ECHL Atlanta Gladiators

Gladiators Weekly Update

Published on March 18, 2013 under ECHL (ECHL)
Atlanta Gladiators News Release


The Gwinnett Gladiators clinched a playoff berth this past week with three wins at the Arena at Gwinnett Center over the Orlando Solar Bears. The Gladiators remain in the top spot in the ECHL's South Division with 83 points and a 40-25-2-1 record and remain in third place overall in the Eastern Conference.

This Week's Games:

Monday, 3/18: day off

Tuesday, 3/19: Practice at the Arena at Gwinnett Center - 10:30 p.m.

Wednesday, 3/20: Game vs Cincinnati - @ 7:05 p.m.

Cincinnati Preview: The Cyclones clinched a berth in the Kelly Cup Playoffs on March 15th and captured the North Division on Saturday night. Cincinnati is led in scoring by Mathieu Aubin who has notched 51 points off of 15 goals and 36 assists in 62 games with Cincinnati this season. The Cyclones won the first meeting of the season, a 3-2 come-from-behind win over the Gladiators at the Arena at Gwinnett Center on February 10th. After facing Gwinnett on Wednesday, the Cyclones will battle the Everblades on Friday and Saturday and round out the week at Orlando on Sunday.

Thursday, 3/21: TBA

Friday, 3/22: Game @South Carolina - @ 7:05 p.m.

South Carolina Preview: Gwinnett and South Carolina are separated by just five points in the South Division standings and the Stingrays could pull within a point of the Gladiators with wins in regulation in both meetings this week. The Stingrays are 5-5-2-0 against the Gladiators this season as Gwinnett posted a 2-1 overtime win over South Carolina on February 22nd in the last meeting between the teams. The Stingrays are led by netminder Ryan Zapolski who has earned an ECHL league best 1.66 goals against average and a .940 save percentage in 37 games this season.

Saturday, 3/23: Game vs South Carolina - @ 7:35 p.m.

Sunday, 3/24: Day Off

Last Week's Results:

Thursday, March 14: Gwinnett 5, Orlando 4 - W

"ªThe Gwinnett Gladiators (38-25-2-1) got two goals from Justin Bowers and 22 saves from Louis Domingue to knock off the Orlando Solar Bears (26-31-3-3) on Thursday night at the Arena at Gwinnett Center. Gwinnett led 3-1 in the second but Orlando notched three straight before the intermission to take a 4-3 lead into the third. After Yuri Bouharevich tied the game for Gwinnett midway through the third, Andy Brandt notched the game-winning goal with 3:24 left in the game.

Friday, March 15: Gwinnett 3, Orlando 1 - W

The Gwinnett Gladiators won their third straight with a 3-1 victory over the Orlando Solar Bears on Friday night at the Arena at Gwinnett Center. Gwinnett took a 2-0 lead on goals 36 seconds apart from Cody Brookwell and Justin Bowers. Scott Arnold gave Gwinnett a 3-0 lead five minutes into the second period. Louis Domingue had his shutout snapped with 53 seconds left in the third period as he finished with 21 saves for Gwinnett in the win.

Sunday, March 17: Gwinnett 3, Orlando 2 - W

The Gwinnett Gladiators won their fourth consecutive game as they knocked off the Orlando Solar Bears 3-2 on Sunday afternoon at the Arena at Gwinnett Center. Andy Brandt notched two goals in the contest, including the game winner to break a 2-2 tie in the third period, to lift Gwinnett to the win. In his first start with Gwinnett, Mark Visentin made 26 saves for his first ECHL win of the season.

News & Notes:

Playoff Bound! The Gladiators clinched a berth in the 2013 Kelly Cup Playoffs with a 3-2 win over the Orlando Solar Bears coupled with a loss by the Kalamazoo Wings on Sunday. Gwinnett has now qualified for the Kelly Cup Playoffs in eight of ten seasons in the ECHL . It is the second consecutive season that the Gladiators have clinched their berth into the post season on March 17th.

Four in a Row: With Sunday's 3-2 win over the Orlando Solar Bears, the Gladiators have put together a four game winning streak, the team's longest streak since Gwinnett won four consecutive games from February 2nd through February 9th. The Gladiators notched a season-high eight game winning streak from October 28th through November 11th.

Between the Pipes: Rookie goaltender Louis Domingue has won five of his last six starts with Gwinnett, including his third shutout win of the season, a 40 save blanking of the Idaho Steelheads last week. Domingue has posted a 20-9-1-1 record with Gwinnett with a 2.79 GAA and a 0.902 save percentage. The Mont. St-Hilaire, PQ native was called up to the Portland Pirated of the AHL and in two appearances, notched his first AHL win and has recorded a .931 save percentage.

Point Scoring Streak: Rookie defenseman Sacha Guimond has posted four points in the last four games for Gwinnett and is currently on a four-game point-scoring streak. The streak began on March 9th and the defenseman has earned four points (one goal, three assists) on his current streak. Guimond's longest point- scoring streak with the Gladiators was five games between January 19th and January 27th where he totaled eight points (one goal, seven assists).

20+ Goals: Rookie forward Doug Jones picked up his 20th goal of the season in last nights 3-2 victory against the Orlando Solar Bears. Jones becomes the third player on the Gladiators to post 20 or more goals this season. Evan Bloodoff picked up his 20th goal of the season on March 9th in the 2-0 shutout win over the Idaho Steelheads while Casey Pierro-Zabotel, who is currently on recall to AHL Charlotte, earned his 20th goal of the season with Gwinnett on March 8th in a 5-3 loss to Idaho. It is the first time the Gladiators have had three or more 20-goal scorers since the 2007-08 season when Jeff Campbell (26), Mike Hamilton (23) and Lou Dickenson (28) each had 20 or more goals.

First Win: Netminder Mark Visentin was assigned to the Gladiators from the Portland Pirates of the American Hockey League by the Phoenix Coyotes of the National Hockey League on March 14th. He appeared in his first game with Gwinnett on March 17th and posted 26 saves for his first ECHL win of the season. Visentin has earned an 11-9-1 record and a .909 save percentage in 22 games with AHL Portland this season.

Ticket Information:

Playoff Tickets! As the Gladiators have clinched a berth in the 2013 Kelly Cup Playoffs, Playoff Ticket Packages are on Sale Now! Choose the "Pay as We Play" package and ensure your seats to every Gladiators Kelly Cup Playoff game or select the Gladiators Playoff Strips to check out the next three games!

2013-14 Season Ticket Plans! Gladiators Full Season Ticket Plans as well as Gladiators mini season ticket package are on sale for the 2013-14 Season. Fans can reserve their seats for the upcoming season by logging onto the official team website www.gwinnettgladiators.com or by calling the Gladiators office at 770-497-5100 for all the details.

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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