SWAMP RABBITS FALL IN “CARE AS ONE” COMMUNITY HOCKEY GAME

(GREENVILLE, S.C.) – The Greenville Swamp Rabbits fell to the South Carolina Stingrays in the “Care As One” Community Hockey Game by a 4-3 score on Wednesday night. The game was played in front of 4,891 fans coming together to help bolster efforts in assisting those in need following the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, making it one of the most attended preseason games in the last 10 years of Swamp Rabbits hockey. The game benefitted United Way of Greenville County's Community Relief Fund.

The Swamp Rabbits jumped out to an early 2-0 lead on goals scored 92 seconds apart. Stuart Rolofs got things started for Greenville when the puck came to his stick in the high slot, fired by him almost immediately in a tight window. The puck slipped through the five-hole of South Carolina starter Seth Eisele to give the Swamp Rabbits a 1-0 lead 12:00 into the first (Arvid Caderoth and Bobby Russell assisted). Over a minute and a half later, Max Coyle rifled a “Hail Mary” pass to Ben Freeman from his own zone to the opposing blue line. Freeman shrugged off a defender on his back and put a shot on net that was stopped by Eisele, but the rebound came right to Brent Pedersen’s tape. Pedersen buried the rebound to double the Swamp Rabbits lead at 2-0 at 13:32 (Freeman and Coyle assisted). Luke Richardson stopped all eight shots in the first 20 minutes.

South Carolina struck twice in the middle act, part of a run of four unanswered goals, squaring the game at 2-2 heading into the last 20 minutes. Kyler Kupka answered at 5:50 of the second, squeaking a rebound in close range past a sprawled Luke Richardson in the Swamp Rabbits net, halving the deficit to 2-1 (Dean Loukus assisted). With 4:08 left in the second on their first power play of the game, the puck was won to Josh Wilkins on the blue line, who waltzed in uncontested to Richardson. He won the one-on-one duel with a deke, potting the puck to tie the game at 2-2 (Ben Hawerchuk and Jeremy Davidson assisted). On the goaltending front, Garin Bjorklund replaced Eisele halfway through the second, while Kolby Hay relieved Luke Richardson at the start of the third.

The Stingrays pulled ahead early in the third when Jeremy Davidson pounced on a rebound close to the crease, slipping by Hay to give the Stingrays their first lead at 3-2 on their third straight goal at 4:08 of the third (Ben Hawerchuk assisted). The scoring run saw its final goal with 8:20 left when Jack Adams sprung a pass to Ryan Leibold in neutral ice. Leibold had a step on the last defender and fired a laser over Hay’s glove to push the Stingrays to a 4-2 lead (Adams assisted). With their backs against the wall, Ben Freeman tried to spark the Swamp Rabbits to a late comeback with the goaltender pulled. With 1:01 to go and Hay on the bench, the Swamp Rabbits hammered the Stingrays net relentlessly, ending with Ben Freeman slamming the puck on the back door to pull within one at 4-3 (Arvid Caderoth and Zach White assisted). Despite the late life, the Stingrays held off the Swamp Rabbits and won 4-3.

Kolby Hay picked up the loss in relief, stopping nine of 11 shots in 17:19 of work. Luke Richardson stopped 13 of 15 in the first 40 minutes of the game.

The Swamp Rabbits now look forward to Opening Night, presented by Bon Secours, on October 18^th against the Orlando Solar Bears. Puck drop at Bon Secours Wellness Arena is slated for 7:05pm EST. The evening features a pregame part on the Furman Plaza with an orange carpet introduction of the 2024-25 Swamp Rabbits, music, a rally towel giveaway, and more!

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About the Greenville Swamp Rabbits …
Acquired by Spire Sports + Entertainment (SS+E) in 2020, the Greenville Swamp Rabbits hockey team have been providing family friendly, live entertainment at Bon Secours Wellness Arena since 2010. Formerly the Greenville Road Warriors, the Swamp Rabbits are the highest-level professional minor league franchise in South Carolina. The Swamp Rabbits are the proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL's LA Kings and the AHL's Ontario Reign. Greenville is a member of the ECHL, Premier ‘AA’ Hockey League.