NORFOLK, VA – The Greenville Swamp Rabbits (7-9-1), proud ECHL affiliate of the New York Rangers and AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack, celebrated Thanksgiving Eve on Wednesday with their biggest win of the season, a 6-0 rout of the Norfolk Admirals (5-13-0) at the Norfolk Scope. Michael Kantor scored two goals and assisted on another, while Jack Combs also chipped in three points (1 goal, 2 assists). Between the pipes, P.J. Musico earned his first professional shutout with a 26-save performance.
Following a scoreless opening frame, Greenville ignited its offense with a trio of goals in the second period. Tyler Elbrecht struck first just 2:48 into the middle frame with his second goal of the season at even strength. From the left side, Elbrecht collected a feed from Kantor at the blue line and fired a shot through traffic that beat goaltender Ty Rimmer to make it 1-0.
Kantor extended the Swamp Rabbits’ advantage at the 8:29 mark when he buried a nifty centering feed from Brian Hart in the right corner. Hart slipped the puck to the low slot where Kantor pushed a one-timer past Rimmer’s blocker for his first goal of the season. Hart earned his first pro assist on his 22nd birthday. Richard Nejezchleb made it 3-0 with his first ECHL goal just 56 seconds later. During a 2-on-1 rush, Fleming guided a pass from the right side to the left circle, where Nejezchleb netted a one-time shot.
Greenville continued its domination in the third period with three more goals for the 6-0 final. Kantor recorded his second goal of the contest at the 8:05 mark when he beat Rimmer with a low shot from the left post to make it 4-0. Kantor’s tally, which secured his first pro multi-goal game, was helped by Scott Fleming and Bretton Cameron.
Combs capitalized on a breakaway opportunity at 10:35 when he forced a forehand shot between the leg pads of Rimmer. Ryan Rashid capped the scoring with a power-play goal at the 13:02 mark for his fourth goal of the season. From the right half wall, Vinny Saponari slipped a pass to Combs at the bottom of the circle, where he immediately funneled the puck to Rashid at the back post for a one-time tap in.
The game was also very physical from start to finish and featured a combined 54 penalty minutes, including one bout at 11:56 of the third period between Darian Dziurzynski and former Greenville defenseman Samuel Noreau. Norfolk’s Ryan Jasinsky also encountered a double-minor for roughing and a game misconduct at 11:29 of the third. Greenville finished the game 1-for-7 on the power play and 3-for-3 on the penalty kill.
Rimmer made 25 saves in the loss and Greenville outshot Norfolk 31-26. In addition, the Swamp Rabbits earned their first regulation win on the road this season.
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