GREENVILLE, S.C. — The Greenville Swamp Rabbits hosted the South Carolina Stingrays last night, Oct. 25, at Bon Secours Wellness Arena to mark their second game of the regular season. This would be the Stingrays’ second but first game in Greenville of the regular season, as the team had a win over the winless Swamp Rabbits. For the Rabbits’ first game, they lost 4-5 against the Orlando Solar Bears for their home opener.
But here is what went down in the three periods of hockey.
1st Period
The Swamp Rabbits started the first period by opening the scoring in the first minute of action. Bobby Russell rocketed one high by the blue line with the primary assist from Patrick Moynihan. After Russell’s goal, the opposing team, the Stingrays, had several good looks on net. But the netminder wearing the black, white, and silver pads stopped the attempts with the help of his fellow defensemen. However, at 9:00, Andrew Perrott wristed it from the left-wing point and tied it at 1-1.
Shots on goal: 11, S.C.; 14, GVL
2nd Period
A stretch pass from the neutral zone would put Colton Young on the breakaway, and he would score a five-hole goal. The Swamp Rabbits had some close-to-the-net chances on the power play, but Bjorklund would block those from turning into further goals. After forty minutes, the Rabbits held a one-goal lead (2-1) heading into the final period.
Shots on goal: 13, S.C.; 11, GVL
3rd Period
For the majority of the period, neither team scored. Despite this, both teams had good looks, especially with great saves by the respective goalies. However, the Stingrays had better offensive-zone time than the Rabbits, but every shot they took, when given the opportunity to shoot, went nowhere near the net or McKay. Perhaps the stick flexes were not right for the Rays’ players.
Carter Savoie would score a beauty and give his team some insurance at 16:50. Around 19:30, a Swamp Rabbit would intercept the puck in the Stingrays’ zone and come close to scoring an empty netter, but fanned on it with minimal backchecking behind him. The unfortunate play would cost them seconds later, as a faceoff win in Greenville’s end with the extra man advantage gave the upper hand for the Stingrays to score.
At 19:42, the Rays’ current top playmaker, Micah Miller, would make it 2-3. However, with 18 seconds left in regulation, the visiting team did not have many options or chances to score a tying goal. Thus, the Swamp Rabbits would take Game Two in regulation with their first regular-season victory (3-2).
Final shots on goal: 38, S.C.; 33, GVL
Three Stars
1st Star: Colton Young (1G-1A)
2nd Star: Dryden McKay (36 saves)
3rd Star: Patrick Moynihan (2A)
Game Takeaways
What can we say? The Swamp Rabbits were dialed in for game two and sought revenge on their in-state divisional rivals. Dryden McKay stood tall between the pipes and in the blue paint. His performance during this game exceeded his latest from last week against the Solar Bears. He stopped 36 shots on goal, earning himself a 3.45 goals-against average (GAA) and a .907 save percentage (SV%) for two games.
Shots from the Stingrays during the third period, and even the entirety of the game, were not going into the net. Even open-door opportunities went high and nowhere near McKay. So they missed many opportunities to score or create scoring chances from more quality attempts. Their forechecking was exceptional, but with Greenville’s improved defensive core stepping up on backchecks and clears, they could not set up plays in the offensive zone.
Speaking of Greenville’s defense, compared to their last game participation, they buffed out the kinks on their faulty defensive plays that were expensive against Orlando. From blocked shots by the d-core and McKay, they looked better and more familiar, like their last season’s identity from last night’s game.
Colton Young, the youngster from Alberta who’s currently contracted with the Ontario Reign, showed off his creditable puck-handling and execution skills when he scored five-hole on the breakaway. He saw a few center-point shot chances during the game, on and off the power play.
