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ECHL Greenville Swamp Rabbits

K-Wings Top Swamp Rabbits 3-1 on Saturday

April 2, 2016 - ECHL (ECHL)
Greenville Swamp Rabbits News Release


Greenville, SC - Tommy Thompson scored his first professional goal on Saturday, but the Greenville Swamp Rabbits (28-31-10), proud ECHL affiliate of the New York Rangers and the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack, fell to the Kalamazoo Wings (36-28-5) in a 3-1 decision at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena.

Kalamazoo goaltender Joel Martin (34-21-4) halted 31 shots to earn his league-leading 34th win of the season and pass Dave Gagnon for sole possession of fifth place on the ECHL's all-time wins list with 156.  

Greenville's setback was its seventh in a row (0-5-2), which dropped the club to 13-14-8 on SANDLAPPER Securities Rink this season. In contrast, Kalamazoo won its seventh straight game and its fifth in a row in the regular season against Greenville dating back to Dec. 5, 2013.  

Justin Taylor scored his sixth goal in as many games at 13:13 of the first period to give Kalamazoo a 1-0 lead. After Mackenzie Skapski denied a forehand shot by Lane Scheidl from the slot, Taylor gathered the rebound at the doorstep, turned and elevated a forehand shot over Skapski's blocker and inside the left post for his 24th tally of the season.

The Wings extended their edge in the middle frame with a power-play goal at 16:17. With Richard Nejezchleb in the box for tripping, Alex Mallet recorded his 22nd tally of the season on a second-chance in the low slot. An initial shot from Eric Kattelus soared over the cage, but caromed off the glass behind it and to the doorstep, where Mallet guided it home to make it 2-0. Justin Kovacs also earned an assist, his fifth in Kalamazoo's last five contests.

The Swamp Rabbits cut their deficit in half in the third period courtesy of Thompson's tally at 10:29. Josh Nicholls captured the puck in the defensive zone and skated down the right wing before feeding Thompson in the blue paint. There, the 24-year-old, in just his fifth professional game, redirected a low shot past Martin. Nicholls also extended his point streak to six games with a helper.

Scheidl provided the final margin with an empty netter at 19:33 of the third period. It was his 17th goal of the season overall.

Greenville finished the game 0-for-5 on the power play and 4-for-5 on the penalty kill. Between the pipes, Skapski (5-14-4) stopped 34 of the 36 shots he faced.

Kalamazoo outshot Greenville 37-32.

Next Time Out: The Swamp Rabbits return to action on Wednesday, April 6th at 7:15 p.m. against the Norfolk Admirals at the Norfolk Scope. Fans can follow all of the live action via the Mixlr audio stream or ECHL.TV. The Official Road Watch Party Destination, the Palmetto Restaurant and Ale House (located at 103 E. Beacon Drive in Greenville), will also stream the game live beginning at 7 p.m.

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ECHL Stories from April 2, 2016


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