DULUTH, GA – The Greenville Swamp Rabbits (17-13-2-1), proud ECHL affiliate of the New York Rangers and the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack, tallied five goals in the final two periods to push past the Atlanta Gladiators (15-18-1-1) and earn a 5-3 victory over Friday night at the Infinite Energy Arena. The Swamp Rabbits have won the last two games and have scored five power play goals in the last three contests.
Rookie forward Evan Jasper produced a career effort in Friday’s game, tying a franchise record with four points (2 goals, 2 assists). The Whitby, Ontario native factored in on the game-winning goal and netted his tenth goal of the season on the empty net to seal the victory.
After trailing 1-0 at the first intermission, the Swamp Rabbits pushed forward to take both goals in the second period. On a battle in front of the net, Austin McKay had the puck bounce off of his body and into the net. Jasper connected with Jack Nevins to jam the puck off the pads of Gladiators goaltender Dan Vladar and then hit the rebound over to McKay. The center collected his fifth goal of the season on the deflection to tie the game on the power play.
Forward Joe Basaraba used his quick hands in front of the net to give Greenville the lead. Derek Sutliffe and Branden Troock connected in the corner before sliding a perfect pass to the fourth year pro. Basaraba pulled Vladar across the crease and tucked the shot in-between his legs at 13:56 of the second period for his night goal of the season.
Atlanta tallied at the beginning of the third period to tie the game at 2-2, but it was not long before Greenville regained the momentum. A loose puck at the blue line was picked up by Jasper who rushed up the ice down the left side. A quick shot was launched into the net again through the legs of Vladar from the left circle. Greenville’s lead came less than 30 seconds after the tying goal.
A power play ensued for Greenville at 6:44 of the third period. Only four seconds into the man advantage, Sean Flanagan found Jasper on the right side before a quick pass sailed across the ice to Troock for a one-timed blast. Troock’s 15th goal of the year went down at the game-winning tally, his second this year.
Atlanta put one final effort in late in the game, scoring with less than three minutes remaining but the comeback fell short. Netminder Brandon Halverson earned his seventh victory with 21 saves between the pipes, while Vladar suffered the loss with 23 saves.
Jasper tacked on an empty net goal in the final seconds to ice the game. Greenville out shot the Gladiators 28-24 while going 2-for-4 on the power play and 3-for-3 on the penalty kill. The Swamp Rabbits have won all three games against Atlanta this season and will face off again tomorrow night at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena.
Follow us on Twitter @prohockeynews
You must be logged in to post a comment.