First Game of 2022 Tonight for Glads
January 1, 2022 - ECHL (ECHL)
Atlanta Gladiators News Release
DULUTH, Ga. - The Atlanta Gladiators (12-12-2-1) will open the 2022 calendar year tonight against the Florida Everblades (15-8-2-3) at Gas South Arena on the Ortho Sport & Spine Physicians Home Ice. This evening is the second of three encounters on consecutive days between Atlanta and Florida. This will be the sixth meeting of the season between the two sides, with the Blades leading the season series with three wins.
Scouting the Everblades
Florida is one of five ECHL teams that ranks in the top-11 in both goals-for and goals-against. The Blades enter tonight having won seven of their last nine contests, including three wins over the Glads. Blake Winiecki is the top gun for Florida and third in the league with 32 points (14G-18A). Joe Pendenza ranks second on the Everblades' roster and is tied for 12th in the ECHL with 26 points (11G-15A). Cam Johnson and Parker Gahagen man the Florida crease after Devin Cooley and Tomas Vomacka were both recalled. Johnson has played the most in net for the Blades this season and owns a 5-3-1-0 record.
Last Time Out/Last Meeting
The Gladiators were shutout for the second time this season when they fell 2-0 to the Everblades last night at Gas South Arena. Both instances in which Atlanta has failed to score have come on home ice. Chris Nell had a solid night in net for the Glads with 28 saves on 30 shots.
Pelech Named ECHL Player of the Week
Forward Mike Pelech was named the ECHL Player of the Week for the week of Dec. 20-26. In two road games against Orlando and Jacksonville, Pelech put up three goals and one assist as the Gladiators picked up three of four possible points. The veteran presented a marquee performance on Dec. 21 in Orlando with a pair of goals and an assist. Pelech has caught fire since Dec. 10 with 11 points (4G-7A) in his last nine games. The Toronto, Ontario native picked up his 600th professional point with a goal on Dec. 22 against Jacksonville. He also has 594 ECHL points (187G-407A) points for his career and would be the eighth player in league history to hit the 600-point plateau.
Murdaca Joins Glads
The Gladiators signed goaltender Joe Murdaca on Wednesday. Murdaca has appeared on the rosters of Wheeling, Cincinnati, Kalamazoo, and Kansas City this season but has only played in two games. Through a pair of contests this season, the 6-foot-3, 195-pound netminder posted a 1-1-0-0 record with a 4.02 goals-against average and an .857 save percentage. Murdaca, 23, is in his third professional season after playing junior hockey in the OHL, OJHL, and QMJHL.
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WHEN: Saturday, Jan. 1 at 7:30 PM ET
WHERE: Gas South Arena - Duluth, Ga.
WHO: Atlanta Gladiators vs Florida Everblades
BROADCAST: All Atlanta Gladiators games are broadcast live on the Gladiators Broadcast Network. Listen to the game online at Mixlr.com, or watch the game on FloHockey.TV.
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