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ECHL Atlanta Gladiators

Weekly: Gladiators Kick off Stretch against Florida Foes

January 21, 2014 - ECHL (ECHL)
Atlanta Gladiators News Release


DULUTH, Ga. - The Gwinnett Gladiators will see a quieter week ahead, with only one game on the docket before the All-Star Break this weekend. On Thursday, the Gladiators will play their first of four straight against the Orlando Solar Bears in a game rescheduled from its original day on Saturday, the 25 th. The game will also mark the first of eight straight games against teams from the Sunshine State - six of which will be played in either Orlando or Estero, Florida.

Looking Ahead:

Tuesday, 1/21: Practice, Arena at Gwinnett Center, 10:30 A.M.; Midnightbus to Orlando

Wednesday, 1/22: TBD

Thursday, 1/23: Practice, Amway Center, 11:15 A.M.; Game @ Orlando, 7:00 P.M.

Friday, 1/24: Off Day, All-Star Break

Saturday, 1/25: Off Day, All-Star Break

Sunday, 1/26: Off Day, All-Star Break

Scouting the Opponent:

- Within regulation, the Solar Bears have had the Gladiators' number, winning four times. Meanwhile,Gwinnett's two wins against Orlando have come via the shootout - a 4-3 contest on October 30th, and a wild 6-5 battle on January 11th, the last time the two have played each other.

- The Solar Bears had the leading goal-scorer in the league, Mickey Lang, prior to his call-up to the American Hockey League. However it's their other fantastic scorer on the team, Zach Harrison, that has done the most damage to Gwinnett. Competing in each of the six games played so far, Harrison has five goals and three assists.

Looking Back:

- Tuesday, January 14th: Gwinnett 3, @ Evansville 4 - L

Peter Sakaris scored two goals 23 seconds apart in the third, helping the IceMen sneak by the Gladiators in the first of Gwinnett's four game, weeklong road trip up north. Sakaris' game-tying and game-winning goals came a little under five minutes after Justin Weller gave the Gladiators a 3-2 lead early in the third. Rob Kwiet and Josh Currie also scored for Gwinnett.

- Wednesday, January 15th: Gwinnett 1, @ Cincinnati 5 - L

Coyotes prospect Brenden Walker scored for the Gladiators, but Anthony Luciani earned a hat trick to lead the Cyclones over Gwinnett, 5-1. Joe Howe turned aside 28 of 29 shots for Cincinnati between the pipes, while Brad Phillips had his three-start winning streak snapped for Gwinnett, making 26 saves.

- Friday, January 17th: Gwinnett 5, @ Kalamazoo 4 - W

Evan Bloodoff picked up what would prove to be the game-winning goal in the third, and the Gladiators knocked off the K-Wings, 5-4, in a wild offensive slugfest at Wings Stadium. Marshall Everson finished with two goals and an assist, while Brenden Walker tacked on two helpers of his own. With the win, Gwinnett snapped Kalamazoo's six-game home regulation unbeaten streak.

- Saturday, January 18th: Gwinnett 4, @ Kalamazoo 5 - OTL

Trailing 4-1 in the latter portion of the second period, Gwinnett rallied to force overtimeagainst the K-Wings. However former Gladiator defenseman Sam Ftorek put a slapper past Brad Phillips on the power play in overtime to seal a 5-4 K-Wings win. It was the first game to be decided in the OT period for the Gladiators; they were the last team in the ECHL to do so. Rob Kwiet had a goal and an assist, while Joey Haddad scored the game-tying goal early in the third.

- Monday, January 20th: Wheeling 2, @ Gwinnett 0 - L

In their earliest game of the year, the Gladiators were held scoreless against the Mike Condon and the Nailers in a 2-0 loss Monday afternoon at the Arena at Gwinnett Center. Starter Brad Phillips was impressive in the Gwinnett crease, making 35 saves on 36 shots, but it was Cody Sylvester's shorthanded tally in the second that sealed it for the visitors.

Glads Notes:

All-American Guys: As voted on by the fans, defenseman Justin Weller and goaltender Brad Phillips were named to the 2013-14 MeiGray Fantasy Team, and Goaltender Program, respectively. As such, both wore special jerseys on Monday against Wheeling, decked with the red, white, and blue of the American flag in support of the USA Hockey team at the upcoming 2014 WinterOlympics in Sochi, Russia. Each of the 22 teams in the ECHL had two representatives named to the group.

Super Special Teams: In 2014, opponents are only 5-for-52 on their power plays (9.6%) against the Gladiators. Of the 11 games played in 2014, Gwinnett has had a perfect penalty kill in seven games. Overall, the Gladiators rank 5th in the ECHL, killing off 87.1% of opposing power plays. On the man advantage, Gwinnett has at least one power play tally in 15 of the last 21 games, going 15-for-74 (20.3%) over that stretch.

Staying Disciplined: Gwinnett is the fourth-least penalized team in the ECHL, averaging just 12.7 penalty minutes per game. Only the Elmira Jackals (10.3), Cincinnati Cyclones (11.2), and South Carolina Stingrays (11.5) average fewer penalty minutes.

Streaking Glads: Rookie forward Marshall Everson has eight points in his previous seven games (4g, 3a), and at least a point in six of his last ten, dating back to December 8th ... Alternate Captain Dirk Southern has ten points in his last 11 games (1g, 9a) ... Coyotes prospects Josh Currie and Brendan Walker lead the team in goals so far in the month of January (5g, 4a for Currie, 5g, 3a for Walker) ... Defenseman Daniel Spivak has finished a game with a minus in only seven of his 36 games played this season, and hasn't gone below a -1.

Snippets: When scoring three or more goals the Gladiators are 14-4-1-1 ... Gwinnett is 12-0 when leading after two periods ... The Gladiators are 12-8 when scoring first, while opponents are 18-3 when Gwinnett gives up the first goal.

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