ECHL: Greenville Swamp Rabbits Extend Max Coyle and Add Rookie Forward

Greenville, S.C. — This week was a big one for the Greenville Swamp Rabbits, as the club has signed three players to their 2024-25 roster. On July 23, the club announced that they extended forward Colton Young, as next season will be his third in professional hockey. But today, July 25, the team added two more players: a d-man and a new forward.

The d-man is Max Coyle, who played for the Swamp Rabbits last season after he was present at the 2023 LA Kings Prospect Camp. Due to the connections between the affiliations, he got himself a standard contract for the Rabbits as a defenseman. Coyle, 26, 6’1, and 194 lb (88kg), started playing in the ECHL during the 2023 season with the Indy Fuel, playing just three games. After that season, he would get recognized by then-Head Coach Andrew Lord of the Rabbits at prospect camp and ultimately get signed. However, the young defender didn’t start playing until November 1, where he earned his first point from an assist. Coyle played 55 games for the team, tallying two goals and ten assists, and played three in the playoffs with zero points – effectively being a -2. One of his goals was in overtime. He also took 27 penalty minutes during the regular season and zero during the playoffs.

The Tillsonburg, Ontario native played four seasons in the NCAA before joining professional hockey. His latest season in 2022-23 was with the Bowling Green State University, where he played 34 games with a tally of three goals and eight assists. He spent three seasons there, as he played 93 games, earning 17 points from four goals and thirteen assists. For his first season in NCAA, however, Coyle played 34 for the University of Alabama-Huntsville, where he earned four assists.

Swamp Rabbits Add Forward Ben Poisson

Now for the forward added to the Swamp Rabbits’ roster: they have signed rookie Ben Poisson from the University of Maine. Poisson, a Vancouver native at 24 years old, concluded his NCAA career for the UMaine Black Bears as he played 37 games with 15 points notched up (6G-9A) last season. His final season would be his fifth for the Black Bears, and he was fortunate enough to lead them to their first NCAA Tournament in 12 years. For the last two seasons for UMaine, Poisson was alternate captain (2022-24). In his inaugural season as alternate captain, he had the best performance in his NCAA career with 26 points (9G-17A) from 36 games. From 2019-2024, Poisson played a total of 155 games, with 72 points from 31 goals and 41 assists. Before his NCAA career, Poisson played four seasons in the BCHL with the Prince George Spruce Kings, racking up 114 points in 165 games. He also captained the Spruce Kings to the 2019 BCHL championship, the Doyle Cup, with Coyle as his teammate, earning four points (2G-2A) from six games. He was also awarded the Bob Fenton Trophy in 2018 for the BCHL’s Most Sportsmanlike Player.

The Greenville Swamp Rabbits will start the 2024-25 regular season at home ice against the Orlando Solar Bears on October 18.