ECHL ANNOUNCES SWAMP RABBITS AS AWARDS FINALIST 

Team up for six different awards to be announced at ECHL Summer Meetings

By: Mark Binetti, Greenville Swamp Rabbits

GREENVILLE, S.C. – The ECHL announced today that the Greenville Swamp Rabbits organization, proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings, is a finalist in six different categories for the 2023-24 ECHL Awards, presented by SponsorCX.

The winners will be announced at the 2024 ECHL Hockey Summer Meetings in Las Vegas on June 26^th. Fans can join the awards show on the ECHL’s Facebook page at 7 pm ET that night.

“The nominations are a testament to the dedicated and passionate staff of our team. That starts with the support and resources from our ownership – Jeff Dickerson, Todd Mackin, and the entire leadership group of Spire Sports + Entertainment,” said Tim Vieira, President of the Swamp Rabbits. “None of the successes we achieve as a team are made possible without our fanbase, strong relationship with the leadership of Bon Secours Wellness Arena, Levy restaurants, Corporate Partners, and the Upstate Community that we are proud to call our home. This is only the start for Spire Hockey in Greenville, and we look forward to continuing to build, bit by bit, ahead of our fifth season in the market.”

The Swamp Rabbits are finalists in the following award categories:

• Most Creative Revenue Generator (5th Line Club)
• Theme Night of the Year (New Year’s Eve – Glow Night)
• Game Operations Team of the Year
• Prolific 1 Ticket Department of the Year (YOY Growth)
• Group Department of the Year (YOY Growth)
• Rising Star Award

The Swamp Rabbits organization has now finished as a finalist for ECHL Awards more than 20 times across multiple categories over four seasons under Spire Sports + Entertainment ownership. The team claimed four ECHL Awards in that span.

This is the team’s first finalist recognition for “Most Creative Revenue Generator.” The 5th Line Club began in the 2021-22 season and is an exclusive membership program that affords fans insider access to the team, including multiple private events with the players throughout the season.

For a second time, the Swamp Rabbits are finalists for “Theme Night of the Year”, with “New Year’s Eve – Glow Night” up for the league’s recognition. The award is bestowed to the theme night that best-executed activations in-arena through partnerships, jerseys, and overall uniqueness of theme, in addition to advance, walk-up, group, and sponsorship sales metrics. The Swamp Rabbits wore glow-in-the-dark jerseys, presented by Arthrex, and showcased indoor fireworks, presented by Kevin Whitaker Chevrolet, for a sold-out lower bowl to close out the 2023 calendar. The team was previously a finalist in 2021 for “Wizards Night”.

The Swamp Rabbits are a first-time finalist for “Game Operations Team of the Year”. The winner best executes a lively in-game atmosphere, creatively integrates theme night ideas and partnership activations, engages and entertains the crowd, and promotes a safe and comfortable space for fans to enjoy ECHL hockey. In-game production this season was directed by Alexis Eckerson, Manager of Partnership Activation and Game Operations, who assumed the role in December of 2023 while completing her undergraduate studies at Clemson University.

Setting franchise attendance and revenue records in back-to-back-to-back seasons, the Swamp Rabbits are a finalist for the “Prolific 1 Ticket Department of the Year – Year Over Year Growth” for a third time. The organization claimed the ECHL’s recognition in 2022. This is also the team’s first finalist nomination for “Group Department – Year Over Year Growth”.

Finally, the team is a finalist for the ECHL’s “Rising Star Award” for a third consecutive season. The award is determined by aggregate revenue and year-over-year growth in corporate revenue, ticket sales, merchandise sales, and attendance, among other metrics. The team won the award in 2022.

About the Greenville Swamp Rabbits …
Acquired by Spire Sports + Entertainment (SS+E) in 2020, the Greenville Swamp Rabbits hockey team has been providing family-friendly, live entertainment at Bon Secours Wellness Arena since 2010. Formerly the Greenville Road Warriors, the Swamp Rabbits are the highest-level professional minor league franchise in South Carolina. The Swamp Rabbits are the proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s LA Kings and the AHL’s Ontario Reign. Greenville is an ECHL Premier ‘AA’ Hockey League member.

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