The Florida Everblades are on the doorstep of ECHL history after winning their third consecutive Eastern Conference Final title. Now, they have the chance to be the first team in league history to three-peat as Kelly Cup Champions.
With the series win over Adirondack, the Blades take pole position of most Kelly Cup Finals appearances for a franchise in league history (7), and become the first team ever to win three-straight conference titles.
But for head coach and general manager Brad Ralph, it's just another day in the office.
"You know what, it really does go by so quick for us," Ralph said. "We don't have time to nor do we really want to think about any records or history or anything like that. It's really not applicable to this team in that there's so many new players... So it's not to our benefit to think too far in advance or to think about anything like that. We're constantly telling each other just to stay in the moment and let's take care of business on what's at hand that day."
Of the 23-man playoff roster, just three have been present for the 2022 and 2023 titles: Cam Johnson, Joe Pendenza, and BoBo Carpenter. Carpenter has been a part of the team since 2021, but two shoulder injuries saw him play in just 37 regular season games in both years and miss both playoff runs.
This year, however, Carpenter has a team-best 15 points in the playoffs (eight goals and seven assists). He says this playoff run has been an amazing experience after battling back from his injuries.
More:ECHL: Everblades get off the fast start, Cam Johnson does rest in Eastern Conference Game 3 win
"Personally, you enjoy it," Carpenter said. "I've obviously had some bad luck the past two years and I was fortunate enough to somewhat be a part of the team. It's a little different when you're looking in from the outside. But now being a part of it and being in the locker room after every game, you really appreciate it. These past two months have been an absolute blast, going to war with your teammates. I'm just trying to relish every moment and take it all in and I think that's most important."
Speaking of wars, the Blades started this playoff run with a miraculous series win over Jacksonville in the first round, clawing out of a 3-1 deficit and winning Game 7 on the road against a team they had lost to 10 times in the regular season.
Carpenter says the first-round win confirmed what the Blades already knew about themselves.
"I think it just added even more to the belief of the group that we could fight through that much adversity," he said. "...Our team just stuck to the first [win] and once that rolled through, you know what you can do and what you're capable of. There's a lot of trust between the guys and I think that's what's really helped through all that adversity. That's why you can look out for one another and you know [we] got each other's backs."
"... I do think that gave our players a little more confidence to just believe in themselves and what this team can do," Ralph said. "Certainly from my end, I knew we could do it. And maybe going into that 3-1 hole is what we needed to really dig deep and understand what it takes, but to also understand what we have in that locker room."
After losing three games in the first round, the Blades handled Orlando in five games in the South Division finals. They then downed the Eastern Conference's top overall seed in Adirondack in the conference finals in six games.
But just like the seeding didn't matter in the conference finals against the Thunder, don't expect them to matter against the ECHL's regular-season champ Kansas City, who won the Western Conference as the No. 1 seed in just 15 games.
"When you get in the playoffs, whether you're the first or last seed getting in, you've got to find a way," Ralph said. "Sure, I think from the outside looking in there's frontrunners and underdogs, but when you're in the fight, you're just clawing away and you're not thinking about who the better team is or who had the more points in the regular season. It's just a dogfight from the get-go, and the better team will come out on top."
The Mavericks went 54-12-4-2 in the regular season, and are led by head coach and general manager Tad O'Had in his fourth season at the helm. Ralph is no stranger to O'Had, who spent nearly 500 games behind the bench for the Blades. In total, O'Had spent seven years as an assistant for the Blades, including four as an associate head coach under Ralph.
Kansas City also has a handful of players that played under Ralph. David Cotton (2023-34), Jake Jaremko (2021-22), Justin MacPherson (2023-24), Theo Calvas (2019-2020), and Jake McLaughlin (2021-22) will all suit up for the Mavericks for a shot at the Kelly Cup against their former team.
"What I do know is Kansas City is a heck of a hockey team," Ralph said. "We know a lot of the players, a lot of them played for the Everblades. Their head coach was an assistant for me, their assistant coach [Riley Weselowski] played for me, so there's going to be a lot of similarities between the two teams. But yeah, they've got a lot of help from their affiliate, I think there's nine contracted players and they're all top-end players, so yeah it's going to be a challenge, no doubt."
"This time of year, it's less about the X's and O's and more about who's got gas in the tank, who can dig deep, who wants it more," Ralph continued. "So we're going to lean on that."
The Kelly Cup Finals will begin on the road for the Blades, with Game 1 on Friday and Game 2 on Saturday. Puck drop for both games is 8:05 p.m.
The Blades return home for Games 3 and 4 on Wednesday, June 5, and Friday, June 7. Both games at Hertz Arena begin at 7:30 p.m.
