Washington Capitals goaltending prospect Clay Stevenson stopped all 29 shots he faced in net for the South Carolina Stingrays in game 2 of their first round playoff series with the Florida Everblades Monday night in North Charleston. It was his first professional postseason start.
“We were way more disciplined tonight,” said Stevenson, who stopped 24 shots over the final two periods. “You could notice when we have more of a level head in those scrums and we’re not taking the extra penalties. We were hounding pucks with a lot more urgency than Florida was tonight.
One down. ✖️#Quest4Kelly pic.twitter.com/exvjzjZViK
— XY – SC Stingrays (@SCStingrays) April 25, 2023
With the 4-0 victory, the Stingrays even their best-of-seven Kelly Cup South Division semifinal series with the Everblades at 1-1. The Stingrays took a 5-o loss in game 1 of the series on Saturday night.
“The guys kept it tight especially when we were down on the penalty kill. We got back to our structure and we didn’t give them anything.”
Stevenson finished the regular season with a record of 19-12-3, including three shutouts, with a 2.54 goals against average and a .916 save percentage in 36 appearances.
Stevenson also went a perfect 3-0-0 with a 1.94 goals against average and a .924 save percentage in three appearances for the Hershey Bears this season.
The series now shifts to Hertz Arena in Estero, Fla., with Games 3 on Wednesday night.
Clay had a good game and I expect him to be in the net in game 3 but it really was the rest of the team showing up in front of him that made the difference. If the team had played like that in game 1, Tyler would have looked a whole lot better.
No additional fines or suspensions from game 2. Points leader Josh Wilkins should be back, don’t know of any injuries so Coach should have a full roster to pick from. Game 3 tonight in Estero 7:30.
I attended last night’s game, and finally I thought both teams played 60+ minutes. Clay looked good to me and only lost in OT on a breakaway. I think the team that will win this series is the team that can stay out of the box. Next game is tomorrow night 7:30 in Estero.
Thanks Rich! Always appreciate the first-hand reports. 🙏
I thought Blades had better 1st and 2nd, 3rd was tossup. Rays did not play as well in front of Clay as they did in game 2. Rays’ PP was top of the ECHL in regular season but scoreless last night. This gives the Blades an edge if Rays can’t regain that form. I think we may see Tyler Wall back in net tomorrow.