ECHL Greenville Swamp Rabbits

Clark Scores Twice, Fights Once, in 5-3 Win over Gwinnett

Published on December 26, 2014 under ECHL (ECHL)
Greenville Swamp Rabbits News Release


Greenville, SC - Emerson Clark scored two goals and added a fight on Friday as the Greenville Road Warriors (19-9-1), proud ECHL affiliate of the New York Rangers and the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack, earned a 5-3 victory over the Gwinnett Gladiators (8-16-1) in front of 3,559 fans at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena. The victory was Greenville's fifth in a row and extended the team's unbeaten in regulation streak to 10 games for the first time since Nov. 24, 2010 - Dec. 11, 2010.

Between the pipes, Jason Missiaen (8-4-1) made 31 saves and improved his personal winning streak to five games for the first time in his professional career. The reigning CCM ECHL Goaltender of the Week is now 6-0-1 in his last seven starts, dating back to Dec. 11th.

The Road Warriors opened the scoring late in the first period courtesy of Trevor Parkes' eighth goal of the season. After grabbing a pass from Vinny Saponari, Parkes muscled his way around the last Gwinnett defenseman and tucked a forehand shot between goaltender Adam Brown's left leg pad and the near post at 16:28. Saponari recorded the only helper for his team-leading 20th point this season.

Clark used Greenville' first power play to extend the lead to 2-0 at 6:28 of the middle frame. With Pat MacGregor in the box for interference, Spencer Humphries fired a shot on target from the right side that was tipped by Clark at the doorstep for his first power play goal this season.

Tristin Llewellyn cut the Gladiators' deficit to one at 12:42 of the second period when he beat Missiaen on a low shot from the blue line for his fourth of the season.

The Road Warriors answered less than two minutes later when Ben Power notched his first ECHL goal at the 14:38 mark on a delayed penalty. After Power was hit up high, the puck cycled around to Sean Escobedo at the left point, who sent a nifty backhand feed to Humphries on the right side for a quick pass to Power in the slot. From there, Power wristed a low shot past Brown for the 3-1 advantage.

Escobedo tallied one of his own just 63 seconds into the third period when Kyle Jean fed a crisp forehand pass from the right half-wall directly to Escobedo's stick for a one-time tap-in. It was Escobedo's second goal of the season, while Jean and Saponari each registered an assist.

Just 45 seconds later, the Gladiators made it 4-2 when Travis Ouellette capitalized on a rebound chance created by Garry Nunn. From the bottom of the right circle, Nunn hammered a shot on goal that was answered by Missiaen, but the second chance bounced right to Ouellette at the back door for his first goal of the season.

Clark made it 5-2 with his second goal of the contest, and team-leading ninth of the season, on a shorthanded breakaway at 10:23 of the third period. With Andrew Himelson in the box for hooking, Clark grabbed a loose puck at center ice and skated straight down the gut, where he beat Brown blocker-side on a low shot. Four of Clark's nine goals this season have now come against Gwinnett.

Bo Dolan completed the scoring with just 57 seconds left on a shot from the doorstep for his third goal this season.

The Road Warriors finished the game 1-for-3 on the power play and 2-for-3 on the penalty kill. Greenville is now 9-0-0 when scoring at least once on the power play and 16-0-0 when scoring at least three goals.

Brown (2-5-0) made 29 saves but suffered the loss.

Both teams recorded 34 shots on target.

Follow: Keep up with the Road Warriors all season long and interact with other fans on the Official Road Warriors Facebook, Twitter, Pintrest and Instagram pages.

The Road Warriors return to SANDLAPPER Securities Rink at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena tomorrow for a 7:00 p.m. rematch against the Gwinnett Gladiators. It's also "Youth Sports Night!" Go to ECHL.TV to listen for free or watch the game live. For tickets or more information, please call a Road Warriors Account Executive at 864-674-PUCK or visit GreenvilleRoadWarriors.com/tickets-overview.html !

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ECHL Stories from December 26, 2014


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