ECHL: An Interview With ECHL All-Star Goaltender Ryan Bednard

Being an All-Star can be a lot of fun, but being a goaltender in one, well, that could be a different story, “Ya, it’s a great accomplishment; it’s my fifth year, a lot of it goes to my team for supporting me back there, so I’m pretty proud of it” said Bednard but he mentioned it was a bit of change for him “It’s a little different for sure, wasn’t really sure what to expect because it was my first one but it was a fun experience” Bednard said after the ECHL All-Star Game where the All-Stars took down the Savannah Ghost Pirates 18-11, in a game where Bednard stopped 12 of 14 in the extended 24 minute period he played in. Bednard has been a crucial part of the Greenville Swamp Rabbits as they held the top spot in the conference heading into the All-Star Break but now find themselves in second behind the Adirondack Thunder, “Ya, it’s big, we have a great team, a lot of returners from last year so we just gotta try and keep it going here” said Bednard on the team’s first-half performance. In 22 games this year, Bednard has gone 12-9-0 with a 3.00 GAA, .912 SV%, and one shutout.

A big part of the Swamp Rabbits’ success has been Head Coach Andrew Lord, who is in his second season with Greenville, “He’s been awesome; I’ve been with him for three years now; he’s one of my favorite coaches, and he’s great” said Bednard about his head coach. When asked about what catches his eye about Lord, Bednard mentioned his passion for the game, “The first thing I noticed was his passion every day has been awesome, and it’s helped our team a lot.” and also talked about how it helps having a coach who has been in both the player and coach role, “Ya, I think that helps a ton, too, as a player and a coach, it’s been great.”