Title Defense Over: Aces Eliminated By Wranglers In Five - KTUU.com

ANCHORAGE, Alaska â€" The 1993-94 Toledo Storm will remain the most recent team to win back-to-back ECHL championships.

The 2011 champion Alaska Aces were knocked out of the Kelly Cup Playoffs on Wednesday night by the Las Vegas Wranglers, 3-1 in game five of the Western Conference Finals.  After taking the first game of the series, the Aces dropped four in a row, including the last three at Sullivan Arena. 

Alaska got off to a good start in game five, as Dan Kissel scored a power play goal at 5:22 of the first on a power play.  Las Vegas struck back with a man advantage goal later in the period, and then took a lead it would never relinquish at 18:22 of the first on Judd Blackwater's fourth goal of the playoffs.

Both Blackwater and Eric Lampe scored for the third straight game for Las Vegas.  The Wranglers also held the ECHL's best team during the regular season to just seven goals in the five game series.