How much does home-ice advantage matter in the postseason?

Perhaps the Florida Everblades aren’t the best team to ask.

With only the Seattle Kraken as an outlier in the NHL’s Stanley Cup Playoffs as the only team from among the bottom two seeds to advance to the second round, the fourth-seeded defending Kelly Cup champions matched them, and then some, in the ECHL, knocking off the No. 1 South Carolina Stingrays in six games in the South Division Semifinals.

They’ll once again only have as many as three games at home in their best-of-seven, second-round slate against the Jacksonville Icemen. No last chance for the majority of the series and no home fans if it gets to that seventh game.

So, how much does it really matter?

Well, still more than it may have appeared in the South Carolina series, according to head coach Brad Ralph.

“Not having home ice doesn’t make it easy,” Ralph said. “I think it makes a big difference, especially when you have to travel twice – we had to go up to South Carolina twice – that’s hard on players. If home ice wins you one game in the playoffs, that’s the difference in winning and losing. We don’t have home-ice advantage, but I think it’s important.”

Ralph knows how important every decision can be during playoff hockey. It’s important to capitalize on every opportunity and take advantage whenever possible.

Those decisions aren’t just about what happens on the ice, though. Things such as travel, rest and meals also must be carefully considered. Being on your home ice, in front of a home crowd, is just one element – but it’s a sizable one.  

The biggest difference-maker in their first-round series was quite apparent, however.

Veteran goaltender Cam Johnson, who backstopped the ‘Blades to the title last year, was stellar again against the Stingrays, posting a 1.61 goals against average and .947 save percentage in seeing every second of that series between the pipes.

The @fl_everblades are making a push to the playoffs and goalie Cam Johnson is leading the way. Check out this save in today's #ECHLWeek #AMIce highlight. Johnson's 32-save performance on Wednesday night helped Florida into a tie for second place in the South Division. pic.twitter.com/OUOviIJvvv

— ECHL Week (@ECHLWeek) April 6, 2023

“The South Division, it was just so tight all year long, so I think all four teams probably feel like we’re closely matched,” Ralph said. “We knew they were fast and talented…it was a tough series and a tight series, but at the end of the day, I think our goaltending, our defense and our experience certainly showed that we know how to win.

“Cam played a lot of hockey this year, more than any other goalie in the ECHL (55 regular-season appearances), and we sputtered down the stretch. I think Cam was probably feeling the effects of playing so many games, but as that series went along, he got better and better. He’s such a competitor and such a leader in terms of wanting to win and pushing this team. He’s a winner. He’s a motivator for our group.”

The focus for that group now of course shifts to the series against the Icemen, where the Everblades will face their toughest challenge yet in their quest to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals for a second consecutive season.

“Jacksonville, they’re a very good hockey team, and I think there’s 13 or 14 returners from last year, and they’re going to be ready for us,” Ralph said. “They don’t like us, and we know that. We beat them last year in the playoffs, and they learned a lot. They were a lot better hockey team this year, so we expect a tough-fought series. “Their forward group is extremely deep, and they’re difficult to match up against, so we’ve got to do a good job shutting them down off the rush and limiting their opportunities on the power play.”

Last year, Ralph’s Everblades team swept the Icemen out of the second round, but there’s no expectation that they’ll be able to make it look that easy this time around, as both teams have learned, grown and changed.

THE FLORIDA EVERBLADES ARE YOUR 2022 KELLY CUP CHAMPIONS!!!!! 🏆🏆 pic.twitter.com/EmW1s3igbD

— x - Florida Everblades (@FL_Everblades) June 12, 2022

With the different dynamic in the locker room and on the ice, the Everblades must approach things differently as an organization, but Ralph has seen positive growth in his players along the way.

They also had the chance to experience the pressures of late-series playoff hockey already this year, which they handled and used as a learning opportunity, according to Ralph.

Now it’s time for the rematch with the Icemen.

“I think last year, we had more experience and more guys kind of at the tail end of their careers yearning for that opportunity to go out on top,” he said. “So, it’s a little different in that we have some younger players who are experiencing this for the first time, but we also have a lot of returners who know what it takes and have that confidence in those pressure-cooking moments…it’s a different season.”