Greenville tied with Norfolk as holiday break begins
BY: Jordan Kuhns, Greenville Swamp Rabbits
Greenville, SC – The week, the Swamp Rabbits moved closer to the thick of the South Division race with a successful week. Two wins put them tied with the Norfolk Admirals in the standings, with the Admirals facing a complete free-fall in the standings, having lost nine games in a row. The Rabbits also find themselves four points back of the Orlando Solar Bears for the fourth and final playoff spot in the South Division closing in on the halfway point of the season.
The week started with a character win on Wednesday in Atlanta. The Glads scored the opening goal late in the first period on the power play. Greenville tied it thanks to the red-hot Thomas Ebbing, but it was the Gladiators in the third period, just 32 seconds in, who would take the lead again.
Cue the comeback. Johno May continued his outstanding campaign by scoring the game-tying goal, and 90 seconds later, for the first time in the night, the Swamp Rabbits grabbed the lead. The newly constructed line of Brendan Harms, Michael Pelech, and game-winning goal scorer Will Merchant, connected to seal up the win.
Up next was the South Carolina Stingrays, who made their first visit to the Bon Secours Wellness Arena in the 2018–19 season. Much like the last meeting between the two teams, the Swamp Rabbits fell into a 3-0 hole to the visiting Rays and got the game within a goal. Shane Eiserman put the game out of reach with a power-play goal late in the second period and the Rays held on to the 4-3 lead to complete the victory.
Saturday saw the reverse. Greenville jumped out to a 3-0 lead, with two goals in the second period, and one more in the third. May, Harms, and Ebbing all scored to extend the lead further and further away. But, as the new game of hockey has shown, no lead is safe. Two power play goals and one more at even strength by South Carolina within fewer than five minutes drew the game even and sent it to overtime.
Thankfully, the Rabbits’ leading goal scorer, May, scored a gorgeous OT winner at the 2:37 mark of the extra session to pick up the win and complete a 2-1-0 week heading into the holiday break.
12/19 @ Atlanta Gladiators – W 3-2
12/21 vs. South Carolina Stingrays – L 4-3
12/22 vs. South Carolina Stingrays – W 4-3
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Michael Pelech – 3 GP | 1 G – 4 A – 5 P
Captain Michael Pelech has a four-game point streak rolling, and he was a difference maker in all three games over the past week. He tallied the primary assist on the game-winning goal from Will Merchant on Wednesday, almost singlehandedly willed the Swamp Rabbits back into the game on Friday against South Carolina facing a 3-0 deficit with a three-point effort, and posted an assist on Saturday en route to the 4-3 win over the Rays. Pelech is tied for fourth in league scoring with 33 points, just five back of Utah’s Caleb Herbert, and is tied for the third-most assists in the league with 22.
RABBIT TAILS
- The Greenville Swamp Rabbits continue to hold two of the top scorers in the ECHL. Michael Pelech is tied for the fourth-most points with 33, and Johno May is right behind him with 29, good for eighth.
- After this weekend, Greenville will be sick of South Carolina and Florida. 10 of the last 12 games after Saturday will have been played against the Rays or the ‘Blades. And, on the horizon, the Swamp Rabbits will play the Everblades three more times on January 9, 11 and 12.
- The power play has continued to chug along for the Swamp Rabbits this season. Now at 17.3%, their 23 power play goals are the sixth-most in the league and have the 10th-best power play success percentage. Home or road hasn’t mattered. At home, the Swamp Rabbits are 17.2%, and on the road, 17.4%.
UPCOMING GAMES
- Friday, December 28 | vs. Florida Everblades | 7:00 p.m.
- Saturday, December 29 | vs. Florida Everblades | 7:00 p.m. – Star Wars Night
SOUTH DIVISION STANDINGS
- Florida Everblades (18-6-5) – 41 pts
- South Carolina Stingrays (18-12-1) – 37 pts
- Jacksonville Icemen (17-11-1) – 35 pts
- Orlando Solar Bears (14-11-3) – 31 pts
- Norfolk Admirals (12-15-3) – 27 pts
- Greenville Swamp Rabbits (12-18-3) – 27 pts
- Atlanta Gladiators (6-15-6) – 18 pts
*standings as of 10:00 a.m. on December 24, 2018
