SWAMP RABBITS EARN A POINT IN HARD FOUGHT COMEBACK BID
Isogai ties it with 1:58 left, Atkinson extends assist streak to 11 in overtime defeat
By: Mark Binetti, Greenville Swamp Rabbits
(GREENVILLE, S.C.) – Kenta Isogai scored his second of his two-point night, forcing overtime with 1:58 to play, and Josh Atkinson’s insane assist streak extended to 11 consecutive games, but the Savannah Ghost Pirates survived a 54-shot onslaught to capture the second point up for grabs in overtime by a 4-3 final over the Greenville Swamp Rabbits on Sunday afternoon.
The Ghost Pirates jumped out to an early 2-0 lead, with further hardship inflicted on the Swamp Rabbits towards the end of the first frame. With 5:55 to play, Matt Koopman scooped up a net-front rebound from Liam Walsh and pushed it past Swamp Rabbits net-minder Mattias Sholl, giving the Ghost Pirates a 1-0 lead (Walsh and Tristan Amonte assisted). Moments later, Sholl stopped a breakaway with two magnificent saves, but was injured on the sequence and taken out of the game, prompting Pierce Charleson, who started two of the previous three games in this four-in-five stretch, to enter in relief. Shortly after, Bryce Brodzinski went on a breakaway that was initially denied by Charleson, but picked up his own rebound to push Savannah to a 2-0 lead with less than a minute to play in the period (Amonte assisted).
The Swamp Rabbits eventually found some life in the second, halving the deficit over the midway point of the game. With 7:57 to go, Hudson Schandor won a faceoff to Tim Lovell, who fired a shot on net that was denied by Ghost Pirates goalie Vinnie Purpura. Schandor picked up the rebound and five-holed Purpura to cut the deficit to 2-1.
Early in the third, Savannah got one back, but the Swamp Rabbits mustered a comeback bid to force extra hockey. Ryan Sullivan deflected a puck shot by Noah Carroll that was stopped by Charleson initially, but Sullivan found his rebound and slotted it home to re-establish Savannah’s two-goal lead at 3-1 with 14:08 left in the game (Carroll and Lopina assisted). Then, following a brief bout of four-on-four, the red-hot power play of the Swamp Rabbits took the ice and started the rally. With 8:46 left in the game, Josh Atkinson quarterbacked from the point and found Tim Lovell on the right, who blasted home a one-timer that beat Purpura’s blocker to bring the Swamp Rabbits within striking distance at 3-2 (Atkinson and Kenta Isogai assisted). With the helper, Atkinson extended his assist streak to an eleventh straight game. Isogai, who helped start the rally, helped finish it in the final moments. With 1:58 to play, Dante Sheriff launched a “Hail Mary” to Ryan O’Hara, who went on an uncontested breakaway. O’Hara was denied by Purpura, but Isogai trailed and pocketed the rebound, squaring the game at 3-3 and forcing overtime.
The Swamp Rabbits had a chance to end it early on a power play, but were thwarted by the Ghost Pirates’ penalty kill, entering the game ranked #3 in the league. Eventually, the Ghost Pirates got a power play of their own, and it was Riley Hughes who potted a rebound in close range past Charleson to end the game, a 4-3 overtime win for the Ghost Pirates.
Mattias Sholl started the game and stopped all but one of eight shots in 17:13 before he was removed due to injury. Pierce Charleson stopped 21 of 24 shots in 48:12 of relief, suffering his third overtime defeat of the season (5-6-3-0).
The Swamp Rabbits are back in action for another four-in-five set, beginning with a Wednesday morning showdown against the South Carolina Stingrays on the road. Puck drop for Wednesday, February 18th, is slated for 10:30 a.m. EST at North Charleston Coliseum.
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SWAMP RABBITS DROP WILD AFFAIR AT STINGRAYS
Atkinson extends assist streak to 10 games, but South Carolina’s quick strike offense sinks Greenville
By: Mark Binetti, Greenville Swamp Rabbits
(NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C.) – Josh Atkinson extended his assist streak to 10 consecutive games, and Kenta Isogai logged a career-high three points to lead three multi-point performers, but the South Carolina Stingrays used quick strike offense, three times scoring in under a minute to pull away from the Greenville Swamp Rabbits in a wild 7-5 affair on Saturday night. The loss drops the Swamp Rabbits to a fourth straight.
