This Week's Games

Friday, March 1 (6:05) - Adirondack Phantoms 2 at Springfield Falcons 1 (completion suspended game)
Friday, March 1 (7:30) - Adirondack Phantoms at Springfield Falcons
Saturday, March 2 (7:00) - Adirondack Phantoms at Bridgeport Sound Tigers
Sunday, March 3 (3:00) - Albany Devils at Adirondack Phantoms

Last Week's Scores

Friday, February 22 - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 2 - Adirondack Phantoms 1
Saturday, February 23 - Hershey Bears 3 - Adirondack Phantoms 0
Sunday, February 24 - Adirondack Phantoms 2 - Binghamton Senators 1


Top Scorers Goals Assists Points
Brayden Schenn 13 20 33
Sean Couturier 10 18 28
Jason Akeson 7 20 27
Danny Syvret 4 22 26
Erik Gustafsson 4 14 18

Goalies W-L-SOL GAA SVS
Scott Munroe 11-13-0 2.59 .919
Brian Boucher 2-2-0 2.71 .908
Cal Heeter 8-12-1 2.79 .912

Upcoming

4 games in 3 days? Well, not exactly. But close. The Phantoms have an odd and unusual doubleheader of sorts this Friday in Springfield when they complete their game of a couple of weeks ago that was suspended in the second period. Then they will play a full game right after that. Friday's contests will begin with 3:42 remaining in the 2nd period and the Phantoms leading 2-1 on goals by Rob Bordson and Danny Syvret. That game will start at 6:05 p.m. and then the full game to follow is scheduled to start at 7:30 p.m.

Things get a bit more normal after that with the Phantoms traveling to the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Saturday night where they could potentially face the newest member of their team, veteran goalie Rick DiPietro of the New York Islanders.

Adirondack's home game this weekend is Sunday afternoon at 3:00 against the Albany Devils on Trustco Bank Day. Post-Game Photos with the players down on the ice will follow the game. Bring your cameras! Every player will be at their stations all around the ice and the fans can walk around and get pics with their favorites.

Get the Sunday Family 3-Pack and Save. It's only $43 for 3 tickets, 3 sodas, 3 hot dogs, 1 large popcorn and 1 program and it's a terrific value.

Call the Phantoms for tickets at 518-480-3355.

Don't forget back-to-back home games the following weekend too. Friday, March 8 is against the Springfield Falcons on $2 Draft Beer Night. And Saturday, March 9 is against the Connecticut Whale, affiliates of the New York Rangers, with Adirondack Phantoms T-Shirts for the first 2,500 fans.

Trade

The Philadelphia Flyers made a trade with the Calgary Flames on Monday evening as Mike Testwuide of the Phantoms was dealt in exchange for center Mitch Wahl.

Wahl will wear #19 with the Phantoms and is one of the top scorers in the ECHL this year with the Utah Grizzlies with 19 goals, 40 assists (4th in the ECHL) and 59 points (5th). The 23-year-old from Seal Beach, California is friends with our Shane Harper who is also from his home area. Wahl played for Team USA at the 2009 World Junior Championships held in Ottawa and is in his 3rd season playing professional hockey. The last couple of seasons in the AHL he has played with the Abbotsford Heat and Hamilton Bulldogs.

The Phantoms wish all the best to Mike Testwuide with his new team in Abbotsford. He finishes among the all-time leaders in Adirondack Phantoms history in several categories including 4th in games played (161), 3rd in career goals (32) and 6th in career assists (38) and points (70).

Dax Birthday

Last Sunday was Dax's birthday and the outrageous Dax Jerseys were a big hit with the fans. We had a blast and we hope you did too. On top of all the fun with the Mascot Musical Chairs and other zaniness, the Adirondack Phantoms had an exciting 2-1 victory over the Binghamton Senators. It must have been the rally cry of "Win it for Dax!"



Special thanks to all the mascots who helped make Dax's Big Birthday Bash such a huge, hilarious and surreal event. Lookin' Good, Guys!

