ECHL Game Recap: Atlanta Gladiators vs Florida Everblades | 04/09/2025

The Atlanta Gladiators opened their three-game Florida road swing with a 5–2 loss to the Florida Everblades at Hertz Arena on Wednesday night. Despite building a 2–0 lead midway through the game, the Gladiators couldn’t hold off Florida’s persistent attack, led by a hat trick from forward Logan Lambdin and a 47-shot onslaught from the home team.

First Period

The Florida Everblades came out flying in the first, generating sustained offensive pressure and a 13–8 shot advantage. The Everblades created multiple high-danger chances, but Atlanta goaltender Drew DeRidder weathered the early storm with solid positioning and rebound control.

Despite being outplayed for most of the period, Atlanta struck first. With just under three minutes remaining, Carson Denomie jumped on a turnover deep in Florida’s zone and sent a centering pass to Alex Young. Young, all alone in the slot, snapped home his 13th of the season to give the Gladiators a 1–0 lead.

GOAL (17:18): Alex Young (ATL), assisted by Carson Denomie

That goal proved to be Atlanta’s only real scoring chance of the period, but it was enough to take the lead into the first intermission.

First Period Stats

Score: Atlanta 1, Florida 0
Shots on Goal: Florida 13, Atlanta 8
Power Plays: Florida 0/2, Atlanta 0/1
Penalties: Atlanta 2, Florida 1

Second Period

Atlanta doubled its lead at 8:50 after a productive offensive shift. Defenseman Brenden Datema jumped into action and fired a shot from the front of the net off a feed from Jordan Frasca, then followed his own rebound to score his second goal of the season.

GOAL (8:50): Brenden Datema (ATL), assisted by Jordan Frasca

Florida responded with urgency. They continued to control the pace and finally broke through late in the period. Logan Lambdin finished a crisp passing play at 16:21, converting a feed from Kyle Betts, with Santino Centorame earning the secondary assist.

GOAL (16:21): Logan Lambdin (FLA), assisted by Kyle Betts and Santino Centorame

Just 59 seconds later, Dillon Hamaliuk created a turnover at the Atlanta blue line and capitalized with a steal-and-score breakaway goal to tie the game.

GOAL (17:20): Dillon Hamaliuk (FLA), unassisted

Momentum fully shifted in Florida’s favor after the back-to-back goals. They nearly added another before the horn and entered the third period tied, outshooting Atlanta 28–16 through 40 minutes.

Score: Florida 2, Atlanta 1
Shots on Goal: Florida 15, Atlanta 8
Power Plays: Florida 0/2, Atlanta 0/2
Penalties: Florida 2, Atlanta 1

Third Period

Florida’s dominance was complete in the third, where they outshot Atlanta 19–6 and scored three more goals to put the game out of reach.

After Jackson Pierson was called for tripping, Florida took the lead on the ensuing power play. Logan Lambdin tallied his second of the night at 7:10, burying a one-timer off a pass from Colin Theisen, with Jordan Sambrook also assisting.

GOAL (7:10): Logan Lambdin (FLA), assisted by Colin Theisen and Jordan Sambrook – Power Play

At 13:12, Jesse Lansdell fed Cole Moberg for a wrist shot from the blue line that found its way through traffic and in for his second of the season.

GOAL (13:12): Cole Moberg (FLA), assisted by Jesse Lansdell

With time winding down, Atlanta pulled its goaltender in favor of an extra attacker. Josh Ho-Sang sent a pass up center ice, and Lambdin completed his hat trick with an empty-net goal at 19:50 — his second of the season.

GOAL (19:50): Logan Lambdin (FLA), assisted by Josh Ho-Sang – Empty Net

Third Period Stats

Score: Florida 3, Atlanta 0
Shots on Goal: Florida 19, Atlanta 6
Power Plays: Florida 1/1, Atlanta 0/0
Penalties: Atlanta 1

Game Summary

Score: Florida 5, Atlanta 2
Shots on Goal: Florida 47, Atlanta 22
Power Plays: Florida 1/4, Atlanta 0/3
Penalties: Florida 3, Atlanta 4

Goaltending Summary

Cam Johnson got the win in net for Florida, stopping 20 of 22 shots. He was steady throughout the night and picked up his 36th victory of the season, the most in the ECHL.

Drew DeRidder took the loss for Atlanta but had a strong showing, making 42 saves on 46 shots. He kept the Gladiators in the game under heavy pressure late in the third.

Three Stars of the Game

1. Logan Lambdin (FLA) – 3 goals (hat trick), 7 shots, +2
2. Dillon Hamaliuk (FLA) – 1 goal, game-tying play, physical two-way presence
3. Cole Moberg (FLA) – 1 goal, strong defensive effort

Florida outshot Atlanta 47–22 and scored five unanswered goals after falling behind 2–0, defeating the Gladiators 5–2. Logan Lambdin led all skaters with a hat trick, including a power-play goal and an empty-netter. Dillon Hamaliuk and Cole Moberg also scored for the Everblades, while Cam Johnson made 20 saves for his league-leading 36th win.

Atlanta got goals from Alex Young and Brenden Datema in the first half of the game but went 0-for-3 on the power play and managed just six shots in the third period. Drew DeRidder turned aside 42 shots in the loss. Florida went 1-for-4 on the man advantage and improved to 5-0-0-0 against Atlanta this season.

Up Next

The series continues on Friday, April 11, 2025, as the Atlanta Gladiators face the Florida Everblades in Game 2 of the three-game set. Puck drops at 7:30 PM EDT.