Both teams tallied five total goals in the first frame, with the Stingrays carrying a 3-2 lead into the intermission. Nolan Krenzen got things started for South Carolina at 4:38 before he was answered by Kenta Isogai’s wrap-around at 7:25, squaring the game at 1-1 early. However, after Isogai’s tying strike, the Stingrays responded 36 seconds later, when Jordan Klimek fired home a shot from the blue line that whizzed through traffic and by Swamp Rabbits net-minder Pierce Charleson, putting the Stingrays ahead 2-1 at 8:01. Not to be outdone, Simon Pinard finished a tic-tac-toe sequence 20 seconds later setup on a Swamp Rabbits blue line turnover, giving South Carolina a two-goal lead at 3-1 at 8:21. Ryan O’Reilly gave the Swamp Rabbits life at the end of the frame, completing a coast-to-coast sequence started by Hudson Schandor. After crossing all three lines, Schandor cut to the middle of the Stingrays zone and fired a shot on Stingrays goalie Ty Taylor, which produced a rebound that O’Reilly banged home to cut the lead to 3-2 after one. Taylor gave up both of his goals on just three shots.
Patrick Polino kept the Swamp Rabbits’ power play red-hot, giving them a goal for a seventh consecutive game. At 6:26 of the second, Polino took a pass down low and barreled toward the net, squeaking it by Taylor to square the game at 3-3. Yet again, South Carolina responded, this time 29 seconds later when Connor Mayer trailed down the middle of the Swamp Rabbits zone and five-holed Charleson from the slot to put them back in the driver’s seat at 4-3 at 6:55. Then 44 seconds after that, Josh Wilkins collected a Lynden Breen pass set up by a net-front turnover, and backhanded a close range try over Charleson, establishing a 5-3 Stingrays advantage at 7:39. Ryan O’Hara responded with his first of two on the game with 8:28 left in the second, pocketing the rebound on a Keaton Mastrodonato shot, closing the gap to 5-4. Josh Atkinson, the Swamp Rabbits captain, picked up an assist on the tally, marking a 10th straight game he’s been in the assist column for the Swamp Rabbits.
Shortly after the goal, Taylor, who allowed four goals on eight shots, was subbed out for Seth Eisele, who completed the game in the Stingrays net. Lynden Breen got the last word of the second for the Stingrays, cleaning up a DJ King rebound to push South Carolina ahead 6-4 entering the third.
Ryan O’Hara hit paydirt again early in the third to give the Swamp Rabbits some life, burying a Kenta Isogai east-west pass in front of the crease, closing the gap again to one goal with 2:59 gone by in the third. In the final five minutes, Connor Moore was assessed a tripping minor and was immediately followed by a Connor Mayer unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, putting the Swamp Rabbits on a full two-minute five-on-three power play. They couldn’t solve Eisele or the Stingrays, but earned another advantage late when Patrick Guzzo flipped the puck over the glass from his own zone with 1:51 to play. With Charleson pulled to make it a two-man advantage, the Swamp Rabbits tried to muster a tying goal, but were instead thwarted by DJ King’s empty-net shorthanded tally with 21 seconds to play, giving South Carolina a 7-5 win.
Pierce Charleson stopped 28 of 34 shots in suffering the loss (5-6-2-0)
The Swamp Rabbits complete their four-game-in-five-night stretch tomorrow afternoon against the Savannah Ghost Pirates, with puck drop slated for 3:05 p.m. EST at Bon Secours Wellness Arena. Tomorrow is “Stomper’s Birthday”, presented by Big Air Trampoline Park, featuring appearances from Ed’s Dinosaurs, Handy Man Hal, and 10 mascots from the region, all celebrating Greenville’s favorite rabbit. Join us after the game at Hall of Fame Bar & Grill for a birthday party for Stomper.
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THIRD PERIODS DOOMS SWAMP RABBITS AGAINST STINGRAYS
South Carolina scores twice in 14 seconds to pull away late in rivalry showdown
By: Mark Binetti, Greenville Swamp Rabbits
(GREENVILLE, S.C.) – Jack Brackett put the Greenville Swamp Rabbits ahead going into the final period, and Josh Atkinson extended his assist streak for a ninth straight game, but the South Carolina Stingrays scored twice in 14 seconds in the third period to eventually escape with a 4-2 win on Friday night.
The Stingrays managed to tally the only goal of the first period, coming in the final minutes. With 108 seconds to play in the first, Connor Moore tightroped the Swamp Rabbits blue line and blasted a shot that snuck through traffic and slipped by the Swamp Rabbits net-minder Mattias Sholl, giving the Stingrays a 1-0 lead (Simon Pinard and Lynden Breen assisted).
