Everblades Seek to Avoid Sweep by Swamp Rabbits

WHO: Florida Everblades vs. Greenville Swamp RabbitsWHERE: Hertz Arena (Estero, Fla.)WHEN: Saturday, March 5 at 7:00 pmTICKETS: Purchase tickets for Saturday’s game and all future Everblades games HERE.PROMOTIONS: Every Saturday home matchup this season will kick off with a free pregame tailgate party! Come out to Hertz Arena early and tailgate from 5:00 to 7:00 pm. This Saturday’s tailgate party will feature live music by James Prather. Tickets can also be purchased HERE.In addition, Saturday night will be Blades Water Bottle Giveaway Night. Join us and be one of the first 1,000 fans to receive an Everblades water bottle, presented by Arthrex.BROADCAST: Watch every Florida Everblades game on FloHockey.TV. Listen to the exciting game action on ESPN Southwest Florida on 770 AM, 98.1 FM, 104.3 FM and online athttps://espnswfl.com.

ESTERO, Fla. – The Florida Everblades and Greenville Swamp Rabbits will close out their three-game series at Hertz Arena on Saturday, as the Blades try to avoid the sweep. Back-to-back losses to Greenville come on the heels of the good guys’ six-game winning streak and nine-game point streak, both of which ended on Wednesday.

THE OPPONENT: Sporting a 2-0 record this season at Hertz Arena, the Greenville Swamp Rabbits come into Friday’s game comfortably in fifth place in the ECHL South Division, sporting a 20-22-4-3 overall record which is good for 47 points and an all-important .480 points percentage. The Swamp Rabbits have won four straight games and have registered a 5-5-0-0 record in their last 10 games, as Greenville remains in hot pursuit of fourth-place Orlando, which currently holds the final playoff spot in the South Division. 

THE SERIES: In nine previous meetings between the rivals this season, the Swamp Rabbits have taken a 5-4 edge, with the Bunnies holding a 25-24 edge in goals. Florida won four of seven games played in Greenville, while the Swamp Rabbits are 2-0 in Hertz Arena. 

LAST TIME OUT: For the second straight game, the Florida Everblades (30-17-4-4) fell to the Greenville Swamp Rabbits, dropping a 2-0 decision Friday night in Hertz Arena. Greenville (20-22-4-3) came out firing and jumped out to a quick lead as Max Zimmer put the Swamp Rabbits on top 1-0 with an unassisted goal just 14 seconds after the opening faceoff. The visitors soon doubled their advantage, with Bryce Reddick finding the net off an assist from Ben Freeman at the 7:16 mark to pull ahead 2-0 and send Everblades’ goaltender Tomas Vomacka to an early exit. Neither team would score in the final two periods. In the final period, the Everblades outshot Greenville 13-1, but neither team could bury the puck. Florida claimed a 30-19 advantage in shots on goal over 60 minutes of play. The shutout loss was just the second suffered by the Everblades this season, both recorded by Greenville. The Blades’ Parker Gahagen turned aside 13 shots and allowed no goals in nearly 51 minutes of action after coming in to relieve Vomacka.

CHECKING IN ON THE CAPTAIN: On Wednesday, Captain Everblade John McCarron moved into sole possession of the franchise record for regular-season goals, collecting his 146th tally. With one more goal, McCarron will notch his 165th career Everblades goal, including playoffs and he’ll have sole possession of the overall mark currently shared with Reggie Berg. Earlier this season, McCarron took over the top spot from Berg in points, and currently has 339 regular-season and 385 total points in an Everblades sweater. Looking ahead, Johnny Mac sits in second place has 193 regular-season assists and 221 overall assists, as he sits just 16 and nine helpers, respectively, behind Tom Buckley’s career marks with 207 and 221. Additionally, with 608 overall penalty minutes, McCarron is 16 behind Matthieu Roy’s franchise mark of 624 PIM.

RABBIT HUNTERS: In nine games against the Swamp Rabbits, John McCarron leads the squad with 10 total points, scoring four goals and logging dishing out a team-high six assists. Blake Winiecki is next in line with eight points on four goals and four assists, while Joe Pendenza has registered six points on three goals and three helpers. In goal, Parker Gahagen has gotten the starting nod in seven of the nine meetings against Greenville and has tallied a 3-4-0-0 record with a 2.19 GAA and a .915 save percentage. He did not factor into the decision on Friday.

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The Florida Everblades are the proud ECHL affiliate of the NHL’s Nashville Predators and the AHL's Milwaukee Admirals.

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