SWAMP RABBITS FALL TO ICEMEN DESPITE 44 SHOTS
SWAMP RABBITS FALL TO ICEMEN DESPITE 44 SHOTS
Saint and Atkinson score season firsts, but 0/5 power play stalls Swamp Rabbits
By: Mark Binetti, Greenville Swamp Rabbits
(GREENVILLE, S.C.) – Austin Saint and Josh Atkinson put some life in the Greenville Swamp Rabbits halfway through the game, but, despite 44 shots on net, the team’s power play went 0/5 and the Jacksonville Icemen got two goals from captain Christopher Brown to escape with a 4-2 win on Friday night. The loss puts the Swamp Rabbits to 0-3-0-0 on home ice early this season.
The Swamp Rabbits hammered the Icemen net in the opening frame, but ultimately Jacksonville weathered the storm and left with a 2-0 lead. The swing point in the frame over 13 minutes in when the Swamp Rabbits earned a two-man advantage for 95 seconds. The Icemen killed the penalties, then proceeded to score two minutes apart. Matteo Costantini opened up the scoring entries with 3:23 left in the period, taking a Cameron Supryka neutral zone pass into the Swamp Rabbits zone on the left, and finished with a wrist shot that beat Pierce Charleson’s glove far post to give the Icemen at 1-0 lead. Exactly two minutes later, Aidan Fulp finished a coast-to-coast sequence for the Icemen, deflecting a Nathan Dunkley backdoor pass behind Charleson to quickly double the lead to 2-0 with 83 seconds left in the frame (Dunkley and Patrick Bajkov assisted).
The Icemen notched one more before the Swamp Rabbits found life. Just eleven seconds into the second, Icemen captain Christopher Brown found himself all alone entering from the right side. He slashed to the middle and rifled a laser past Charleson to extend the Icemen lead to 3-0 (Chris Grando and Brayden Hislop assisted). Moments later, Austin Saint gave the Swamp Rabbits some energy. At 3:01, Saint looked for a net-front redirect, but his attempt went off of a defender and past Scott Ratzlaff in the Icemen net, cutting the deficit to 3-1 (Ryan O’Hara assisted). Not too long after, Tate Singleton thought he brought the Swamp Rabbits within one, but the officials ruled otherwise after video review despite the puck fully crossing the line. Josh Atkinson gave the Swamp Rabbits back some momentum following the review let down, powering to the net and finishing five-hole past Ratzlaff to bridge the gap to 3-2 with 8:50 left in the second (Cam Hausinger and Jake Murray assisted). After Atkinson scored, Hislop was called for a cross-check, but the Swamp Rabbits power play couldn’t muster a tying strike.
Brown netted his second of the game to give the Icemen some breathing room early in the third. Between the hashmarks with no one on him, Brown buried a Bennett MacArthur pass from behind the net to re-establish a multi-goal lead at 3-2 with 2:52 played in the final period. Despite another 14 shots on net, the Swamp Rabbits couldn’t solve Ratzlaff and fell 4-2.
Pierce Charleson suffered the loss, stopping 12 of 16 shots (1-1-0-0).
The Swamp Rabbits close out their weekend on “Oktoberfest”, presented by Arthrex, against the South Carolina Stingrays. Puck drop is 7:05p.m. EST, and features a pregame party on the Furman Plaza with live music from the Steubenville Tootlers and a stein giveaway, courtesy of Arthrex.
About the Greenville Swamp Rabbits …
Acquired by Spire Sports + Entertainment (SS+E) in 2020, the Greenville Swamp Rabbits hockey team have 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 a member of the ECHL, Premier ‘AA’ Hockey League.
