Greenville ready to host key South Division tilts
BY: Jordan Kuhns, Greenville Swamp Rabbits
Greenville, South Carolina – The Greenville Swamp Rabbits went to the road this past week to take on last-place Atlanta and first-place Jacksonville. The Gladiators, mired in a four-game losing streak, came ready to play and outshot the Swamp Rabbits 23-6 in the opening period. Garrett Bartus slammed the door shut, and kept the team within striking distance. Greenville jumped out to a 2-0 lead, only to see untimely penalties hurt their cause, and as the game went to overtime, a newcomer to the Glads, Don Olivieri, sealed it with a power-play goal to end it. The Rabbits picked up a point in the standings in a hard-fought effort.
After the Thanksgiving festivities quieted, the Swamp Rabbits went into overdrive against the Jacksonville Icemen, who entered the weekend an astounding 10-2-0-0 at home. Greenville spoiled the party in Jacksonville on night one, racing out to a 4-0 lead with goals from four different goal scorers—Stephen Pierog, Austen Brassard, Thomas Ebbing, and Will Merchant. Jacksonville fired back in earnest, getting to within a goal twice, but it was Brassard’s second of the game on the power play that sealed the regulation win for the good guys.
Jacksonville’s defense made sledding tough for Greenville, who managed just 18 shots on goal. While Pierog’s second goal in as many games got the Rabbits within a goal midway through regulation, Kris Newbury connected early in the third period to re-establish the lead to two goals, and two empty-netters sealed the deal for the Icemen, who continue to lead the South.
The Swamp Rabbits picked up points in two of the three efforts, and have standings points in four of the last six games to claw ever closer to the pack of the South Division.
11/21 @ Atlanta – OTL 4-3
11/23 @ Jacksonville – W 5-4
11/24 @ Jacksonville – L 5-1
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Michael Pelech – 3 GP | 1 G – 4 A – 5 P
Captain Michael Pelech seized control of the top spot in team scoring and has found himself ranked tied for seventh among the leading scorers in the ECHL heading into this week. Pelech posted a goal and an assist, including the primary apple on Austen Brassard‘s game-tying goal in the waning moments of regulation to force the game into overtime. He then led the way with three assists in the win over Jacksonville on Friday night.
RABBIT TAILS
- The Greenville Swamp Rabbits completed the trade for Thomas Ebbing from Fort Wayne, sending forward Jordan Sims to the Komets.
- Two Swamp Rabbits are in the top 10 in ECHL scoring. Michael Pelech‘s 20 points are good for seventh, and Austen Brassard‘s 19 points are good for eighth.
- Among defensive scorers, Greenville’s top pair is among the best. Jake Bolton remains tied for the second-most goals scored by a blueliner (5), and Trevor Owens is tied for sixth in defensive points (10).
- A busy November leads to a similarly busy December. After playing 14 games in November, the team will play 13 games in December. 10 of those 13 games will be played on a weekend, with just December 4 (at South Carolina), December 13 (vs. Florida) and December 19 (at Atlanta) will be played during the week.
- Greenville has found a way to pick up points in tight situations. The team is 4-3-3 in one-goal games, having picked up standings points in seven of ten games, and when leading after one (4-1-2-0) and leading after two (4-0-1-0).
UPCOMING GAMES
- Wednesday, November 28 | vs. Norfolk Admirals | 10:30 a.m. | School Day Game
- Friday, November 30 | @ Atlanta Gladiators | 7:30 p.m.
- Saturday, December 1 | vs. Atlanta Gladiators | 7:30 p.m. | Sing for Santa
SOUTH DIVISION STANDINGS
- Jacksonville Icemen (13-6-0-0) – 26 pts
- Norfolk Admirals (10-7-1-0) – 21 pts
- Florida Everblades (9-5-3-0) – 21 pts
- South Carolina Stingrays (10-8-0-0) – 20 pts
- Orlando Solar Bears (9-7-2-0) – 20 pts
- Greenville Swamp Rabbits (6-11-3-0) – 15 pts
- Atlanta Gladiators (5-9-2-0) – 12 pts
*standings as of 10:00 a.m. on November 26, 2018
