Close call: the Atlanta Gladiators drop a close 2-1 decision in the second game of a home-and-home series against the Greenville Swamp Rabbits

Preview: Greenville Swamp Rabbits (2-3-1-0 for 5 points/14th place in the ECHL Eastern Conference) vs the Atlanta Gladiators (3-5-2-0 for 8 points/10th place in the ECHL Eastern Conference)

Today's game (November 10, 2024 at 3pm EST) at the Gas South District finds the Glads playing the second game of a home-and-home against their conference rivals from a little up the road on Interstate 85, the Greenville Swamp Rabbits.

Greenville wins the first game of the series by a 3-0 margin and looks to sweep the home-and-home series. While their offense comes in scoring 2.3 goals per game, they'll look to Parker Berge (1 goal/5 assists/6 points) and Carter Savoie (2 goals/4 assists/6 points) to lead the offense against and Atlanta defense allowing less than 3 goals per game (2.8 goals against).

Coming off a 5-game road trip (going 1-4), the Glads hope the friendly confines of home and their crowd can help catapult them to a win and inch closer to the .500 mark. Team leaders Cody Slyvester (3 goals/3 assists/6 points) and Derek Topatigh (5 assists for 5 points) are among those who look to take advantage of a Greenville defense allowing close to 4 goals per game (3.7 allowed).

Prior to the game, the Glads' Jackson Pierson (1 goal/2 assists/3 points) speaks with us and shares his thoughts on key focus areas for the team as they look to get back in the win column (you may watch the full interview below):

Game recap: the Swamp Rabbits hold on for 2-1 win and sweep the home-and-home series from the Gladiators

The Swamp Rabbits score in the 1st and 2nd period to stake a 2-0 lead in the game. Carter Savole's 3rd goal of the season comes in the 1st period on the power play (7:06 with assists by Parker Berge and Tate Singleton) for an early lead. A goal by Bryce Brodzinski (his 3rd of the season) at the 6:41 mark of the 2nd period (assisted by Max Coyle) puts them ahead leading into the 3rd period.

At the 5:52 mark of the 3rd period, Atlanta cashes in on the power play. Jackson Pierson (our pre-game interview) notches his 2nd goal of the season (assisted by Derek Topatigh and Jeremy Hanzel) cuts into the Greenville lead (2-1). Despite a furious flurry down the stretch, the Swamp Rabbits hold on for a win and sweep of the home-and-home series.

Greenville goaltender Dryden McKay turns away 28 or 29 shots, while Atlanta's Drew DeRidder has 21 saves on 23 shots. Both teams score once on the power play (Greenville goes 1 for 5 while Atlanta goes 1 for 6).

Atlanta returns to the ice for an early start on November 14, 2024 (10:30am) for the first of their "School Day" affairs as they host the Florida Everblades at the Gas South District.

Notes: All photos and video are recorded by CCS (click HERE for our hockey coverage and click HERE for our 2024-25 playlist).