ECHL: Swamp Rabbits Home Game Preview, Keys To The Game

Greenville, SC—After winning 2-1 in overtime from a game-winning goal by Ryan Francis at Savannah, the Swamp Rabbits are returning home (Sunday, Dec. 10) to battle against the Ghost Pirates once again. Greenville currently holds a 7-0 record against Savannah this season, along with a total record of 17-3-0 with 34 points in 20 games played. Savannah has a 7-12-2 record, which makes them last in the South Division. Despite their record, however, the Ghost Pirates put up a good fight against the Rabbits, as they threw 26 pucks on Ingham with their netminder, Micheal McNiven, stopping 31 from Greenville. Savannah was physical and held the puck in pretty well against Greenville. The Rabbits, though, seemed to struggle a bit on key elements, such as the forecheck, puckhandling, passing, and of course, scoring. Yes, they put up 31 shots on McNiven, but they couldn’t capitalize on rebounds with scoring chances near the crease. The same struggle happened at home when they took on the Cincinnati Cyclones.

Here’s What They Need to Work on Ahead of Their Matchup Against Savannah at Home Today

Turnovers: turnovers, turnovers, turnovers. The turnovers have been a really big problem for the Rabbits, as they sometimes create odd-man opportunities for the opposition teams to score. What they must improve on is keeping the puck to themselves as much as possible when they’re in their neutral zone, then making passes to their own teammates or making a dump in play.

Scoring in tight situations: there were many moments in which the Rabbits could’ve scored on McNiven if they could produce from the rebounds or close to crease situations. They have to put more of their own guys near the crease or net to intercept the puck to potentially score on the rebounds. Likewise, they’re great on the powerplay, and their numbers tell us that, as the only goal scored during intermission was on the powerplay.

Passes: The Rabbits must improve on their passes. Some passes go too short, too long, or get intercepted. They either pass too quickly or wait too long. If correct, they could avoid potential turnovers and assist their teammates to score.

Next is Player Stats

Some players on this Greenville team currently have made a name for themselves. Ryan Bednard will likely get the nod from Andrew Lord to start as the netminder at home today. His current record is 7-1-0 with a 0.929 SV% and 2.44 GAA. Carter Souch continues to lead his team with the most points of twenty, along with having nine goals and eleven assists. Ryan Francis has been excellent lately, as he scored the game-winning goal in overtime last night at Savannah. Francis, in five games played, has scored four goals with six assists and has tallied up eight points so far. Nikita Pavlychev has also been excellent ever since he got sent down from Ontario Reign, as he’s tallied up six goals and nine assists in ten games played. Playing on the top powerplay line, Pavlychev has been a key contributor in setting up his teammates on the PP. The final player to mention is Tanner Eberle. Eberle has only played thirteen games so far, but since then, he’s been a heavy, physical player who’s great on the forecheck and simply a pest to the opposition players.