ECHL Greenville Swamp Rabbits

Preview: Warriors Cap Homestand with Three-Game Series Starting Tonight

January 15, 2015 - ECHL (ECHL)
Greenville Swamp Rabbits News Release


Date Time Opponent Follow

Thurs, Jan. 15th 7:00 p.m. ET vs. Indy Free Audio / ECHL.TV / Twitter

Fri, Jan. 16th

Sat, Jan. 17th 7:00 p.m. ET

7:00 p.m. ET vs. Indy

vs. Toledo Free Audio / ECHL.TV / Twitter

Free Audio / ECHL.TV / Twitter

DON'T MISS OUT! The Greenville Road Warriors, proud ECHL affiliate of the New York Rangers and the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack, kick off another three-game series at home tonight with "Thirsty Thursday" and a special ticket deal! All fans are encouraged to take advantage of a special $5 ticket offer available at the Box Office only while supplies last. In addition, $2 domestic beers, hot dogs, fountain drinks and pretzels will be available at the concourse concession stands throughout the game! Finally, the Road Warriors have initiated a "Student Rush" offer for tonight's game, featuring a blue level, center-ice ticket and a personal pan pizza for just $15! The offer is only available for tonight's game and only at the Box Office to students who show a valid ID beginning at 5:00 p.m. today.

On Friday, come out and celebrate the people, places, vision and innovation that make Greenville great with "Celebrate Greenville Night" presented by iMAGINE Upstate. The night will feature special recognitions of people and businesses which help make Greenville the best place to live in the U.S. as well as cool technology and robots provided by iMAGINE Upstate! The popular "Warrior Fun Pack" is available and includes (4) red level tickets, (4) hot dogs, (4) bags of chips, (4) small fountain drinks and (2) Warriors' drawstring bags for just $60!

The Road Warriors will conclude the series and 12-game homestand on Saturday, when the first 1,000 fans in attendance receive a Warriors jersey drawstring bag presented by MY 102.5 FM! For tickets or more information, please call a Road Warriors Account Executive at 864-674-PUCK or visit GreenvilleRoadWarriors.com/tickets-overview.html ! Go to ECHL.TV to listen for free or watch the games live.

THE STORY COMING IN: The Road Warriors (23-13-1) open their third consecutive three-game series tonight with their first-ever matchup against the Indy Fuel (7-21-6), an expansion team in the North Division. Following back-to-back shootout victories last weekend, the Road Warriors enter tonight's contest on a two-game win streak and in second place in the East Division, five points shy of the Florida Everblades. Last time out, Greenville earned its league-leading sixth victory this season when trailing after two periods (6-11-0) with a 3-2 shootout win over South Carolina last Sunday. Forward Trevor Parkes forced overtime with the game-tying goal at 15:32 of the third period, while All-Star goaltender Jeff Malcolm made 36 saves in regulation, and four more in a five-round shootout, for his team-leading 14th win this season. Tonight, the Road Warriors not only seek their third straight victory, but look to snap a season-long five-game streak, dating back to Jan. 2nd, without a win in regulation.

HOME SWEET HOME: After playing 20 of its first 28 games on the road, Greenville continues a mammoth 12-game home stand tonight, which runs through this Saturday. The Warriors are 12-5-0 at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena this season, which is tied for the fourth-best record on home ice for any team in the league. Greenville has also outscored opponents 57-46 when playing on the SANDLAPPER Securities Rink this season.

WARRIORS VS. FUEL: Tonight's contest is the inaugural game between Greenville and Indy, and the first of three meetings this season (all three will take place at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena). After tonight's contest, the two teams will rematch tomorrow at 7:00 p.m. before ending the series on Mar. 21st.

VIEW FROM INDY: On Nov. 11, 2013, the ECHL Board of Governors approved the expansion membership application of the Indy Fuel to begin play during the 2014-15 season. Now 34 games into their first ECHL season, the Fuel are still trying to find their identity and enter tonight's game just 2-7-1 in their last 10 contests, and in the basement of the league standings (20 points). However, last Sunday, goaltender Shane Owen made 28 saves to lead the Fuel to their first-ever shutout in team history, a 3-0 victory over Wheeling at WesBanco Arena. It was also the team's first win on the road this season (1-11-3). Indy is affiliated with the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks and the AHL's Rockford IceHogs. The club is currently in the middle of a six-game road trip that runs through Monday, Jan. 19th.

WARRIORS VS. WALLEYE: Saturday's game will mark the third and final meeting between the Warriors and Walleye this season. Greenville currently leads the series 2-0-0 and is looking for the sweep following a 6-3 win on Nov. 21st and a 2-1 overtime victory on Dec. 16th. Each of the previous two games were played in Toledo. Last season, the Road Warriors went 3-0-0 against the Walleye and 1-0-0 in those contests at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena. Greenville leads the all-time series 14-2-1.

QUICK HITS: Forward Vinny Saponari has produced at least one point in nine of his last 11 games (3g, 9a) and continues to lead the club with 29 points...Defenseman Spencer Humphries is tied for fourth among league rookies with a +16 rating...Greenville is 5-1-0 in shootouts this season and a perfect 4-0-0 when playing on Thursday.

HEY NOW, YOU'RE AN ALL-STAR: The ECHL announced last Thursday goaltender Jeff Malcolm will represent Greenville at the 2015 CCM/ECHL All-Star Classic presented by Visit Orlando on Jan. 21st in Orlando, Florida. Malcolm is 14-7-0 with a 2.51 GAA, .921 save percentage and one shutout through 21 appearances this season, and carries a two-game personal win streak into tonight's game. The 25-year old went 2-0-0 with a 1.48 GAA and .948 save percentage last week and was runner-up for CCM ECHL Goaltender of the Week honors.

PARKES AND REC: Fourth-year pro Trevor Parkes has earned at least one point in five of his last six games (1g, 5a) and sits second on the team with 25 points this season. In addition, the 23-year old is tied with Michael St. Croix for second on the team in assists (16). Parkes is scheduled to play his 200th professional game this Friday against Indy.

DOWN BUT NOT OUT: The Road Warriors continued their late-game heroics last Sunday and earned their league-leading sixth victory when trailing after two periods this season (6-11-0) by defeating South Carolina. Much of that success is due to a potent third-period offense that has outscored opponents 47-34. Greenville's 47 goals in the final frame is tied with Reading for most in the league this season.

MILESTONES

- Bretton Cameron is one goal away from 50 professional goals

- Vinny Saponari is two assists away from 50 professional assists

- Trevor Parkes is two games away from 200 professional games played

EAST DIVISION STANDINGS

Florida Everblades (24-5-3) = 51 points in 32 games

Greenville Road Warriors (23-13-1) = 47 points in 37 games

Reading Royals (21-12-2) = 44 points in 35 games

South Carolina Stingrays (17-12-6) = 40 points in 35 games

Elmira Jackals (18-14-4) = 40 points in 36 games

Orlando Solar Bears (16-14-3) = 35 points in 33 games

Gwinnett Gladiators (11-20-2) = 24 points in 33 games

AFFILIATE REPORT

NHL: New York Rangers (24-12-4): Next at Boston Bruins - Tonight, 7:00 p.m. ET

AHL: Hartford Wolf Pack (20-12-5): Next at Norfolk Admirals - Friday, 7:30 p.m. ET

Check out the Greenville Swamp Rabbits Statistics



ECHL Stories from January 15, 2015


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