Blades nailed again 5-3
The Florida Everblades are in an usual position for them – on a losing streak.
OK, so it’s only two losses in a row, but for a team that came home leading the ECHL’s Eastern Conference, that’s a change for the worse.
Friday night the Wheeling Nailers beat the Blades 5-3, taking the first two of a three-game set at German Arena. Wheeling has won six in a row.
“We just don’t have any puck luck lately,” Blades coach Greg Poss said. “Everything they’re shooting is going in, goofy goals, deflections, and we’re not getting the puck luck to get the puck to go in for us. It happens during the season, but if we outshoot the opponent like that on a consistent basis then we’ll be OK.”
Florida gets one more chance at Wheeling tonight, then won’t be back at Germain Arena until Dec. 9. Coming up is a six-game road trip out West, with three games in Colorado and three in Idaho.
The Everblades have given up 11 goals in the first two against the Nailers. Goaltender Anthony Peters has surrendered all 11 goals. Peters was still in his pads, head in his hands, sitting in front of his locker after the game.
Friday’s game was a matter of quantity versus quality. As in the Blades taking 51 shots compared to only 24 by the Nailers, who did a far better job of making theirs count.
“They just got some really fortunate bounces,” Poss said. “They didn’t have a lot of scoring chances and they scored five goals. They scored from behind the net on one play. One shot from the blue line that shouldn’t have gone in either. You spot a team three, four goals that shouldn’t go in, they get lucky bounces, it’s tough to win.”
Still, Poss wasn’t willing to just let it go as bad luck.
“To make a change, you can’t accept it,” Poss said. “You have to come back and be even better. Find ways to block shots and find ways to do better defensively. Find a way to get it done.”
The Blades took a quick lead Friday night. The Nailers turned the puck over near their own blue line, and Gabriel Desjardins took advantage, skating in for an unassisted goal less than two minutes into the game. The goal was Desjardins’ fourth of the season and second in as many games.
Wheeling got that one right back. Evan Wardley fired a slap shot from the point to the left side of Peters to tie the score.
The Nailers took a 2-1 lead on a shot by Riley Brace. Then it was 3-1 when Zack Torquato beat Peters.
Even though the Blades had a 12-3 advantage in shots at the time, they trailed 3-1. It would have be a 24-7 edge in shots by the first period’s end. They still trailed 3-2.
The power play produced that second goal. The Blades banged away at a loose puck in front of Wheeling netminder Brian Foster until Corey Syvret got the goal. That got the Blades back within 3-2.
Wheeling made it 4-2 with 5:50 left in the second period on Torquato’s second goal of the night. The Blades had just survived a 5-on-3 disadvantage, but the Nailers still were on the power play at the time. So the Blades were outshooting the Nailers 30-14 and losing by two goals.
Cody Wyldo added a Wheeling goal late in the third.
Brant Harris tacked on one, his ninth, for the Blades with 2:33 left, but too little, too late. The Blades pulled Peters on a power play in the final moments, giving them a 6-on-4 advantage, but it didn’t matter.
Florida will try to avoid being swept Saaturday.
“We need to play the same way we did tonight, but we just need to be consequential defensively,” Poss said. “You can’t have 12 shots on net and they score on one.
“They’re just getting bounces right now. That’s the way it goes.”