consecutive wins entering this series. Matt Register, who was named to the All-ECHL First Team and was runner-up for the Defenseman of the Year award, leads the Reign in the postseason with 14 points (6g-8a) while Garry Nunn, a late-season acquisition from Gwinnett, has added 13 points (5g-8a). In goal, Jussi Olkinuora has posted a 7-3 record in 11 appearances and ranks fourth with a 2.05 goals-against average.

Allen and Ontario met twice in the regular season, splitting a pair of meetings in Ontario in February.

The winner of the Western Conference Finals receives the Bruce Taylor Trophy. The trophy is named in recognition of Bruce Taylor, who was the founding father of the West Coast Hockey League. In the early 1990s, Taylor purchased teams in Fresno, Reno and Bakersfield and in 1995 joined them with teams in Anchorage, Fairbanks and San Diego to form the West Coast Hockey League. The Taylor Cup was presented to the playoff champion in the WCHL from the league's inaugural season in 1995-96 until the league ceased operations following the 2002-03 season. Taylor's ownership in hockey began in 1983 with the purchase of the Burnaby Bluehawks of the British Columbia Junior Hockey League and continued with the purchase of the Richmond Sockeyes in the BCJHL and the New Westminster Royals in the BCJHL.

Game 1 - Sunday, May 17 at 4:05 p.m. CT at Allen

Game 2 - Monday, May 18 at 7:05 p.m. CT at Allen

Game 3 - Thursday, May 21 at 7 p.m. PT at Ontario

Game 4 - Saturday, May 23 at 6 p.m. PT at Ontario

Game 5 - Sunday, May 24 at 6 p.m. PT at Ontario (If Necessary)

Game 6 - Tuesday, May 26 at 7:05 p.m. CT at Allen (If Necessary)

Game 7 - Wednesday, May 27 at 7:05 p.m. CT at Allen (If Necessary)

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