Gladiators Stunned by Swamp Rabbits, Fall, 3-2, on Golf Night
ECHL Atlanta Gladiators

Gladiators Stunned by Swamp Rabbits, Fall, 3-2, on Golf Night

Published on April 3, 2026 under ECHL (ECHL)
Atlanta Gladiators News Release


Atlanta Gladiators' Kirklan Irey and Greenville Swamp Rabbits' Keaton Mastrodonato in action
Atlanta Gladiators' Kirklan Irey and Greenville Swamp Rabbits' Keaton Mastrodonato in action
(Atlanta Gladiators)

Duluth, GA - The Greenville Swamp Rabbits defeated the Atlanta Gladiators 3-2 on Friday night at Gas South Arena. Keaton Mastrodonato fired in the game winning goal with 4:22 to keep the Swamp Rabbits hopes alive and end the Gladiators four game home winning streak.

With Atlanta looking to hold its position as the second seed in the division and Greenville eight points behind Savannah for the final playoff spot in the South, both teams needed two points. The Gladiators wore green specialty jerseys for Golf Night, as Ethan Haider started in net for Atlanta, and Isaiah Saville for Greenville, who recorded a 35 save shutout of Atlanta the night prior.

The first period featured low event hockey and no score after 20 minutes of play. Greenville outshot Atlanta 12-3 in the opening frame, as the Gladiators capped off the period with their 17th first period this season ending in a scoreless tie.

The second period featured much of the same, until the game was blown wide open with 6:50 to play, as Tim Rego scored on a backhand shot from the slot to make it a 1-0 lead for Greenville. Just 85 seconds later, Adam Eisele scored a sweet goal, stickhandling around Parker Berge and firing the puck far side past Saville to tie the game at 1-1. In a flash, Atlanta took the lead, as Alex Young ripped in a power play goal from Chad Nychuk and Jack O'Brien 1:14 after Eisele scored to make it 2-1. The Gladiators held the lead at the conclusion of the period and looked to cap the game off with a strong third.

Greenville wouldn't back down, tying the game 4:19 into the third period, as Ryan O'Reilly drove toward the net the puck jumbled past Haider to tie the game at 2-2. Parker Berge assisted O'Reilly on the tying goal. Back and forth action ensued as the clock ticked down toward the end of regulation. Keaton Mastrodonato came to the Swamp Rabbits' rescue, scoring with 4:22 remaining to give Greenville a 3-2 lead. His 8th of the season series was assisted by Berge and Neil Shea and ended up being the game winning goal, as the Swamp Rabbits fought off a furious attempt from the Gladiators to tie the game. Atlanta outshot Greenville 15-8 in the third period, while the Swamp Rabbits outshot the Gladiators 34-30 overall.

Saville stopped 28/30 for the Swamp Rabbits, while Haider stopped 31/34 for the Gladiators. Atlanta went 1/5 on the power play and 4/4 on the penalty kill. It marked the first time this season that the Gladiators have lost a game in regulation when leading after two periods.

The Gladiators wrap up a three-game slate this weekend, hosting the Savannah Ghost Pirates on Saturday night at 7:10 PM. Join the Gladiators for Hockey is for Everyone Night.

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Images from this story

Atlanta Gladiators' Kirklan Irey and Greenville Swamp Rabbits' Keaton Mastrodonato in action
Atlanta Gladiators' Kirklan Irey and Greenville Swamp Rabbits' Keaton Mastrodonato in action
   



ECHL Stories from April 3, 2026


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