The Florida Panthers announced today that the club has entered into a multi-year affiliation agreement with the Greenville Swamp Rabbits of the ECHL. The Swamp Rabbits will serve as the ECHL affiliate for the Cats as well as its new American Hockey League affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers.
The Swamp Rabbits are based in Greenville, SC, and have qualified for the postseason in five of their 10 seasons. In the 2013-14 season, Greenville reached the ECHL Eastern Conference Finals.
Florida prospects like Rodrigo Abols, Ryan Bednard and Patrick Bajkov spent time in Greenville last season.
Founded in 1987 as the Johnstown Chiefs, one of the ECHL’s original teams, the franchise relocated to the Palmetto State in 2010 as the Greenville Road Warriors before rebranding as the Swamp Rabbits in 2015. The club plays its home games at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena.
The 2020-21 ECHL regular season is expected to begin on December 11, when the Swamp Rabbits will face their intrastate rivals the South Carolina Stingrays. Their home opener will take place on December 18 against the Florida Everblades.
The Panthers entered a multi-year AHL affiliation agreement with the Checkers on September 10, 2020.