SWAMP RATS OPEN UP WITH SWEEP OF THE NIGHTMARE

(Holbrook, MA 11/16/08) The Boston Swamp Rats opened up their 2008-2009 AIHL season this past Saturday night with an impressive two game sweep of the New Jersey Nightmare at the unusually warm and oppresively humid Holbrook Sports Center in Holbrook, MA.

As much as the focus was on the product on the floor, players and fans alike were just as concerned with the conditions of the floor itself. "This was a very odd set of circumstances" said HSC owner Ruppy Hailey referring to the tropical air mass that had engulfed the south shore of Massachusetts. "It's not common, but it has happened before. The entire building is made of cement from the floor up and it had already cooled for what we would expect to be the next six or seven months. We've already had a large number of evenings with temperatures in the teens and low 20's, so when you get dew points in the mid to upper 60's and temperatures to match, the place literally begins to sweat" added Hailey. "Unfortunately, all of the moisture within the building eventually settles on the floor, including the playing surface."

What followed were two games that were played on a floor with a couple of slick spots early on to a percentage of the floor being somewhat treacherous by the time game two had finished. But as the song says, "the show must go on" and indeed it did. Fans were treated to some high intensity hockey at one end of the floor while the action at the other end was limited to who could gain the most traction along the boards.

GAME 1: SWAMP RATS RUN AWAY WITH 2ND HALF ONSLAUGHT, 7-3

The Boston Swamp Rats knew that all three of their lines were capable of scoring everytime they hit the floor. They also knew that the team has two of the most prolific goal scorers in the game with Brian Ingram and Co-Captain Michael Hunt always a threat to light the lamp whenever they hop over the boards. What the team did not know was just how quickly they were both ready to start what will no doubt be a battle between them to see who will be king of the hill here in Boston this season.

The Swamp Rats opened up the scoring at the midway point of the 1st half and both teams would go on to trade goals until the initial fifteen minutes were played, closing out the half knotted at two goals a piece. It was at this point that Boston would turn on the jets and leave the Nightmare in the dust. When the final buzzer sounded, the good guys would find themselves with a commanding and hard fought 7-3 victory.

Although the Swamp Rats were able to earn the "W", it was not without it's costs. Starting netminder Mike Perry left the game early in the 2nd half with what appeared to be a painful groin injury and the team is not yet sure as to when they can expect to see him back between the pipes. Phil Perrin relieved Perry and turned away every shot that he faced to preserve the victory.

The three stars of the game were;

#1 Swamp Rats forward Brian Ingram. The younger of the two Ingram brothers made his Swamp Rats debut one to remember by finding the back of the net a total of four times. Ingram also assisted on another goal in addition to registering a number of other scoring chances. Swamp Rats fans should quickly get used to seeing Ingram's name in the box score more often than not this season.

#2 Boston forward and Co-Captain Michael Hunt. Hunter picked up right where he left off last season, finishing the game with a pair of goals and two assists. Hunt will no doubt once again be near or at the top of the stats page for the Rats this year.

#3 Nightmare forward Jack Phelan. Jack was in the play all evening for the visitors and earned a goal and an assist for his efforts in a losing cause.


GAME 2: BOSTON COMES BACK LATE TO FORCE OT AND ULTIMATELY A WIN, 5-4

Fresh on the heels of a convincing 7-3 thumping of the New Jersey Nightmare, the Boston Swamp Rats prepared to go head to head once again with a talented and determined opponent, as well as a rapidly deteriorating floor. It was the Nightmare who would control things for the majority of the thirty minute contest, but the home town Boston Swamp Rats were able to keep the deficit close enough to allow them to make a charge at the end of the game, and that's exactly what they did.

The teams were actually tied at a goal each when the puck dropped for the 2nd half, but it was the Nightmare who would make a statement, multimately moving ahead by a 3-1 margin. The Swamp Rats scored just past the midway point of the half to cut the deficit by one, but the Nightmare answered right back to open up a 4-2 lead with just over five minutes remaining in regulation. The Rats were also dealing with an issue of attrition as netminder Phil Perrin (in for the injured Mike Perry) fell victim to the unseasonably warm temperatures and removed himself from the game during the late stages of the contest. Holbrook Swamp Donkey goaltender Mark Amato was inserted and the game continued. With just 2:15 to go and the Rats down by a pair, the offensive machine was turned on and so was the comeback. Brian Ingram and Brian Blanchette set up Ryan Grant to make it 4-3 in favor of the visitors. With time about to expire and the puck in the defensive zone, Ingram fired the puck on net and with less than a tick of the clock to go, Michael Hunt burried the rebound to tie this one up and send it to overtime.

The overtime period consisted of a faceoff and a scoring chance for each team, but it was Amato who came up big in net for Boston, turning away a scoring chance on a breakaway for New Jersey that would have won them the game. The ensuing rebound was taken the length of the floor by Grant and he proceeded to undress the Nightmare defender before backhanding the puck home for the dramatic come from behind victory in OT.

The three stars of the game were;

#1 Swap Rats forward Ryan Grant. Ryno finished the game with two extremely important goals, including the game winner during bonus hockey.

#2 Nightmare defenseman Tom Conner. Conner figured in three of his team's four goals in the game with a goal and two assists and was a force to be reckoned with every time he took a shift.

#3 Boston forward and Co-Captain Michael Hunt. Mike once again solidified his position on the team as a sniper by puring in two goals to add to his already impressive season total.

The Swamp Rats will next see action on Saturday night December 6th at 7:30 PM when they visit the Z-Rink in Glastonbury, CT to take on the always dangerous Hartfor Fire Ants.

BACK IN BUSINESS!!!
TEAMS TO RETAIN OLD NAMES AFTER CHANGES AT THE EXECUTIVE LEVEL

(Holbrook, MA 10/11/08) The Boston Swamp Rats / Holbrook Swamp Donkeys elite level inline hockey team announced today that Paul Rogers has bought the organization from it's previous owners, Ruppy Hailey and Dave Gardner. Rogers will also serve as the organization's General Manager and will be responsible for running the day to day activities.

"This has been in the works for some time," answered Rogers when asked how this change came about. "It was apparent that both Ruppy and Dave's work schedule would no longer permit them to meet the long list of responsibilities associated with running the team, so alot of the players united in an attempt to keep this all together." Rogers also addressed the team names, which have been rumored to change along with the owner(s). "The Swamp Rats name was derived from two major factors in our organization's history," said Rogers. "The Swamp portion of the name was a take off from the existing minor league team's name, the Swamp Donkeys, which had been used by Ruppy's teams since 2002."

"The Rats portion of the name was a way of acknowledging one of our longtime, generous sponsor, Rink Rat Wheels. To take that a step further, we even asked for and were granted permission to use an off-colored version of the Rink Rat logo as our own," Rogers continued. "As you can see, there is a lot of history within this organization that involves those names and we wanted to continue that tradition."

Rogers also announced that the teams would be releasing an updated website in the very near future. "We have decided to not release any news or developments regarding the organization until the transfer of power had been finalized. Now that this has been accomplished, our website and our radio show, the Rat Cast hosted by Dave Gardner, will be overflowing with information as the teams prepare for what promises to be a fantastic 2008-2009 season.