By: Jake Ferraro | Follow me on Twitter/X @18Jxxx18
Fourteen days ago, the Maine Mariners had their greatest single-season in team history end with a Game 7 loss to the Wheeling Nailers in the second round of the 2026 ECHL Kelly Cup Playoffs. The loss hurt more with the Mariners holding a 3-2 series lead, only to lose the next two games on the road. After the series loss, the Mariners watched the rest of the playoffs from home.
After defeating the Mariners, the Nailers met the Florida Everblades in the Eastern Conference Finals. In the end, the Nailers were dominated by the Everblades. The Everblades clinched the series in five games this past Saturday at WesBanco Arena. The Everblades will play in the 2026 Kelly Cup Finals, while the opponent from the Western Conference remains to be determined. Given how the Eastern Conference Finals went, it will infuriate the Mariners that they may have put up a better fight than the Nailers did against the Everblades.
The Mariners met the Everblades three times in the 2025-26 regular season, with all the games being played at Hertz Arena in Estero, Florida. The Mariners won two of the three meetings against the Everblades at their own building. To do that is impressive, considering the Everblades just reached the Finals. The Mariners lost 4-2 in the first game on Feb. 11, then won 2-1 in overtime thanks to Brooklyn Kalmikov’s game-winning goal in the final seconds on Feb. 13, and won 1-0 in a shootout on Feb. 14, where goaltender Brad Arvanitis recorded a 36-save shutout. Despite the wins being after regulation against the Everblades, the Mariners proved they can play against some of the ECHL’s best on the road.
When looking at the Nailers’ performance against the Everblades in the Conference Finals, it got ugly immediately, and it ended ugly as well. The Everblades defended home ice in the first two games of the series and outscored the Nailers 3-1. Sure, the Mariners fell 4-2 in the first meeting against the Everblades. However, the fact that the Nailers scored just one goal in the first two games of the series showed the Mariners’ offense was better in the first regular-season meeting than the Nailers’ was in the first two games of the series.
The series shifted to Wheeling for Games 3 through 5. In Game 3, the Everblades dominated the Nailers 5-2. Facing a sweep, the Nailers won Game 4 in overtime to keep their season alive. However, a 6-1 home loss in Game 5 to the Everblades ended the season in embarrassing fashion for the Nailers. When the Mariners trailed 0-2 in their series against the Nailers, it was a different outcome.
When the Mariners returned home for Game 3 against the Nailers, trailing 0-2 in the series, they responded immediately with a 6-3 win. Then, the Mariners won 2-1 in double overtime to even the series thanks to Jacob Hudson’s game-winning goal, and then won 5-3 in Game 5 to take a 3-2 series lead.
Sure, the Mariners lost the next two games of the series in Wheeling. However, Game 6’s loss was 2-1 in overtime, and Game 7’s loss ended 4-3. The Mariners did put up a valiant last-minute effort to make it a one-goal game with under 25 seconds remaining in regulation. At least the Mariners showed more fight when facing elimination in round two than the Nailers did in the Conference Finals. After trailing 0-2 to the Nailers, the Mariners could’ve folded and had their season end at home, but it didn’t happen. In the Nailers’ case, their season ended at home after trailing 0-2 in the series.
Even the one game the Nailers did win in the series, Game 4, in overtime, gives the Mariners frustration. The Everblades’ only loss of the series to the Nailers was in overtime. The Mariners’ two wins against the Everblades happened after regulation. Had the Mariners and Everblades played in the playoffs, and the game went into overtime, the Mariners would’ve had confidence, knowing they’d won two games in the regular season past regulation.
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