ECHL: Inserting My Foot In My Mouth While The Atlanta Gladiators Get Off To A Hot Start

I really enjoy being right when it comes to sports, and I especially like when my sports predictions come to fruition. I also can recognize when I may have been slightly off on a prediction or two.

Boy, am I off to a bad start with my Atlanta Gladiators prognosis for the 2023-24 season.

I am not about to start planning the Kelly Cup parade…yet, but the Glads have come out of the gate demolishing their opponents to start the campaign. A little over a month ago, I wrote an article in which I had two quotes that keep coming to my mind after every game so far this year.

“At this time, I would predict the Gladiators to finish 5th in the division behind the Ghost Pirates, Stingrays, and Everblades, and my prediction for the division winner, the Jacksonville Icemen.”

“I think I would be naïve to assume that this team, as constructed now, will compete for a division crown.”

– A guy who knows nothing about Hockey!

In hockey, you are not supposed to get too high after wins, or too low after losses, so ill try to be a little more even keeled, but my above predictions could not be further from reality six games into the season. Obviously there are 66 more games for Atlanta to play this season, but if this is style of play continues, then there is no reason the Glads couldn’t contend for the South Division crown, and certainly this type of play isn’t worthy of a 5th place finish.

Atlanta has been on fire since the season began. Entering play today, the Glads are the only team with a perfect record, sporting a 6-0-0 start. Another great hockey saying is “they don’t ask how, they ask how many.” If you were to ask Atlanta “how” the answer would be in all aspects of the game. The Gladiators sport the best goals per game average right now with a 5.33. They also have an 96% penalty kill percentage, killing 24 of a possible 25 opportunities, which is also best in the league. The scoring has been led by Georgia native Mitch Fossier who has five goals and six assists for a total of 11 points in six game. Fossier is joined by six other of his teammates who are averaging a point a game Between goaltenders Gustavs Grigals and Tyler Harmon, the duo has given up only 14 goals in 6 games, good for a 2.33 GAA. combined. Grigals, in particular, has looked so good that he received a call up to the Milwaukee Admirals this past week. The 25 year old net minder has a 4-0 record with a 1.98 GAA and a .948 save percentage. Grigals was also featured on SportsCenter for this robbery of what looked like a sure goal.

The Glads new coach Derek Nesbitt certainly does not look like a first year coach either. Nesbitt has been able to guide this group of relatively new players trying to gel and that’s not easy to do. Last year the Gladiators style of play constantly got them heavily outshot and they had a bad habit of losing games they had late leads in. This years team so far has proven to be quite the opposite. The Gladiators haven’t been behind much, but when they are, they have found a way to tie it up and ultimately take the lead. The conditioning has shown through when the team is able to fight off desperate opponents comebacks late in the 3rd periods.

I wrote my last article before the season started and the Glads have 100% made me eat crow, I’m hoping by putting this piece out there I don’t reverse the jinx! The Gladiators put their undefeated record to the test tonight against division foe, the South Carolina Stingrays. The Gladiators just beat them at home in their last outing November 5th by a score of 4-2. This time the Glads travel to the North Charleston Coliseum for the 2nd of 10 meetings this year. Puck drops at 7:05pm.