ECHL Greenville Swamp Rabbits

Warriors Sweep Cyclones with 4-1 Victory

March 20, 2015 - ECHL (ECHL)
Greenville Swamp Rabbits News Release


Greenville, SC - The Greenville Road Warriors (33-27-4), proud ECHL affiliate of the New York Rangers and the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack, completed a four-game series sweep of the Cincinnati Cyclones (27-28-6) on Friday with a 4-1 victory at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena.

Greenville's effort on special teams was fantastic, finishing the game 2-for-7 on the power play and a perfect 5-for-5 on the penalty kill. Sam Noreau led the offense with three points (3a), while Emerson Clark, Dallas Jackson, Andrew Himelson and Josh Nicholls each scored. The Road Warriors finished the season-series 4-0-0 against Cincinnati.

With the victory, Greenville (70 points) also closed to within one point of Orlando for the final playoff spot in the East Division, and increased the gap between itself and sixth-place Elmira to three points. Elmira lost in a shootout to Wheeling, while Orlando had the night off.

Both Greenville and Cincinnati entered the contest in the bottom half of the league in penalty minutes per game, but the first period alone included six combined power plays with no goals. The Road Warriors were gifted with four power-play chances, but could not solve goaltender Rob Madore.

Greenville's fifth power play was a different story. With Brett Wysopal in the box for hooking, Clark capitalized at the 11:56 mark of the middle frame for his 15th goal of the season. Noreau fed a pass to Clark in stride who split a pair of Cyclones' defenseman and buried a low shot past Madore's blocker.

Less than three minutes later, Jackson made it 2-0 when he fired a rocket from the blue line blocker side for his first goal in a Greenville sweater. Jackson's tally was assisted by Michael St. Croix and Thomas Frazee at the 14:35 mark.

The Cyclones drew blood just 53 seconds into the third period following a sequence of passes during a two-on-two rush in Greenville's zone. Jack Downing was the beneficiary as he found himself with a clear path to the net and beat goaltender Jason Missiaen blocker side for his 17th goal of the season.

With less than five minutes left in regulation, Himelson put the game on ice with his sixth goal of the season. Vinny Saponari slipped a feed along the left half wall to Himelson, who hammered a one-timer from the blue line through a heavy screen and past Madore at 14:01 of the third period.

Josh Nicholls capped the scoring with an empty net, power-play goal at the 19:35 mark for the 4-1 final.

Missiaen (14-14-3) made 22 saves for his second straight victory, while Madore (12-17-3) stopped 22 shots in the loss.

Greenville outshot Cincinnati 26-23.

Follow: Keep up with the Road Warriors all season long and interact with other fans on the Official Road Warriors Facebook, Twitter, Pintrest and Instagram pages.

Race Night: The Road Warriors continue a four-game homestand on SANDLAPPER Securities Rink at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena tomorrow with "Race Night." The Saturday night showdown will feature a pre-game car show courtesy of the members of the Upstate Mustang Club. Matt Kenseth's #20 Dollar General NASCAR Toyota will also be on display before and during the game on the Bon Secours Wellness Arena concourse. The puck drops at 7:00 p.m. against Indy.

For tickets or more information, please call a Road Warriors Account Executive at 864-674-PUCK or visit GreenvilleRoadWarriors.com/tickets-overview.html F ans can listen or watch the game live via ECHL.TV .

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ECHL Stories from March 20, 2015


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