SWAMP RABBITS DROP NARROW GAME TO GLADIATORS
Ethan Haider blanks Greenville on 33 saves, and McKay counters with 31 in a goalie duel.
By: Mark Binetti, Greenville Swamp Rabbits
(GREENVILLE, S.C.) – Cody Sylvester potted the game’s only goal with 6:53 left in the game and, bolstered by Ethan Haider’s 33 saves, helped the Atlanta Gladiators blank the Greenville Swamp Rabbits by a narrow 1-0 margin on Saturday night. The loss pushes the Swamp Rabbits losing streak to four games.
Both goaltenders traded game-breaking saves throughout the first 40 minutes of regulation. Ethan Haider, manning the Gladiators net, stoned six shots, while Dryden McKay denied 13 shots in net for the Swamp Rabbits. The main challenges that came for McKay were in the form of two Gladiators five-on-three power plays of 48 seconds in the second period and another 1:11 long in the third. The Swamp Rabbits and McKay killed off the danger on both occasions, perpetuating the scoreless duel.
Patrick Moynihan had a chance to get the Swamp Rabbits on the board on a penalty shot but was stopped by Haider with 7:50 to go in the second period. Tate Singleton also thought he broke through with the game’s first marker by slamming a loose puck in the Atlanta net, but the play was whistled dead despite clear visibility near the net front. Haider staved off 17 Swamp Rabbits shots, while McKay countered another 12 from Atlanta.
Sylvester finally ignited the goal lamp at 6:53 in the game, cashing in on a chaotic net-front sequence with a shot McKay initially stopped. Still, it trickled off his pad and rolled in to give the Gladiators a 1-0 lead (Zach Yoder and Joey Cipollone assisted). Haider continued to shine for Atlanta, holding off another ten shots, including a flurry with the extra-attacker to seal the 1-0 shutout.
Despite a valiant effort, Dryden McKay suffered the defeat, turning aside 31 of 32 shots on net (7-6-1-0).
The Swamp Rabbits conclude their “three-in-three,” shifting gears to the road in a finale against the Atlanta Gladiators to finish a home-and-home pair of games. The puck drop for tomorrow afternoon is slated for 3:00 p.m. EST at Gas South Arena.
About the Greenville Swamp Rabbits …
Acquired by Spire Sports + Entertainment (SS+E) in 2020, the Greenville Swamp Rabbits hockey team has provided family-friendly, live entertainment at Bon Secours Wellness Arena since 2010. Formerly, the Greenville Road Warriors and 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.
