(GREENVILLE, S.C.) – Keaton Mastrodonato scored two power play goals and Josh Atkinson extended his assist streak to an eighth straight game, but it wasn’t enough to spark a comeback for the Greenville Swamp Rabbits, who narrowly fell to the Atlanta Gladiators by a 3-2 score on Wednesday.

Mastrodonato’s third multi-goal game of the season started off early on the power play, but was countered by a man-advantage marker of Atlanta on the opposite side of the frame. At 3:55 of the first, Josh Atkinson took a drop from Kenta Isogai and found Mastrodonato on the right side of the zone. The latter picked his corner and nailed it over the shoulder of Gladiators goalie Ethan Haider to give the Swamp Rabbits a 1-0 lead (Atkinson extended his assist streak to eight games with the helper). However, on their first power play of the game, the Gladiators answered, with Mike McNamee backhanding an active bounce off the back wall past Swamp Rabbits net-minder Pierce Charleson to square the game at 1-1 with 1:48 to play in the first.

Atlanta broke through near the midway point of the second period for their first and only lead. At 7:24, Chad Nychuk, who notched two assists in the game, threaded a puck through a sea of players and linked up with Mickey Burns, who slipped it by Charleson to give the Gladiators a 2-1 lead.

Joey Cipollone added to Atlanta’s lead early in the third period to give them some breathing room. After the puck was turned over in the neutral zone at 2:38 of the final frame, Nychuk struck again after Ryan Francis located him at the blue line and found Cipollone backdoor, rifling a shot past Charleson to extend the lead to 3-1. With time winding down, the Swamp Rabbits got some help from Keaton Mastrodonato, who deflected a puck in point blank range of the net to bring the Swamp Rabbits within striking distance at 3-2 with 3:31 to play. Haider and the Gladiators eliminated the threat and held on for a 3-2 win.

Pierce Charleson, making his first start since January 3^rd, stopped 28 of 31 shots in the defeat (5-5-2-0).

The Swamp Rabbits continue their busy week, transitioning to the South Carolina Stingrays for a “home-and-home” set on Friday, February 13^th, and Saturday, February 14^th. Puck drop for Friday, which is “Stick It To Cancer Night”, presented by Bon Secours, is slated for 7:05 p.m. EST at Bon Secours Wellness Arena, while Saturday at North Charleston Coliseum is set for 6:05 p.m. EST.

###

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.