The Swamp Rabbits returned fire and then some in the second period, starting off with their smoking red-hot power play. At 6:36 on their second power play of the game, Kenta Isogai collected a tipped pass as he entered the zone and found Wade Murphy across on the right side. Murphy rifled a shot that passed through the five-hole of Stingrays goalie Seth Eisele, squaring the game at 1-1 (Isogai and Patrick Polino assisted). Just under 10 minutes later, Jack Brackett caught a piece of a Keaton Mastrodonato shot and tipped it by Eisele, giving the Swamp Rabbits their only lead of the game at 2-1 with 3:28 left in the second (Mastrodonato and Josh Atkinson assisted). With his assist on the goal, Atkinson extended his career-high assist streak to nine consecutive games.
The Stingrays used quick strike offense to overtake the Swamp Rabbits and steal the win. Patrick Guzzo buried an active bounce off the glass to tie the game at 2-2 with 7:01 left in regulation, and 14 seconds later, Stan Cooley fell down towards the far post and the puck bounced in off of him behind Sholl, giving South Carolina a 3-2 lead in the blink of an eye. Simon Pinard ended it with an empty-netter with 61 seconds remaining, pushing the Stingrays to a 4-2 win.
Mattias Sholl stopped 24 of 27 shots in suffering the loss (8-9-2-0).
The Swamp Rabbits rematch the Stingrays tomorrow, February 14th, on the road. Puck drop at North Charleston Coliseum is slated for 6:05 p.m. EST.
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SWAMP RABBITS NARROWLY DROP FIRST OF FOUR GAMES ON THE WEEK
Keaton Mastrodonato’s two-goal night was not enough to spark a comeback against Atlanta
By: Mark Binetti, Greenville Swamp Rabbits
(GREENVILLE, S.C.) – Keaton Mastrodonato scored two power play goals, and Josh Atkinson extended his assist streak to an eighth straight game, but it wasn’t enough to spark a comeback for the Greenville Swamp Rabbits, who narrowly fell to the Atlanta Gladiators by a 3-2 score on Wednesday.
Mastrodonato’s third multi-goal game of the season started off early on the power play, but was countered by a man-advantage marker of Atlanta on the opposite side of the frame. At 3:55 of the first, Josh Atkinson took a drop from Kenta Isogai and found Mastrodonato on the right side of the zone. The latter picked his corner and nailed it over the shoulder of Gladiators goalie Ethan Haider to give the Swamp Rabbits a 1-0 lead (Atkinson extended his assist streak to eight games with the helper). However, on their first power play of the game, the Gladiators answered, with Mike McNamee backhanding an active bounce off the back wall past Swamp Rabbits net-minder Pierce Charleson to square the game at 1-1 with 1:48 to play in the first.
Atlanta broke through near the midway point of the second period for their first and only lead. At 7:24, Chad Nychuk, who notched two assists in the game, threaded a puck through a sea of players and linked up with Mickey Burns, who slipped it by Charleson to give the Gladiators a 2-1 lead.
Joey Cipollone added to Atlanta’s lead early in the third period to give them some breathing room. After the puck was turned over in the neutral zone at 2:38 of the final frame, Nychuk struck again after Ryan Francis located him at the blue line and found Cipollone backdoor, rifling a shot past Charleson to extend the lead to 3-1. With time winding down, the Swamp Rabbits got some help from Keaton Mastrodonato, who deflected a puck in point-blank range of the net to bring the Swamp Rabbits within striking distance at 3-2 with 3:31 to play. Haider and the Gladiators eliminated the threat and held on for a 3-2 win.
Pierce Charleson, making his first start since January 3rd, stopped 28 of 31 shots in the defeat (5-5-2-0).
The Swamp Rabbits continue their busy week, transitioning to the South Carolina Stingrays for a “home-and-home” set on Friday, February 13th, and Saturday, February 14th. Puck drop for Friday, which is “Stick It To Cancer Night”, presented by Bon Secours, is slated for 7:05 p.m. EST at Bon Secours Wellness Arena, while Saturday at North Charleston Coliseum is set for 6:05 p.m. EST.
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SWAMP RABBITS FALL IN ROAD TRIP FINALE, POINT STREAK SNAPPED AT SIX
Team finishes six-game road trip 4-1-0-1 with points in five of the six games
By: Mark Binetti, Greenville Swamp Rabbits
(BOISE, Idaho) – Patrick Polino scored a power play goal in his 300th professional game to slash a second-period deficit, but it wasn’t enough as the Idaho Steelheads got all their offense in the first period, beating the Greenville Swamp Rabbits 4-2 on Saturday night. The loss snaps the Swamp Rabbits’ point streak at six games, and gives them a 4-1-0-1 record in their six-game two-week road trip.
