SWAMP RABBITS O’HARA/SHOLL SIGN WITH REIGN
O’HARA AND SHOLL SIGN WITH ONTARIO REIGN
O’Hara earns first career AHL contract; Sholl re-signs for second season with home-state team
By: Mark Binetti, Greenville Swamp Rabbits
GREENVILLE, SC – The Greenville Swamp Rabbits, proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Los Angeles Kings and AHL’s Ontario Reign, announced today in conjunction with the Ontario Reign that second-year forward Ryan O’Hara has earned his first career AHL contract with the Reign, while second-year goaltender Mattias Sholl re-signs with the team’s AHL affiliate for the upcoming 2026-27 Season.
O’Hara earns his contract following the conclusion of his first full professional season. The 5’10”, 190-pound forward was one of three “iron men” for the Swamp Rabbits last season, playing in all 72 games while racking up 15 goals, 27 assists, and 42 points along with a +1 rating. O’Hara led all first-year pros on the roster in every offensive category, while his goals were third most on the squad and his assists and points second most. He ranked 13th amongst all ECHL rookies in helpers, and his point total was tied for 19th across all first-year players in the league.
From Oakville, Ontario, O’Hara, 25, turned professional with the Swamp Rabbits at the end of the 2024-25 Season, making his pro debut at South Carolina on March 21st. He earned his first goal on March 29th in a road win at Atlanta and has 45 points to his credit (16g-29ast) in 82 games in the Upstate. Before turning professional, O’Hara laced up in the NCAA with Bowling Green State University, where, as a senior, he captained the Falcons and met or surpassed career-highs with 11 goals, 22 assists, and 33 points in 36 games. In total, he earned 36 goals, 53 assists, and 89 points in his 131 games with BGSU. Prior to going to college, he played one USHL season with the Waterloo Black Hawks (52gp, 16g-15ast-31pts), and parts of three seasons in the OJHL, primarily spent with his hometown Oakville Blades. With the Blades, O’Hara finished just shy of a career point-per-game average (104gp, 101pts) and captured the 2019 OJHL Championship and Dudley Hewitt Cup.
Sholl re-signs with the Reign following his first full professional season. The 5’11”, 180-pound net-minder went 8-9-2-0 in 22 games with a 2.77 GAA, .911 SV%, and his first professional shutout, which came in his first win of the season, a 26-save performance that anchored a 4-0 win against the in-state rival South Carolina Stingrays. Sholl additionally earned his first career AHL call-up with the Reign on December 16th and made his AHL debut on December 21st, stopping 21 of 25 shots in a 6-3 loss against San Jose.
A native of Hermosa Beach, California, Sholl, 25, originally turned professional with the Swamp Rabbits at the end of the 2024-25 season and won his professional debut on March 29th at Atlanta with 33 saves in a 7-4 victory. Since then, he has a career ECHL record of 10-11-2-0 with a shutout, a 2.78 GAA, and .914 SV% in 26 appearances. Sholl turned professional following his final NCAA season with Bemidji State University, where he compiled a lifetime record of 52-51-12 in 117 games with six shutouts, a 2.58 GAA, and .904 SV%. As a junior in 2023-24, Sholl earned CCHA Goaltender of the Year honors, in addition to CCHA 1st Team All-Star recognition, going 14-8-2 with three shutouts in 24 contests. Prior to going to college, Sholl backstopped the Youngstown Phantoms for one USHL season and the Fairbanks Ice Dogs for two NAHL campaigns, earning 2020 Midwest MVP and Goaltender of the Year honors with the latter as part of a 29-8-3 season in 41 games, supplementing his league standing with three shutouts, a 1.99 GAA, and .924 SV%. He is the brother of former ECHLer Tomas Sholl, who claimed ECHL Goaltender of the Year honors in 2020 as a member of the Idaho Steelheads.
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.
