WORCESTER, Ma. - The Atlanta Gladiators (20-22-4-2) earned a 4-2 victory over the Worcester Railers (20-20-2-4) on Saturday night, at the DCU Center in Worcester, Massachusetts.
Ethan Haider started in goal for Atlanta, while Michael Bullion was between the pipes for Worcester.
In the final matchup of the season between the two teams, the Gladiators and Railers opened up the contest with intensified physicality. Michael Marchesan got into his second scrap of the series, this time taking on Railers forward Lincoln Hatten.
Late in the first, the Gladiators struck big, as Cody Sylvester (17th) knocked the biscuit into the basket as Blake Murray had Railers goaltender Michael Bullion guessing, leading to an easy assist, and the finish by Atlanta's alternate captain.
Roughly 30 seconds later, at 19:57, Gladiators defender Andrew Jarvis (4th) slapped in a wicked shot from the perimeter to double the advantage for the Gladiators.
Following multiple penalties from both teams in the middle frame, neither team were able to put a goal up on the board.
Early in the final frame, Railers defender Matias Rajaniemi (3rd) snuck the puck by Ethan Haider to end the shutout bid for the Gladiator netminder.
With less than three minutes to go in regulation time, the Railers pulled Michael Bullion in hopes of tying the game with an extra attacker. The risk would not pay off, as first Cody Sylvester (18th) and then Ryan Cranford (9th) both scored into the empty-net, giving the Glads a commanding 4-1 lead.
In the final minutes of the game, Railers forward Matt Ustaski (3rd) scored to bring his club within two goals once again.
At the end of regulation, a full-on altercation would ensue, resulting in a fine to Worcester's Griffin Luce, and a three game suspension for Railers forward Kolby Johnson.
"I thought we battled hard and stuck together as a group," head coach Derek Nesbitt said. "We handled the ebbs and flows of the game much better tonight. Overall, I thought it was a good win for us to end the trip."
Ethan Haider finished with 39 saves on 41 shots, while Michael Bullion stopped 18 of 20 in the defeat for the Railers.
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