Southpaw (Tri-City Valley Cats)
PuckMan (RPI)
Sparty (Castleton State)
Pucky (Connecticut Whale)
South Glens Falls High Bulldog
Roar (Concord Univ.)
E-Gill and Bird Brain (Glens Falls Golden Eagles)
Mojo (Amsterdam Mohawks)



Big Crowd

Last Friday night in Philadelphia was one of the largest crowds in AHL history. 19,561 fans packed into Wells Fargo Center to cheer on the Phantoms. It seemed as though 90% of the fans there were kids! What a fantastic night.

The game goes down as the largest crowd in the AHL this season and the 7th largest all-time but that list also includes 4 outdoor games. So it is also the 3rd largest indoor crowd in AHL history.

Eight of the top 18 regular-season crowds in AHL history are Phantoms games as well as five of the largest 10 attendance figures.

Top 10 Regular Season Crowds in AHL History

1. *45,653 Jan. 6, 2012 Hershey at Phantoms (Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA)
2. *21,673 Feb. 19, 2011 Providence at Connecticut (Rentschler Field, East Hartford, CT)
3. *21,508 Feb. 20, 2010 Binghamton at Syracuse (New York State Fairgrounds, Syracuse, NY)
4. 20,672 Jan. 18, 1997 Kentucky at Carolina (Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, NC)
5. *20,565 Jan. 21, 2012 Toronto at Hamilton (Ivor Wynne Stadium, Hamilton, ON)
6. 19,730 Feb. 10, 2001 Syracuse at Phantoms (First Union Center, Philadelphia, PA)
7. 19,561 Feb. 22, 2013 W-B/Scranton at Phantoms (Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA)
8. 19,532 Feb. 28, 1999 Kentucky at Phantoms (First Union Center, Philadelphia, PA)
9. 19,070 Dec. 28, 2012 Lake Erie vs. Rochester (First Niagara Center, Buffalo, NY)
10. 18,907 Nov. 20, 1998 Hartford at Phantoms (First Union Center, Philadelphia, PA)

Season Ticket Holder Party

- Wednesday, March 6th (6:00 - 8:30 p.m.)
- All the players will be there.
- Lots of great prizes.
- Come Hungry! Dinner catered by Olive Garden and Dango's
- Open to all current full season ticket holders and 22-game plans.

Season Ticket Renewal Incentive

Renew your season tickets before March 30 for a chance to win a 40" screen television.



Phantoms Week in Review

Friday, February 22 - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 2 - Adirondack Phantoms 1

One of the largest crowds in AHL history filed into the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia to cheer on the Phantoms against the Penguins in a big NHL-style atmosphere. Marcel Noebels brought the 19,561 fans to their feet with his first-period goal giving the Phantoms a 1-0 lead.

Cal Heeter and the Phantoms made that lead hold up until late in the third period when Bobby Farnham and Brian Gibbons would score back-to-back in the game's last seven minutes for Wilkes-Barre's come-from-behind win. It was only the second time Adirondack lost when leading the game after one period.

Ian Slater was not very well known among Philadelphia hockey followers going into the game but the rookie from Florida sure made some fans on his first appearance there getting into a couple of skirmishes including a second-period fight with Farnham.

It was a great night in front of a fantastic crowd positively jammed with kids. And they got a full-blown wave going in the third-period during back-to-back critical penalty-kills for the Phantoms. It was also an opportunity for all of the Phantoms players to get the opportunity to skate in front of a big and loud NHL crowd and atmosphere and one they will not soon forget.


Saturday, February 23 - Hershey Bears 3 - Adirondack Phantoms 0

The Phantoms dominated play at different aspects of the game including a one-sided middle period in which thy out-shot the host Bears 20-5. But 21-year-old rookie goalie Philip Grubauer turned in his first career AHL shutout with a 40-save performance to pull out the win.

Patrick McNeil gave Hershey a 1-0 lead in the first period on a lucky bouncer. His clear down the ice along the boards hit the metal stanchion at the penalty-box door and then angled directly towards the net while Munroe was trying to recover from his break to the corner.

