SOLAR BEARS DOWN SWAMP RABBITS TO OPEN ROAD TRIP

(ORLANDO, Fla.) – Bryce Brodzinski broke the shutout of Ryan Fanti in the final minutes of regulation, but the damage was already done by the Orlando Solar Bears, who scored two power play goals and a shorthanded tally to defeat the Greenville Swamp Rabbits by a 4-1 score on Friday night. The game is the first of a second seven-game road trip over the next two and a half weeks.

Both teams skated out of the first in a scoreless deadlock, with Swamp Rabbits net-minder Jacob Ingham turning aside 13 Solar Bears shots and Solar Bears goalie Ryan Fanti denying five Swamp Rabbits chances. Early in the second, Spencer Kersten got the Solar Bears on the board despite it being the second power play of the game for the Swamp Rabbits. With 2:22 gone by, Kersten boarded Miles Gendron, which received no call, and Kersten went to the net uncontested and beat Ingham to put Orlando up 1-0. Reece Newkirk added a second for Orlando just seven seconds into their first power play, batting the rebound off of his initial chance in close range past Ingham to double the Solar Bears lead to 2-0 with 8:05 left in the period (Jaydon Dureau and Jack Adams assisted).

Orlando got some more breathing room halfway through the third on their second power play of the night, with Ara Nazarian capitalizing on a net-front maneuver to triple the Solar Bears lead to 3-0 with 8:13 remaining in the contest (Aaron Luchuk and Mark Auk assisted). Needing a spark, the Swamp Rabbits pulled Ingham from the net while on a two-man advantage to give the team a six-on-three sequence of hockey. It paid off in the form of Bryce Brodzinski, who backhanded a loose puck bouncing to the side of Fanti’s crease past the goaltender, ending his shutout with 77 seconds left in the game to cut the score to 3-1 Orlando (John Parker-Jones and Tyson Fawcett assisted). With the final penalty killed, Chris Harpur came out of the box and linked up with Kersten in neutral ice, with the latter sealing the deal with his second of the night into the empty net, giving Orlando a 4-1 win.

Jacob Ingham stopped 38 of 41 shots in the defeat (8-7-0-1).

The Swamp Rabbits continue their seven-game stretch, now shifting to the first of a pair of matchups against the Jacksonville Icemen. Puck drop at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena is slated for 7:00 p.m. EST.

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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.