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The Rubik's Cube that is the ECHL schedule each year clicked into place for 2006-07 on Monday. And the Florida Everblades once again seem to have a favorable schedule.

Twenty-eight of the Estero club's 36 home games will be played on weekends at Germain Arena. There are five Tuesday games and three Wednesday games at home.

"We're satisfied with it," Everblades team president and general manager Craig Brush said. "The routing and everything was pretty good. The league's worked very hard with all of these changes."

The Greenville Grrrowl, who joined the ECHL the same year as the Everblades (1998), and San Diego Gulls are out for this season. The Texas Wildcatters are back after Hurricane Rita put the club on a one-year hiatus, and the Cincinnati Cyclones are back in the league as well.

Those changes and getting the approval of all 25 of the clubs generally pushes back the schedule release later than Brush and many in the league would prefer, which would be the beginning of June.

"We like to have it as soon as possible," Brush said. "We starting selling group tickets. People want to know when the games are. The earlier you have it, the better off you are.

"It's unfortunate it takes this long to get things done, but now we know what we're doing."

Besides a first-ever four-game jaunt to play Ohio teams Cincinnati (twice), Toledo and Dayton from Nov. 1-6, the rest of the club's 68 games will be against rival opponents. Pensacola (11), Texas (10), Gwinnett (10), and South Carolina (10) make up over half of the schedule. Augusta (9), Charlotte (9) and Columbia (9) make up the rest.

Gwinnett, which eliminated the Blades from the playoffs last season, plays at Germain on Jan. 26-27 and Feb. 14, 21 and 23.

There is no West Coast trip.

Nevertheless, longtime Everblade Reggie Berg knows the travel from Southwest Florida can be a grind anyway.

"You just travel so much being down here," he said. "We always expect a great deal of travel, which is probably the only drawback of being with this organization."

Chad Yoder / Daily News

Division and conference alignments, plus the format for the 2007 Kelly Cup Playoffs, will be announced following the Preseason Board of Governors Meeting in September.

"The schedule's never perfect," Berg said. "It's part of playing at this level."

• • •

Berg said he has had conversations with Brush and head coach Gerry Fleming about returning next season. Though Berg and defenseman Ryan Brindley — both Southwest Florida residents — were not extended qualifying offers by the team on July 1, both are expected to return.

"Things just take a while to play out and unfold, and it will in due time," said Berg, 29, who has played most of the past six seasons in Florida.

Forward Kevin Bergin and defensemen John Adams and Chris Lee are the remaining players who received qualifying offers from the Everblades. The three have until Aug. 1 to accept them.

Forward Phil Aucoin already accepted his, while defensemen Matt Bannan (Germany) and Tyson Teplitsky (Wales) became two of six former Everblades to sign with teams in Europe.

•••

Blades schedule

What you need to know for 2006-07:

• Home opener — Oct. 20 vs. Texas.

• Most frequent opponent — Pensacola (11).

• West Coast trip replaced by trip through Ohio.

• Dec. 8-17 — 10-day road trip.

• Nov. 10-18, Jan. 5-13 — Five-game homestands.

• No New Year's Eve home game.

• Last home game — April 7 vs. Augusta.