Jon Sim appeared to have tied the game in the second period but the goal was waved off and upheld on video review that he had kicked it in. Shortly afterwards, Adirondack took a penalty and former Philadelphia Phantom Ryan Potulny notched one against his former teammate.

A total of five ex-Phantoms skated for the Hershey Bears including Potulny, Boyd Kane, Kevin Marshall, Jon Kalinski and Matt Clackson who dropped the gloves with Brandon Manning in the first period.


Sunday, February 24 - Adirondack Phantoms 2 - Binghamton Senators 1

The fans and team celebrated Dax's birthday in a big-time way...with a Phantoms win! Wearing crazy and outrageous Dax Jerseys, the "Win it for Dax!" battle-cry vaulted the road-weary Phantoms to victory in their return home.

Matt Mangene ripped a power-play goal five-hole in the second period. And Jon Sim scored on a wrap-around in the third for a 2-0 lead.

Binghamton would quickly get that goal back but Cal Heeter would hold down the fort the rest of the way in a 30-save game and the 2-1 win.

The penalty-kill was positively huge for Adirondack in the game holding the B-Sens to 0-for-6 on the man-advantage including two extended 5-on-3's. One of those was 1:45 long but the Adirondack penalty kill stayed strong and kept the game 0-0 at the time to set up Mangene's go-ahead goal just a couple minutes later.

The Adirondack Phantoms finish 1-0 all-time when wearing ridiculous green and yellow-orange Dax Jerseys which were auctioned off to the fans after the game.

Happy Birthday, Dax!


Saratoga Spine Phantoms Player of the Week - Cal Heeter

Cal Heeter is the Saratoga Spine Player of the Week. The rookie goalie from Ohio State made 30 saves on 31 shots on Sunday afternoon in a hard-fought 2-1 win against Binghamton.

The 24-year-old from St. Louis has eight wins with Adirondack and one with Trenton so far in his rookie season. He also has a 2.79 goals-against average and a .912 saves percentage.

Heeter was especially strong and caught the attention of the Adirondack fans on January 5 in the first home game of 2013. He came just an inch away from his first career professional shutout in a 2-1 overtime win against Connecticut with the lone goal barely making it across the line.

Last year for the Ohio State Buckeyes he went 13-11-5, 2.45, .918.


Producing the NHL'ers

Nine different players on this year's Adirondack Phantoms have been called up to the Philadelphia Flyers this year....and counting! And the list of THIS year's call-ups doesn't even include Phantoms alums from previous years who are with Philadelphia such as Matt Read, Michael Leighton and Claude Giroux.

Brayden Schenn, Sean Couturier, Zac Rinaldo, Eric Wellwood, Tye McGinn, Andreas Lilja, Erik Gustafsson, Brian Boucher, Harry Zolnierczyk

Key Team Stats

The Phantoms are...

- 20-7-1 with tied or leading after two periods. (10-2-0 if leading. 10-5-1 if tied)
- 9-2-0 when leading after one period.
- 16-2-2 when they score 3 or more goals
- 2-2 in overtimes and are 4-2 in shootouts for a combined 6-4 in games decided after regulation.
- 10 of the Phantoms wins have come when they have held the opponents to 0 or 1 goals.
- 4-1-1 on Sundays
- 14-4-0 when scoring the first goal.

Upcoming Opponents

Springfield Falcons, 30-14-7 (Columbus Blue Jackets) - Friday, March 1 (6:05 and 7:30)

Springfield has one of the top teams in the league and appears set to break into the playoffs for the first time in 10 years.
The Falcons enter the night on a two-game losing streak with a 3-0 loss to conference-leading Syracuse last Saturday and then a 5-1 loss to Worcester on Sunday.

Springfield and Bridgeport last Friday had a number of line-brawls and other incidents as they racked up an amazing 244 penalty minutes.

