ROAD WARRIORS WEEKLY RELEASE – 12/12 to 12/18/11 

BY: RAY SCHMITT, Voice of the Greenville Road Warriors

The Greenville Road Warriors won both of their games last week and now hold the best winning percentage in the South Division. This week’s schedule features three more contests against South rivals which gives Greenville three more opportunities to climb higher in the standings.

Record: 13-8-0, 26 pts., 3rd place South Division
Leaders:
Goals – Brendan Connolly: 14
Assists – Justin Bowers: 17
Points – Jeff Prough/Brendan Connolly: 25
+/- – T.J. Reynolds: +8
PIMs – Brendan Connolly: 58
PPG – Jeff Prough: 7
SHG – Brendan Connolly: 1
Wins – Nic Riopel: 10
GAA – Jason Missiaen: 2.59
SVP – Jason Missiaen: ..923

Previewing the Upcoming Week:

12/16 vs. Florida & 12/17 vs. Florida – 7:35 p.m. & 7:05 p.m., Home vs. FLA 2-1-0, Away vs. FLA 1-1-0

The Road Warriors and Everblades renew acquaintances this weekend after meeting for a pair of games in Estero one month ago. They split that two game set with Greenville winning 5-2 on Nov. 18 and Florida coming back for a 5-0 win the next night. The shutout loss the Road Warriors suffered was only the second in the history of the club. The Everblades enter play this week with a 12-11-2 record and in fourth place in the South. Their offense has produced 87 goals which are the most in the ECHL. Greenville’s series with Florida this season has been a high-scoring one with the teams combining to average 7.6 goals per game.

12/18 at South Carolina – 4:00 p.m., Home vs. S.C. 4-0-0, Away vs. S.C. 0-1-0

The Road Warriors will try to break the stranglehold that the home team has had in the Battle of the Palmetto State on Sunday evening. The visiting team has yet to win a game when Greenville and South Carolina meet this season and has been out-scored by a combined total of 17-5. The Stingrays are the top team in the South Division entering this week with a 14-9-1 record and 29 points. South Carolina has won eight of its 12 home games this season and is limiting opponents to 2.17 goals per game at the North Charleston Coliseum. The Road Warriors have won three of their last four games away from the BI-LO Center and will try to avenge the 4-1 loss suffered at the North Charleston Coliseum on November 27.

Day-by-Day Schedule:

12/12/11 – Off

“Between the Pipes” radio show at Ford’s Oyster House and Cajun Kitchen, 7:00 p.m.

12/13/11 – * Practice at the BI-LO Center, 10:00 a.m.

Road Warriors at Roper Mountain Lights, 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

12/14/11 – * Practice at the BI-LO Center, 10:00 a.m.

Neil Smith on Your Carolina with Jack and Kimberly

Road Warriors at UBS Ice on Main, 6:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.

12/15/11 – * Practice at BI-LO Center, 10:00 a.m.

12/16/11 – * Pre-game skate at BI-LO Center, 10:00 a.m.

Road Warriors vs. Florida, 7:35 p.m.

12/17/11 – * Pre-game skate at BI-LO Center, 10:00 a.m.

Road Warriors delivering teddy bears to WSSL 100.5’s Stuff the Truck at Sitton Buick, 9:00 a.m.

Road Warriors vs. Florida, 7:05 p.m.

12/18/11 – Road Warriors at South Carolina, 4:00 p.m.

* Denotes an appearance/event that is not open to the general public. Media members, however, are welcome to attend these events to report on the Road Warriors and their community involvement. Please contact Ray Schmitt at 864-293-2025 or ray.schmitt@greenvilleroadwarriors.com to coordinate covering Road Warriors practices or community appearances. The Road Warriors’ schedule is subject to change. It is recommended to contact the Road Warriors to confirm times of certain events, particularly practices.

Road Warriors Broadcast Information

All Greenville Road Warriors games are broadcast live online courtesy of America One. You can listen to every game for free by clicking on the “Listen Live” link located on the Road Warriors’ home page –  www.greenvilleroadwarriors.com. You can also visit www.americaone.com to find the Road Warriors internet TV broadcasts. The Road Warriors Pre-Game Show kicks off every broadcast 15 minutes prior to faceoff.

