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ECHL Toledo Walleye

Walleye Win Playoff Opener 7-2

April 6, 2010 - ECHL (ECHL)
Toledo Walleye News Release


Toledo, OH - The Walleye hosted the #1 seed, Charlotte Checkers on Tuesday for game #1 of first round of playoffs for the 2010 ECHL Kelly Cup. This was the first-ever playoff game at the LCA. Keefe paces way with hat trick!

With the rankings suggesting the Walleye being the underdogs, especially with Checkers forward Aaron Slettengren accumulating six points (1g-5a) against the Fish this season. Toledo did have an answer in forward Evan Rankin, who has notched a total of eight points (8g) against Charlotte.

The first game of the postseason brought along an unbelievable amount of flow and action on both ends of the ice, but the Walleye looked dominant on its home ice. Crisp passes and hard hits were made by both teams throughout the length of play, but Toledo was the superior team this night.

The first period quickly began with an unassisted, wrap-around goal by forward Adam Keefe that caught netminder Ryan Munce off-guard. A turnover by Charlotte in the neutral zone just under fifteen seconds after faceoff gave Keefe the clear for a slap shot. The shot went wide and he collected his own rebound behind the net and shoved his shot passed Munce's outstretched leg pad. Just under a minute later, the Checkers got on the board as well, sliding a rebound past goaltender Jordan Pearce. After a forceful attack into the Charlotte zone, the Walleye were able to come off with a 3-on-2 snipe at the top of the far circle from forward Tony Romano. While Pearce continued to be unstoppable between the pipes with twelve saves on the period, Adam Keefe netted his second of the night on the power-play with a rebound with just two minutes left.

With a very busy second period of action, Adam Keefe earned himself a hat trick by collecting yet another rebound to beat a helpless Munce. End-to-end hockey towards the middle of the period resulted in defensemen J.C. Sawyer getting on the board as well with a blue line snipe from forward Maxime Tanguay. Stellar goaltending by Pearce gave the Walleye a 5-2 edge over the Checkers upon entering the third period.

To finish off the Checkers for the night, the Walleye notched an unassisted breakaway goal by Akim Aliu, as he slid it by the Charlotte net minder short-side. A lot of offensive zone play resulted in a 6-2 Game #1 "W" for the Walleye as Pearce, Keefe, and the rest of the team get a 1-0 edge in the series against Charlotte in the first round of playoff action.

Up Next: The puck will drop for Game #2 ("B") on Wednesday, April 7 at 7 P.M. at Lucas County Arena. The Walleye lead the series 1-0. Tickets are available, so come on Toledo! See you at the game!

Season Stories:

Munce's Walleye Woes: During the regular season, Checkers Goaltender Ryan Munce carried a 2.77 GAA. Against the Walleye, Munce has struggled, allowing a 4.14 GAA in five games. He allowed six in Tuesday's game.

Check out the Toledo Walleye Statistics

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ECHL Stories from April 6, 2010


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