First will be the completion of the suspended game from February 17 in which Adirondack leads 2-1 with 3:42 remaining in the second-period.

Record - 30-14-7, 67 points
Standings - 1st place (Northeast Division), 2nd place (Eastern Conference)
Arena - Mass Mutual Center
Head Coach - Brad Larsen (1st season)
Offense - 3.24, 4th (out of 30)
Defense - 2.49, 5th
Power Play - 19.3%, 8th
Penalty Kill - 86.1%, 4th

The Falcons have one of the highest scoring teams as well as top defenses in the AHL. Although their offense has struggled lately with just one goal in their last two games.

Young head coach Brad Larsen played for the Portland Pirates in 2009-10 before retiring to advance into coaching and is an early candidate for AHL Coach of the Year honors in his first season at the helm. He also played several seasons for the Colorado Avalanche and Hershey Bears as well as Atlanta and the Chicago Wolves.

Jonathan Audy-Marchessault - 16-33-49. Quebec City native in second season as a pro. 2nd on Connecticut Whale last year with 24 goals and first with 40 assists.

Nick Drazenovic - 16-30-46. Former St. Louis Blues prospect in 6th pro season and 2nd with Springfield.

Ryan Craig - 16-23-39. Captain of Springfield and formerly captain of WBS Penguins returns to the Falcons where he played in 2004-05 and 2005-06. Had career high 27 goals in 04-05. 190 NHL games mostly with Tampa Bay.

Bryan Helmer - 0-1-1. 40-year-old AHL vet whose career began with the Albany River Rats for five seasons from 1993-94 through 1997-98. Back-to-back Calder Cups with Hershey in 2009 and 2010.

Curtis McElhinney - 21-10-2, 2.38, .922, 7 shutouts to lead the AHL and set all-time Springfield Falcons single-season record.

Bridgeport Sound Tigers, 22-23-7 (New York Islanders) - Saturday, March 2, (7:00)

Adirondack is 2-0-1 against Bridgeport this year and 2-0-0 at Webster Bank Arena. This is game 4 out of 6 in the season series and is the Phantoms' last visit to Bridgeport, Connecticut. The last game between the Phantoms and Sound Tigers was on December 31 in Glens Falls in which Adirondack overcame a 3-0 deficit to the score and earn a standings point before eventually falling in a shootout.

The Sound Tigers are on a 6-game winless streak going 0-4-2 since February 15.

Bridgeport has the worst defense in the league allowing 3.35 goals per game to rate dead last out of 30 teams.

Record - 22-23-7, 51 points
Standings - 4th place (Northeast Division)
Home Arena - Webster Bank Arena
Head Coach - Scott Pellerin
Offense - 2.98 goals per game, 11th (out of 30)
Defense - 3.35, 30th
Power Play - 19.2%, 9th
Penalty Kill - 80.6%, 24th

Rick DiPietro - The most famous Bridgeport Sound Tiger has not yet played a game for them this year. DiPietro was assigned last week by the New York Islanders and could make his AHL season-debut this weekend. The #1 overall pick in the draft in 2000 out of Boston University has a career NHL record of 130-133-8-28, 2.86, .903 with the Islanders. This season, he went 0-3 in three games for New York with a 4.09 goals-against. He last suited up for Bridgeport in 2009-10 playing in four games going 1-2. His last AHL win was December 19, 2009 at Springfield and his last AHL game was January 3, 2010 vs. the Worcester Sharks in a loss.

Head Coach Scott Pellerin - 1992 Hobey Baker Award winner from the University of Maine might be remembered by long-time fans in the area when he played for the Albany River Rats for three seasons including on their Calder Cup Championship team in 1995. He also played in 536 career NHL games mostly with New Jersey and St. Louis. In first season as AHL head coach after serving as an assistant coach with Manchester for six years.

Nino Niederreiter - 22-17-39. 20 year old Swiss prospect. 5th overall pick in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft while Philadelphia's Brayden Schenn was the fifth overall selection in the 2009 draft (by the Los Angeles Kings). 55 games with Islanders last year scoring 1 goal. 41 goals with Portland (WHL) in 2010-11.