Recapping Last Week:

12/8 vs. Gwinnett: W 3-1

Box Score

Rookie goalie Jason Missiaen earned his first home victory with 31 saves and Brendan Connolly continued his surge with his second straight multi-point game (1G, 1A) in leading Greenville to the win over Gwinnett. Lee Baldwin gave Greenville the 1-0 lead early in the second, but Gwinnett’s David Strathman knotted the score just 54 seconds later. Neither team could break the deadlock in the second, but in the third Connolly scored the winner and set up Connor Shields’ insurance strike with 1:16 left to play.

12/9 vs. South Carolina: W 3-0

Box Score

As an encore to his first home win of the season, Jason Missiaen stopped all 38 shots he faced from the South Carolina Stingrays and earned his first pro shutout last Friday. He saved his best work for the third period when, with Greenville up 3-0, South Carolina peppered the net with 18 shots. Many came while the Stingrays were on a 5-on-3 power play that lasted for 1:55. The Road Warriors did most of their damage offensively in the first period with Kale Kerbashian and Brendan Connolly beating South Carolina’s Philipp Grubauer. Marc-Olivier Vallerand provided extra cushion to the lead in the second period with his ninth goal of the season.

Quick Hits:

* Jason Missiaen is nominated for ECHL Goalie of the Week after going 2-0-0 for the Road Warriors last week with a shutout, a .50 goals-against average and a .986 save percentage. He is on a personal three-game win streak after netting his first pro win on November 30 at Kalamazoo.

* Brendan Connolly is nominated for ECHL Player of the Week after earning four points (2G, 2A) in two games last week as the Road Warriors went 2-0-0. Connolly has scored 12 goals in his last 11 games dating back to November 10.

* In the Road Warriors’ last five games (dating back to Nov. 30) the line of Connor Shields-Brendan Connolly-Marc-Olivier Vallerand has combined for 13 goals and 12 assists. Connolly has the most goals with six while Vallerand tops the trio in assists with five. The Road Warriors are 4-1-0 in those five games.

* Greenville remains atop the ECHL with a power play clicking at 25.3 percent. The Road Warriors have, however, been held without a power play goal in their last two games and are scoreless in their last 10 chances. On the flip side, Greenville has killed off nine consecutive penalties and has not allowed a power play goal in the last two games.

* Greenville has a team goals-against average of 2.6 over its last 10 games. In their last five home games the Road Warriors have held opponents to five goals, while on the road they have given up 18.

Upcoming Events:

Friday, Dec. 16: Road Warriors vs. Florida Everblades, 7:35 p.m. – Teddy Bear Toss and Spinx Family Four Pack. Bring a new, or gently used, stuffed animal to the game and throw it onto the ice after the Road Warriors score their first goal! All tossed toys will be donated to WSSL 100.5’s Stuff the Truck event which benefits Toys for Tots. The Spinx Family Four Pack gets you four tickets, four hot dogs, four bags of chips, and four fountain drinks all for just $48!

Saturday, Dec. 17: Road Warriors vs. Florida Everblades, 7:05 p.m. – Foothills K-9 Search and Rescue Benefit Night. Follow the link here to purchase tickets to the game from Foothills K-9 Search and Rescue at a discounted rate, and to have a portion of your purchase to towards helping fund the organization.

Thursday, Dec. 22: Road Warriors vs. Reading Royals, 7:35 p.m. – Throwback Thursday Presented by WSSL 100.5, The Greenville News, and New Rock 93.3. Come out to enjoy $2 draught beers, $2 fountain drinks, $2 hot dogs, and $2 pretzels. Also, any college student with a valid ID gets in for just $6.

Friday, Dec. 23: Road Warriors vs. Reading Royals, 7:35 p.m. – Spinx Family Four Pack. The Spinx Family Four Pack gets you four tickets, four hot dogs, four bags of chips, and four fountain drinks all for just $48!