A tight and entertaining series is expected when rivals Toledo and Fort Wayne square off in the ECHL Central Division final series.
The familiar foes have met eight times this season and 50 times in the regular season since 2012-13. It also will be the third time in the past four seasons the Walleye and Komets have clashed in the Kelly Cup playoffs.
Several factors — obvious and subtle — will determine which successful franchise will advance to the Western Conference final series.
Here is what to look for when the rivals faceoff in the best-of-7 series, with Game 1 set for 7:35 p.m. Saturday at the Huntington Center:
Goaltending
As is the case with most playoff series, the play between the pipes will be pivotal. Toledo's Pat Nagle, who spent the previous three seasons in a Komets uniform, led the ECHL with 37 wins (a Toledo record and tied for the second most in league history). In the Walleye's 4-0 sweep of Indy in the first round, the 30-year-old posted a 1.79 goals-against average and a .942 save percentage. Fort Wayne’s Michael Houser also is an ECHL veteran who went 28-11-4 overall with a 2.73 GAA in the regular season. Nagle might have an edge knowing the tendencies of his former teammates. But the Komets might have insight into Nagle, who was 2-2-0 with a 3.07 GAA against his former team.
The special teams battle
The team that advances will be the one that capitalizes on mistakes and cashes in on the power play, and Toledo appears to have the advantage in special teams. The Walleye had the second-best penalty kill — part of the league’s No. 2-ranked defense — and fifth-ranked power play during the ECHL regular season. Despite leading the league in scoring, the Komets were middle of the pack with the man advantage (14th) and were 12th on the kill. But Fort Wayne scored five power-play goals against Cincinnati and leads the league in postseason production at 29.4 percent. The team that commits the fewest “bad” penalties will have the edge.
Protecting home ice
Both teams enjoy a sizable advantage when playing in their own arena. Large and passionate home crowds give the home team a distinct edge, as Fort Wayne led the ECHL in attendance and Toledo was second. Toledo was 28-7-1 at the Huntington Center this year but just 2-2-0 vs. Fort Wayne, while the Komets swept Toledo at home on the way to a 25-7-4 mark. In the previous two postseason showdowns (both won by Toledo), the Walleye went 7-0 at home and 1-4 on the road. With a tight series expected to play out under a 2-2-1-1-1 format, it might come down to Game 7 in Toledo (as it did in the 2015 series). The Walleye would host the Komets on May 9, if necessary (and it very well could be necessary).
Contact Mark Monroe at: mmonroe@theblade.com, 419-724-6354, or on Twitter @MonroeBlade.
First Published April 27, 2018, 11:35 p.m.