The Steelheads came out flying in the opening frame to carry a three-goal lead into the dressing room. Chris Dodero started off the entries at 6:06, slashing to the net and burying a corner pass in point-blank range past Swamp Rabbits net-minder Mattias Sholl, putting Idaho up 1-0. Brendan Hoffman, the ECHL’s leading goal scorer, struck 3:25 later when he intercepted a rim in the Swamp Rabbits’ zone, walked into the slot, and rifled a shot past Sholl to quickly double the lead to 2-0 at 9:31. Moments later, the Swamp Rabbits got some momentum from Tim Lovell to cut the deficit. With 4:35 left in the first, Lovell navigated the neutral zone, skated coast to coast by all defenders, and flung a shot past Jake Barczewski in net to get the Swamp Rabbits on the board at 2-1 with his second goal of the week. The momentum was short-lived: 2:05 later, with 2:30 to play, Hoffman slipped a second past Sholl, just barely getting enough of Chris Dodero’s pass to re-establish the two-goal lead at 3-1 for the Steelheads. Nick Canade, the Steelheads captain, hit pay dirt 41 seconds after that when he blasted a blue line shot through a sea of bodies that screened Sholl, vaulting the Steelheads to a 4-1 lead with 1:49 left.
Starting the second, Sholl was substituted in the net with Pierce Charleson, and shortly after, the Swamp Rabbits got one back on a two-man advantage that carried over to the start of the second. Just 71 seconds into the second, Josh Atkinson rifled a blue line shot that hit the post and bounced off of Barczewski to the crease. Patrick Polino, in his 300th professional game, pocketed the rebound to cut the deficit to 4-2 (Atkinson’s assist extended his streak to seven straight games with a helper). Both teams couldn’t solve each other for the remaining 38:49 of regulation, resulting in a 4-2 Steelheads win, the first regulation loss suffered by the Swamp Rabbits since January 19th.
Mattias Sholl suffered the loss, stopping one of five shots in 20 minutes (8-8-2-0). Pierce Charleson played the remaining 36:13 of the game and turned away all 13 shots he saw in relief.
The Swamp Rabbits now return home for a four-game-in-five-day stretch, with three of the games coming on home ice. The stretch begins on Wednesday, February 11th, against the Atlanta Gladiators, with puck drop slated for 7:05 p.m. EST at Bon Secours Wellness Arena.
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SWAMP RABBITS EXTEND POINT STREAK TO SIX WITH OVERTIME WIN
Former Steelheads combine for four goals and six points to force a rubber match tomorrow
By: Mark Binetti, Greenville Swamp Rabbits
(BOISE, Idaho) – Keaton Mastrodonato pocketed his second goal of the game 95 seconds into overtime, spearheading four multi-point efforts to an eventual win for the Greenville Swamp Rabbits, 5-4 over the Idaho Steelheads on Friday night in game two of their three-game set. The win forces a rubber match for the series and road trip finale tomorrow night, and extends the team’s point streak to six games (5-0-0-1).
The game was a consistent tug-of-war, with Idaho leading after 20 minutes. Just 2:29 into the game, Ty Pelton-Byce redirected a blue line shot that bounced off the backboard, off of Swamp Rabbits net-minder Isaiah Saville, and in, giving the Steelheads an early 1-0 lead. However, exactly 3:30 later, Parker Berge, a former Steelhead, trailed on the play and buried a Wade Murphy pass with a wrist shot over the shoulder of Ben Kraws in net for Idaho to square the game at 1-1 at 5:59. With 5:05 remaining in the period, Saville was run on a net-front drive and removed from the game with injury. Mattias Sholl came in net for the Swamp Rabbits for the remainder of the game. Idaho hit paydirt moments later on a passing sequence started on a blue line containment. With 2:25 to go, Mason Nevers buried a backdoor pass from Nick Canade, pushing the Steelheads up 2-1 heading into the intermission.
Not even two minutes into the second, another former Steelhead joined the party in the form of Wade Murphy. At 1:50, Ryan O’Reilly won a faceoff to Murphy, who faked a drop to the blue line and rifled a wrister past Kraws to level the game at 2-2. Idaho countered 2:04 later when Chris Dodero potted a rebound off of his brother’s shot, bouncing off the back glass to the slot to put the Steelheads back in the driver’s seat at 3-2 at 3:54. Not to be outdone, Dante Sheriff, skating in his 200th ECHL game, answered 45 seconds later burying a Josh Atkinson pass in the slot under the bar past Kraws, once again squaring the game at 3-3 at 4:39 (Atkinson extended his assist streak to six games on the play). More adversity befell the Swamp Rabbits, as 25 seconds later, Parker Berge was ejected and assessed “five and a game” for boarding, putting the Swamp Rabbits on a major penalty kill for five minutes. They got out unscathed and entered the third tied at three.