Brock Nelson, 14-19-33. Another 2010 first-rounder (30th overall). Joined the team last season out of the University of North Dakota.

Aaron Ness, 2-18-20. In second full season with Bridgeport. Second-round pick in 2008 out of the University of Minnesota.

Albany Devils, 22-19-10 (New Jersey Devils) - Sunday, March 3rd (3:00) at Glens Falls

Devils lead season series 6 games to 3 and have clinched the Time Warner Cable Cup by virtue of holding tie-breaker advantage. This is Game 10 out of 12.

Phantoms won last meeting over Albany 4-2 on February 15 at GFCC.

Albany is on a 2-game win streak and have gone 5-4-1 in last 10 games.

Record - 22-19-10
Division - 3rd place (Northeast Division), 10th place (Eastern Conference)
Head Coach - Rick Kowalsky (3rd season)
Home Arena - Times Union Center
Offense - 2.71, 18th (out of 30)
Defense - 2.9, 21st
Power Play - 12.0%, 28th
Penalty Kill - 82.4%, 19th

Matt Anderson - 11-23-34. Leading scorer. Named CCM/AHL Player of Week a couple of weeks ago with 3 goals, 4 assists. Career high 23 goals in 2010-11 led Devils. U-Mass Amherst product and former Chicago Wolf in 6th year as pro.

Joe Whitney - 16-15-31. Diminutive Boston College product in second pro season checks in at just 5'6". 15 goals last year as a rookie.

Steve Zalewski - 10-21-31. Utica native and former Worcester Shark out of Clarkson Univ. 19 goals last year with Albany. Career-high 22 goals in 2009-10 with Worcester Sharks.

Goalie Keith Kinkaid, 2nd year pro out of Union has been recalled to New Jersey as Martin Brodeur is sidelined with a sore back.

Jeff Frazee - 5-9-4, 2.42, .915. 5th year pro, Round 2 selection (#38 overall) out of University of Minnesota.


Community

Marc-Andre Bourdon and Matt Mangene served them up at Dango's in Saratoga on Tuesday as guest celebrity bartenders. Thanks, guys!

Also appearing this week were Cullen Eddy and Shane Harper at Dango's-Dugout in South Glens Falls and also Zack FitzGerald and Matt Konan and Youth Hockey Practice.

And Dax entertained the gang at Johnny Rockets last Monday where they had lots of appetizer and drink specials. He even tried his hand at the big-screen Wii.

Here are some pics from the previous week with Cal Heeter and Jon Sim having a blast helping out the kids.

Thanks guys, the kids loved it!
Left to right in last pic: Marcel Noebels, Jon Sim, Cal Heeter, Andrew Johnston.


UPCOMING

Friday, March 1 (6:05) - Adirondack Phantoms 2 at Springfield Falcons 1 (Completion of Suspended Game)

Friday, March 1 (7:30) - Adirondack Phantoms at Springfield Falcons (Full Game)

Saturday, March 2 (7:00) - Adirondack Phantoms at Bridgeport Sound Tigers

Sunday, March 3 (3:00) - Albany Devils at Adirondack Phantoms - Presented by Trustco Bank. Post-Game Photo Session with all the players! Sunday Family 3-Pack for only $43 - Exceptional Value!

Monday, March 4 (7:00) - Phantoms Power Hour on Q1017. With special player guest Andreas Lilja

Friday, March 8 (7:00) - Springfield Falcons at Adirondack Phantoms. $2 Draft Beer Specials

Saturday, March 9 (7:00) - Connecticut Whale at Adirondack Phantoms. Phantoms T-Shirts for first 2,500 fans

Phantoms Have You Covered
We have all the latest interviews, game-recaps, videos and more. Make sure you're keeping up! Follow the Phantoms and join our online communities on facebook.com/adkhockey and on twitter @phantomshockey. And, of course, check in frequently at our official team website at phantomshockey.com