Kowalski blanks Checkers 4-0; Blades advance to division finals
April 17, 2007 - ECHL (ECHL)
Florida Everblades News Release
CHARLOTTE, NC - Behind the stellar goaltending of Craig Kowalski, who turned away all 32 shots he faced, the Florida Everblades advanced to the South Division Finals after a 4-0 victory over the Charlotte Checkers on Tuesday night at Charlotte Bobcats Arena in front of a crowd of 2,726. With the win, the Everblades swept the best-of-five series 3-0.
After a scoreless first period that saw both teams have some opportunities with each club holding three power play chances, it was the Everblades for the third time in the series that found the scoreboard first. Jon Lehun notched the game's first goal late in the second period after Dustin Johner's shot from the top of the right circle went wide and off the end boards, leading to Lehun firing a quick shot from the bottom of the left circle between the pads of Charlotte goaltender Alex Westlund with 4:33 remaining in the period.
Despite intense pressure by the Checkers over the first six minutes of the final period, it was the Everblades that got on the board at the 7:53 mark to increase their lead to 2-0. Derek Damon and Brent McDonald teamed up on a 2-on-1 rush with McDonald feeding the puck into the left circle for Damon who lasered a wrist shot low inside the left post for a two-goal lead. The Everblades increased their lead to 3-0 five minutes later when Johner took a lead pass from Chris Dyment in a on breakaway where he chipped a backhand shot over the glove of Westlund. Dyment later salted the game away with his first playoff goal by firing a shot from the left circle into the open Charlotte net with 1:46 remaining in the game.
In goal, Kowalski improved his record this playoffs to 3-0 and his career playoff record to 6-0 with his shutout performance, while Westlund suffered the loss in his first playoff game in 2007 by allowing three goals on 16 shots .
On the power play, the Everblades finished the game 0-for-5, while the Checkers closed out the game 0-for-8.
The Florida Everblades, proud affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes and the Florida Panthers, return to action for game 1 of the best-of-seven South Division Finals at Germain Arena on a date to be determined later. Tickets for games "C" & "D", while are games 1 & 2 of the division finals are on sale now and can be purchased at the Germain Arena box office M-F from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., or by visiting www.ticketmaster.com. Florida Everblades group and individual game tickets & mini-plans are now available! Reserve your seat for all the exciting action today by calling (239) 948-7825. Visit www.floridaeverblades.com and www.germainarena.com for more information on group ticket packages, pricing and upcoming Germain Arena events.
Three Stars:
1) Craig Kowalski - FLA
2) Jon Lehun - FLA
3) Derek Damon - FLA
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