Sports stats



ECHL Greenville Swamp Rabbits

Preview: Road Warriors Open 12-Game Home Stand Tonight

December 26, 2014 - ECHL (ECHL)
Greenville Swamp Rabbits News Release


Greenville welcomes Gwinnett for "White Elephant Gift Exchange Night" at 7:00 p.m.

Date Time Opponent Follow

Fri, Dec. 26th 7:00 p.m. ET vs. Gwinnett Free Audio / ECHL.TV

Sat, Dec. 27th 7:00 p.m. ET vs. Gwinnett Free Audio / ECHL.TV

TONIGHT'S PROMOTION: The Greenville Road Warriors (18-9-1), proud ECHL affiliate of the New York Rangers and the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack, return to the Bon Secours Wellness Arena tonight for a game versus their I-85 rivals, the Gwinnett Gladiators. The game will be highlighted by the team's first "White Elephant Gift Exchange Night". Bring a wacky gift to the game, make sure to disguise it with wrapping paper, and the gifts will be exchanged during the intermissions! The popular "Warrior Fun Pack" is also available for tonight's game! The Warrior Fun Pack features (4) Red Level tickets, (4) hot dogs, (4) bags of chips, (4) fountain drinks and (2) Warriors drawstring bags for just $60! For tickets or more information, please call a Road Warriors Account Executive at 864-674-PUCK or visit GreenvilleRoadWarriors.com/tickets-overview.html !

THE STORY COMING IN: Following a five-day Christmas break, the Road Warriors return to action tonight as one of the hottest teams in the ECHL. Greenville is in second place in the East Division, two points behind Florida, and in fourth place in the Eastern Conference. The Warriors enter tonight's contest on a four-game winning streak and a season-best, nine-game point streak (8-0-1), dating back to Nov. 29th. Last time out, forward Trevor Parkes matched a career-high with four points (2g, 2a), while defenseman Andrew Himelson earned a career-best two goals and three points (2g, 1a) in a 5-3 victory at Wheeling last Saturday. In net, Jason Missiaen stopped 34 shots and extended his personal winning streak to four games. Tonight, Greenville looks to win its fifth straight contest for the first time this season and improve its point streak to 10 games for the first time since Nov. 24, 2010 - Dec. 11, 2010.

HOME SWEET HOME: After playing 20 of its first 28 games on the road, Greenville begins a season-long, 12-game home stand tonight, which runs through Jan. 17th - and that's just the start. The Road Warriors are 7-1-0 on SANDLAPPER Securities Rink so far this season, which marks the best winning percentage at home for any team in the league (.875). Greenville has also outscored its opponents 28-16 at home this season.

WARRIORS VS. GLADIATORS: Tonight's contest marks the fourth of 11 meetings between the Road Warriors and Gladiators this season (seven at home, four in Duluth, GA). Greenville currently leads the season-series 3-0-0 after a 5-1 win on the road Oct. 25th, and back-to-back wins at home in November. In their last matchup, the Warriors scored three times in the third period en route to a 4-2 come-from-behind victory on Nov. 14th. Last season, Greenville went 9-4-0 against Gwinnett and 5-2-0 in those games at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena. The Warriors lead the all-time series 35-22-5.

VIEW FROM GWINNETT: The Gladiators (8-15-1) have dropped five of their last six games and enter tonight's contest at the bottom of the East Division. The lone bright spot over the past two weeks occurred last Sunday when forward Garry Nunn scored twice en route to a 5-1 win over Orlando at The Arena at Gwinnett Center. The Gladiators' offense is led by forward Casey Pierro-Zabotel, who is tops on the team in goals (9), assists (16) and points (25). Between the pipes, Mark Guggenberger has played the majority of Gwinnett's games with 15 appearances through the team's first 24 games. He has posted a record of 5-9-1 with a 3.09 goals against average and .903 save percentage.

DECEMBER TO REMEMBER: With a record of 7-0-1 so far this month, the Road Warriors are off to their best December start in franchise history, including the organization's time in Johnstown, PA. The only start that comes close is the 2010-11 squad that began December with a record of 6-1-1 through eight games. The Road Warriors have outscored their opponents 26-11 this month.

MAN ON A "MISSIAEN": New York Rangers' prospect Jason Missiaen is the reigning CCM ECHL Goaltender of the Week after posting a perfect 4-0-0 record last week with a .99 goals against average, .965 save percentage and two shutouts. In addition, the 24-year old is unbeaten in regulation dating back to Nov. 28th, earning a 5-0-1 record, 1.14 goals against average and .965 save percentage in his last six starts. Missiaen has never won five straight games in his professional career, or been undefeated in regulation in seven straight during the same season [he was undefeated in regulation spanning two seasons from Mar. 9, 2012 - Dec.16, 2012 (6-0-1)]. He looks to set both of those career bests in his next start.

CATCHING FIRE: Vinny Saponari has earned points in nine of his last 11 games (5g, 11a), while Trevor Parkes has notched points in six of his last nine contests (6g, 6a). Those two players now rank first and second on the team in scoring, respectively. In addition, Jeff Malcolm is on a personal three-game winning streak between the pipes and is second in the league in both goals against (2.13) and save percentage (.929). He is also 6-0-0 with a 1.48 goals against average, .943 saves rate and one shutout at home this season.

ROSTER MOVE: Defenseman Charles Roussel has decided to continue his academic pursuits and leave professional hockey to work toward obtaining his college degree. He has been removed from the Road Warriors' active roster. Roussel played 19 games with Greenville this season and earned five assists and 10 penalty minutes. He also spent seven games with the Utah Grizzlies this season and produced four points (1g, 3a) and two penalty minutes. The 23-year old was traded from Utah to Greenville on Nov. 7th. He was selected in the second round (#42 overall) by the Nashville Predators in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft.

QUICK HITS: Greenville has allowed two goals or less in seven of its last eight games and now leads the league in goals allowed per game (2.50/game)...The Road Warriors' power play is 0-for-19 in the last five games, but the penalty kill is 16-for-17 during that span...Greenville has outscored opponents 33-21 in the third period, including 18-9 in the final 10 minutes of regulation, and leads the league with five wins when trailing after two periods (5-8-0)... The Road Warriors are 7-0-1 in one-goal games.

INJURIES

- Scott Arnold is on the 21-day IR as of 11/27

- Devon Krogh is on the 21-day IR as of 11/1

- Bretton Cameron is on the 21-day IR as of 11/20

AFFILIATE REPORT

NHL: New York Rangers (18-10-4): Next vs. New Jersey Devils - Saturday @ 7 ET

AHL: Hartford Wolf Pack (16-10-3): Next vs. Springfield - Tonight @ 7 ET

EAST DIVISION STANDINGS

Florida Everblades (19-3-1) = 39 points in 23 games Greenville Road Warriors (18-9-1) = 37 points in 28 games Elmira Jackals (15-10-3) = 33 points in 26 games Reading Royals (15-9-2) = 32 points in 26 games South Carolina (13-10-5) = 31 points in 28 games Orlando Solar Bears (14-12-3) = 31 points in 29 games Gwinnett Gladiators (8-15-1) = 17 points in 24 games

Check out the Greenville Swamp Rabbits Statistics

• Discuss this story on the ECHL message board...

ECHL Stories from December 26, 2014


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