GREENVILLE, SC – The Greenville Road Warriors will hope to invoke the luck of the Irish on St. Patrick’s Day as they don special green jerseys for the opener of a three-game series against the Cincinnati Cyclones. Tonight is the second of four meetings on the season between the Road Warriors and the defending Kelly Cup champions.
RECAPPING THE ACTION:
3/13/11 – GRW 6 – FLA 3
Of the seven prior games at Germain Arena between the Road Warriors and Everblades, five had been decided by one goal and three went to overtime. Sunday’s game provided no such dramatics as the Road Warriors scored three times in a 1:59 span during the first period to wrangle control of the game. Chris Clackson opened the barrage at 9:14 with a power play goal then Marc-Olivier Vallerand at 10:55 and Jimmy Kilpatrick at 11:13 followed with goals as Greenville raced out to a three-goal lead. Brad Snetsinger scored his first of three goals on the night at 13:22 and trimmed the Road Warriors’ lead to two. In the second, though, Shane Harper deftly set up Brendan Connolly on a two-on-one at 8:53 and Greenville was back up by three. Snetsinger made it 4-2 at 14:54, but the Road Warriors answered back with Wes Cunningham scoring at 15:08 and giving them a three-goal advantage heading into the third. Snetsinger capped his hat trick, and gave the ‘Blades life, with a power play goal at 6:39 of the third that made the score 5-3. Justin Bowers, though, who already had four assists in the game, finished off a five-point night with a power play goal at 12:03 that restored Greenville’s three-goal advantage at 6-3. Nic Riopel made 23 saves and earned his 20th win of the season.
3/15/11 – CIN 4 – GWT 3
The Cyclones staved off a furious Gwinnett rally to hang on for a one-goal win on Tuesday night and improve to 4-0-0 on their seven-game southern road trip. Cincinnati never trailed in the game thanks to Barret Ehgoetz opening the scoring with his 15th goal of the season 5:38 into the game. Gwinnett’s Matt Francis tied the game two minutes later, but the Gladiators surrendered three consecutive goals to the Cyclones and lost touch through the third period. Brady Calla put the Cyclones back in front at 17:14 of the first with his seventh of the season then Jake Hauswirth (2:34 of 2nd, 12th) and Mike Liambas (2:43 of 3rd, 1st) followed to build the lead to 4-1. Gwinnett trimmed the deficit to one with goals by Devin Timberlake and Matt Duffy late in the third, but the tying goal never came. Brian Foster earned the win in net for the Cyclones by posting 33 saves.
WHAT’S ON TAP FOR TONIGHT:
Greenville and Cincinnati renew acquaintances tonight after meeting for the first time on February 25 in Cincinnati at US Bank Arena. It was the first time back for Dean Stork after helping Cincinnati capture the 2010 Kelly Cup as an assistant coach. The reunion wasn’t particularly enjoyable for the Road Warriors as they suffered a 4-3 overtime loss on T.J. Fast’s power play goal. The Cyclones enter this game in the midst of a seven-game southern road trip and entered the week with a 12-3-1 record against the South Division.
Road Warriors defenseman Wes Cunningham set a career-high with four points (1G, 3A) in Sunday’s 6-3 win over the Florida Everblades. That effort was part of a white-hot month of March in which he has 9 points (2G, 7A) in five games. His production has vaulted Cunningham to second among ECHL defensemen in points with 35 (7G, 28A). If his strong play continues, he could be the third Road Warriors defenseman to lead the league in points this season after Julien Brouillette (23) and Blake Parlett (31).
– Greenville is the only team in the ECHL with a top-five offense (3.48/gm, 3rd, and top-five defense (2.78/gm, 2nd).
– Greenville has eight PPG in its last four games and ranks fifth in the league with 57 PPG this season.
– The Road Warriors’ magic number to clinch a playoff spot is 3 points. The magic number to clinch the South Division, and home ice advantage, is 7 points.
– Jimmy Kilpatrick’s current nine-game point streak (5G, 5A) is his longest of the season. His goal on March 6 vs. Elmira was his 150th ECHL point.
– Greenville’s 20 home wins are tied for the most in the conference while the Road Warriors’ home defense is the best in the conference with 77 goals allowed.
Tonight the Road Warriors debut their special St. Patrick’s Day jerseys which will be worn all weekend and auctioned off live following the game on Saturday. Fans also get to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with a Dollar Drink Thursday at the BI-LO Center! Select draught beers and fountain drinks will be on sale during the game for just $1! Group seating is still available for groups of 10 or more. Groups receive discounts off of the box office price, preferred seating based on availability, and other great benefits. Outings can be booked by calling the Road Warriors at 864-674-PUCK.
