ECHL Atlanta Gladiators

Glads Drop Opener 3-2

Published on October 14, 2011 under ECHL (ECHL)
Atlanta Gladiators News Release


ESTERO, FLA - 54 seconds of sloppy play came back to haunt the Gwinnett Gladiators, as they lost their 2011-2012 season opener to the Florida Everblades 3-2 at Germain Arena.

The Everblades (1-0-0-0) got on the board first at the 10:56 mark of the opening period, as Blades defenseman Chris Murray's shot from the point snuck passed a screened Gwinnett (0-1-0-0) goalie Marc Cheverie. Despite outshooting Florida 13-5 the Glads trailed 1-0 after 20 minutes.

The second saw Gwinnett draw even just 3:35 in. Returning forward Andy Brandt threw a loose puck to the slot that ricocheted off Blades defenseman Josh Van Dyk and into a vacant net. Rookie forward and Phoenix Coyotes prospect Scott Fleming picked up his first pro point, an assist, winning a battle in front and drawing Florida goaltender Pat Nagle out of the crease to set up Brandt.

Florida took over from there, and jumped ahead for good in a span of 54 seconds. Leigh Salters beat Cheverie in alone at 14:00 to make it 2-1, and Alex Hutchings followed off a defensive collapse and a point blank on-timer to put the Blades up 3-1 after two periods. Florida outshot Gwinnett 13-3 in the second, and had a potential late fourth goal waved off.

The Gladiators mounted a comeback bid late in the third. Pat Galivan buried a rebound at the near post on the powerplay at 17:03 to bring Gwinnett within one. Paul Flache and Andy Brandt had the assists, and the Glads had the momentum.

Despite sustained late pressure, Nagle held firm for his first pro win and the Blades held on 3-2 despite being outshot 25-23.

Both teams are back at it Saturday at 7:00 p.m. EST from Florida.

Check out the Atlanta Gladiators Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



ECHL Stories from October 14, 2011


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.

OurSports Central