Three Shutouts From the Record: Cam Johnson's Chase Headlines the Everblades' Trip to Jacksonville
The ECHL's own notebook put the number in print Monday: Cam Johnson's 22nd career shutout, recorded Saturday at Greenville, leaves the Everblades goaltender three shy of the league's all-time record. Next comes a three-games-in-three-days set at Jacksonville, starting Friday.
The Florida Everblades' week has a number attached to it: three. Goaltender Cam Johnson recorded his 22nd career ECHL shutout on Saturday at Greenville — a 21-save, 2-0 win built on Isaac Nurse's first-period goal and Max Graham's empty-netter — and the league's South Division notebook, published Monday, stated the chase plainly: 22 career regular-season shutouts rank third in ECHL history, three shy of the league's all-time record. It was Johnson's second clean sheet in six games this season, for the reigning Warrior Hockey ECHL Goaltender of the Week.
The notebook carried the rest of Florida's early-season shape. The Everblades have outscored their opponents 9-2 in the third period, a closing habit that travels well, and they sit second in the South Division after their weekend split with Greenville. Defenseman Jordan Sambrook ranks third in scoring among ECHL defensemen with six points — one goal and five assists — in six games, while Johnson ranks fourth in the league in goals-against average at 1.51 and first in minutes played at 357.
The chase resumes on the road. Stop three of the longest road trip of the season is a three-game series in Jacksonville — three games in three days in North Florida, starting Friday, November 6 at 7:00 p.m. against the Icemen. The Everblades then return to Hertz Arena on Friday, November 13 at 7:30 p.m. for the first of two matchups against the South Carolina Stingrays, with Johnson's record watch now the subplot hanging over every start.
