Norfolk completes sweep to win Calder Cup

The Norfolk Admirals completed a sweep of the Calder Cup Finals on Saturday by beating the Toronto Marlies 6-1 to win the first AHL championship in franchise history.

Mike Kostka, whose fluke goal in overtime gave the Admirals a 1-0 win in Game 3, scored the first of his two goals at 4:26 of the second period to break a 1-1 tie. Tyler Johnson made it 3-1 at 16:45, and the Admirals blew the game open with three goals in the third period.

Admirals goaltender Dustin Tokarski stopped 18 of 19 shots, allowing only a first-period goal by Mike Zigomanis. Tokarski won all four games in the series, allowing only four goals.

Norfolk forward Alexandre Picard, who had nine goals and seven assists during the Admirals' title run, was named MVP of the finals.

The victory capped an incredible four-month stretch for the Admirals, the top farm club of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Norfolk, the Eastern Conference and regular-season champions, won its last 28 regular-season games after a loss on Feb. 5, then went 15-3 in the playoffs and swept both the semifinals and Calder Cup Finals.

Ben Scrivens made 26 saves for the Marlies, the Western Conference champions.