KUHNS: SWAMP RABBITS SIGN STANISLAV DZAKHOV 

Sizable Russian forward added to the mix

BY: Jordan Kuhns, Greenville Swamp Rabbits

GREENVILLE, S.C. — The Greenville Swamp Rabbits have announced that they have signed Russian forward Stanislav Dzakhov to a pro contract for the 2018–19 season.

“I am very grateful for the opportunity to become a part of the Swamp Rabbits organization. I have heard nothing but great things about the organization, in addition to what a beautiful town Greenville is,” said Dzakhov. “Joining the Swamp Rabbits seems like the perfect way to begin my professional career and I’m really looking forward to it.”

Dzakhov got a taste of professional hockey action at the ECHL level at the conclusion of last season and performed well for the Quad City Mallards. In just five games, the 6-foot-2, 209-pound power forward scored three goals and added an assist. Two of those goals came in just one game against the Cincinnati Cyclones on April 7, 2018, on a career-high six shots on goal.

“It bodes well for us for him to have success at the pro level for us right away. From what I have been told about him, his game is more adaptable to the pro level than the college level,” said Swamp Rabbits head coach Kevin Kerr. “Dzakhov plays a heavy, straight-line game, and he crashes the net. Playoff hockey is all about getting to the dirty areas at the front of the net, and he is one of those guys who can play that Milan Lucic-type game where he’s hard on pucks.”

“He’s the kind of player that can get you to the playoffs and help you vie for a championship.”

Dzakhov spent four seasons with the Niagara University Purple Eagles, where he notched 22 goals and 27 assists in 120 games. He helped a Purple Eagles squad, led by first-year head coach Jason Lammers, earn national votes in the USCHO rankings for the first time since 2013.

He enters the pro ranks with extensive collegiate experience, and 150 games of junior experience between the Fargo Force of the USHL, and the Bismarck Bobcats of the NAHL. That junior experience included one run into the Clark Cup playoffs with Fargo, where he scored 5 points in two games, and two runs into the Robertson Cup playoffs, where he posted 11 points in 15 games.

The Swamp Rabbits have signed 22 players for the upcoming season. The full list can be found below, or on the offseason player tracker at SwampRabbits.com.

Forwards (13): Stanislav Dzakhov, Chris Izmirlian, Jarrid Privitera, Dylan Vander Esch, Stephen Pierog, Austen Brassard, Mike Pelech, Travis Howe, Alex Globke, Timmy Moore, Will Merchant, J.T. Henke, and Johno May.

Defensemen (7): Chad Duchesne, Luke Ripley, Kyle Chatham, J.C. Brassard, Trevor Owens, Jake Bolton, and Sean Flanagan.

Goaltenders (2): Garrett Bartus and Devin Buffalo.

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