On the power play themselves to start the third, the Swamp Rabbits found their first lead of the game. Just 23 seconds into the frame, Keaton Mastrodonato, another former Steelhead, finished a backdoor slam dunk on a Josh Atkinson blue line pass, vaulting the Swamp Rabbits to a 4-3 advantage. Yet again, in a quick sequence 100 seconds later, Liam Malmquist slipped the puck through Sholl’s legs on an Aidan Hreschuk pass, tying the game at 4-4 with 2:03 gone by in the third. No one could find a winner in the remainder of the third, once again prompting overtime.
The Swamp Rabbits came out with both points this time, with Keaton Mastrodonato ending it early with his second of the game. At 1:35 of overtime, Josh Atkison took advantage of a Steelheads broken stick, slinging it to Hudson Schandor in the slot. Schandor dropped it behind his back to Mastrodonato, who fired home the winner, giving the Swamp Rabbits a 5-4 win.
Isaiah Saville stopped all but one of 11 shots in his start, going 14:55 before he was removed from the game due to injury (no decision). Mattias Sholl won his first game as a pro past 60 minutes, stopping 29 of 32 shots in 46:40 of relief (8-7-2-0).
The Swamp Rabbits close out their road trip and three-game set with the Steelheads tomorrow night in a rubber match. Puck drop for the finale is set for 9:10 p.m. EST at Idaho Central Arena.
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SWAMP RABBITS GAIN POINT IN FIRST-EVER MEETING WITH IDAHO
Atkinson extends assist streak to five, Swamp Rabbits can’t find a winner in the shootout
By: Mark Binetti, Greenville Swamp Rabbits
(BOISE, Idaho) – Josh Atkinson extended his assist streak to five games, and Ryan O’Hara potted a power play goal for the Greenville Swamp Rabbits, but the Idaho Steelheads came out with the second point in the shootout, taking the first-ever meeting between the clubs with a 3-2 shootout win on Wednesday night. While the loss ends the Swamp Rabbits’ winning streak at four, it extends their current point streak to five games, their longest of the season, and vaults them to a 3-0-0-1 record through their six-game road trip.
The Steelheads scored the only goal of the first period in the final two minutes, utilizing special teams in the effort. With 100 seconds left in the first, a Tim Lovell blue line pass for Parker Berge was off track and created a two-on-one down the ice for Grant Silianoff and Jordan Steinmetz. Silianoff elected to shoot it himself and rifled a wrister by the glove of Swamp Rabbits goaltender Isaiah Saville to give the Steelheads a 1-0 lead.
The Swamp Rabbits stormed back in the second, but eventually left the frame deadlocked. Lovell got himself in the goal column for a third time this season during a chaotic offensive zone sequence, eventually pocketing a net-front loose puck past Steelheads goalie Ben Kraws to square the game at 1-1 (Ryan O’Reilly and Josh Atkinson assisted). Exactly 2:17 later on their second power play of the game, Parker Berge started a breakout with Dante Sheriff, who carried into the zone with speed. Sheriff fired a pass to Ryan O’Hara, who batted the puck out of mid-air with the shaft of his stick and pushed it past Kraws to give the Swamp Rabbits a 2-1 lead with 8:44 left in the second. Idaho got the last word after extended defensive zone time for the Swamp Rabbits, leading to Jaden Shields firing a shot from the left that beat Saville’s blocker to tie the game at 2-2 with 4:25 to play in the second (Jordan Steinmetz assisted).
Neither team could find a winner in the third, forcing overtime in the first-ever meeting. The Swamp Rabbits had the best chance with a power play in the middle of the extra session, but couldn’t solve Kraws and the Steelheads, eventually leading to a shootout, the first one the Swamp Rabbits played in since their second game of the season, their first win at Savannah on October 18th.
It came down to the final round: Brandon Hoffman and Ty Pelton-Byce of Idaho were thwarted by Isaiah Saville, and Hudson Schandor and Kenta Isogai were denied by Ben Kraws. Kaleb Person fired a shot in close range past Saville to start the third round, putting the game on the stick of Keaton Mastrodonato. He couldn’t solve Kraws to extend the shootout, giving the Steelheads the second point and 3-2 win.
Isaiah Saville turned aside 22 of 24 shots, suffering the defeat, his first past 60 minutes this season (6-5-0-1).
The Swamp Rabbits continue their three-game series with the Idaho Steelheads on Friday, February 6th. Puck drop at Idaho Central Arena is slated for 9:10 p.m. EST for game two of the set.
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 a member of the ECHL, Premier ‘AA’ Hockey League.
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