Blades fall in OT, 2-1
If Game 1 is any indication of things to come, then nothing about the Florida Everblades’ division final playoff series is going to be easy.
It took regulation, and then some, before the Blades lost to the South Carolina Stingrays 2-1 Friday night at Germain Arena.
After an Everblades turnover at their blue line, Stingrays defenseman Zach Tarkir scored the game-winning goal at 9:34 in overtime.
“It’s going to be one of those series where mistakes are going to cost you,” said Blades team captain Kevin Baker. “It’s going to be one of those series – it’s going to be low scoring and whoever makes the least mistakes and buries their chances is going to win it.”
South Carolina scored first when Matt Scherer beat Blades net minder David Leggio (27 saves) in the first period.
From there it was a battle of wills as both teams tried to get the upper hand through the second period, but excellent goaltending by Leggio and South Carolina’s Jonathan Boutin kept the scoreboard silent.
With opportunities limited, the Blades finally broke the ice on a power-play goal just 80 seconds into the third period.
With Earnie Hartlieb parked in front of Boutin at the net, Peter Metcalf fired a shot from the blue line that Hartlieb redirected, tying the game at 1-1.
The remainder of regulation was a battle of goaltenders making clutch saves.
“We are just going to have to keep shooting the puck,” Baker said of Saturday’s Game 2 at Germain Arena. “We are just going to have to bear down on net and get that high guy down low and bury our chances when we get them.”