ESTERO, Florida – The Cincinnati Cyclones (41-19-5-3) scored early and often as they defeated the Florida Everblades (34-22-4-7) by a 6-2 final score in front of 5,083 at Germain Arena on Friday night. Coupled with a loss by Gwinnett, the Cyclones guaranteed themselves no worse than a second place finish in the Eastern Conference playoff race.

Rookie J.T. Macdonald potted his first pro goal just 1:13 into the contest to give Cincinnati a 1-0 lead. And thanks to a pair of solid penalty kills and 10 saves from Michael Houser (W, 34 saves, 15-7-1-1), the Cyclones took a one-goal edge into the first intermission.

Cincinnati extended its cushion to 2-0 at the 8:51 mark when Mike Embach sent a high wrist shot over the glove shoulder of Jesse Deckert (L, 14 saves, 4-1-0-1). The Everblades answered back with a goal of their own as Brett Henley wrested home his third goal of the season at 15:18. After weathering several more quality Florida scoring chances, the Cyclones struck again in the final minute; Matt Smyth found a loose puck in the right circle and fired a laser-accurate wrist shot over Deckert’s shoulder, making it 3-1 Cincinnati after 40 minutes.

An early third period power play allowed the Cyclones to bolster their cushion; Justin Vaive tucked home a rebound right in front of the net for his second goal in as many nights to lift his team to a 4-1 lead at 1:27. Then, at 6:58, Smyth delivered his second goal of the night by finishing off an odd man rush to make it 5-1. Florida’s Mathieu Roy temporarily stopped the bleeding for his team by potting a breakaway goal at 15:21. But a late rally would be denied by Cincinnati as Mathieu Aubin buried an empty net goal from his own zone to seal a 6-2 win.

The Cyclones Radio Network Stars of the Game are as follows:

First Star: Matt Smyth (2 goals for Cincinnati)
Second Star: Mattias Lindstrom (3 assists for Cincinnati)
Third Star: Justin Vaive (1 goal, 1 assist for Cincinnati)

Cincinnati will wrap up its brief stay in Estero with a Saturday night battle against the Everblades at 7:05pm. Fans can hear all the action of the game on the Cyclones Radio Network (FM 100 The FAN, America One, CyclonesHockey.com) beginning at 6:45pm.

The Cyclones will return to the ice at U.S. Bank Arena on Friday, March 29 when they host the Evansville IceMen at 7:30pm! The game will also feature Cincinnati’s Largest Fish Fry! Call 513.421.PUCK or visit CyclonesHockey.com to reserve your seats! Fans can also get the latest team updates throughout the season on Facebook and Twitter (@CincyCyclones).

Click here for tonight's box score.