October 3, 2017
This Week
Saturday, October 7 (7:05 p.m.) – Hershey Bears @ Lehigh Valley Phantoms
(Opening Night! Free Rally Towel Giveaway to First 6,500 Fans in Attendance)
Sunday, October 8 (5:00 p.m.) – Lehigh Valley Phantoms @ Hartford Wolf Pack
Upcoming
The Lehigh Valley Phantoms kick off the 2017-2018 regular season with a pair of games this weekend, including Opening Night on Saturday, October 7 when they welcome the rival Hershey Bears to PPL Center. The Phantoms are coming off one of the strongest campaigns in franchise history as they were second in the 30-team American Hockey League (AHL) with 48 wins and tied for second with 101 standings points en route to the club’s 11th postseason berth in its 21-year history.
The action resumes this Saturday when Lehigh Valley hosts its in-state rivals, the Hershey Bears, in a 7:05 p.m. clash in downtown Allentown. Opening Night features a Rally Towel Giveaway free to the first 6,500 fans in attendance and only a limited number of tickets remain for Saturday’s season-opening clash and can be purchased online now by clicking HERE.
Saturday’s rivalry showdown will mark the first of 12 total meetings during the 2017-18 regular season between the Phantoms and Bears after Lehigh Valley posted a 7-4-1 head-to-head mark against its Pennsylvania foes a season ago.
The Phantoms then hit the road for the first time this season on Sunday, October 8 when they travel to the XL Center in Hartford for a 5:00 p.m. showdown with the Wolf Pack. Sunday’s collision will be the first of six total meetings between Lehigh Valley and Hartford this season after the Phantoms went 4-4 in eight get-togethers with the Wolf Pack last year.
Phantoms By The Numbers
With 260 total goals, the Phantoms led all AHL clubs in goals scored a season ago. Lehigh Valley boasted five 20-goal scorers last year including Greg Carey (28), Colin McDonald (25), Chris Conner (22), T.J. Brennan (21) and Danick Martel (20).- Defenseman T.J. Brennan led all Phantoms in scoring last season with 60 points (21 goals, 39 assists). That marked the third time in Brennan’s career in which he’s paced his team in scoring en route to the third AHL First All-Star Team nod of his career.
- Forward Greg Carey led all Lehigh Valley skaters and finished sixth among all AHLers with 28 goals last season. He also paced all Phantoms with 17 power play goals and 225 shots on goal last year.
- Over the last two seasons, forward Chris Conner has compiled 38 goals, 73 assists and 111 total points in 128 games with Lehigh Valley. He enters this season ranked 26th in Phantoms’ franchise history in total scoring.
Last Week
Friday, September 29: Charlotte Checkers 8 – Lehigh Valley Phantoms 1
Lehigh Valley Phantoms hockey officially returned to PPL Center last Friday evening when the Phantoms opened their preseason schedule in a clash with their newest Atlantic Division foes, the Charlotte Checkers – the AHL affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes. Former Adirondack Phantoms forward Derek Whitmore found the back of the net for Lehigh Valley with an assist from budding forward prospect Mikhail Vorobyev, who was a fourth-round selection by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft.
Saturday, September 30: Charlotte Checkers 5 – Lehigh Valley Phantoms 2
Chris Conner and Greg Carey both scored for the Phantoms but it was visiting Charlotte that was able to skate away with a 5-2 win in Lehigh Valley’s preseason finale. Conner and Carey were two of the Phantoms’ five 20-goals scorers from a season ago (along with Colin McDonald, T.J. Brennan and Danick Martel) who are all expected to be impactful players for Lehigh Valley again this year.
Broadcast Coverage
Service Electric’s TV2 Sports will be broadcasting live each of the Phantoms’ 38 home games throughout the 2017-2018 regular season. If you can’t make it out to the rink, be sure to catch all the exciting action live in HD quality with Steve Degler, Todd Fedoruk, Doug Heater and Kristi Fulkerson! Pre-game coverage begins with “Phantoms Front and Center” 30 minutes before puck drop.
Be sure to also catch each and every Phantoms game this season live on 1470-AM WSAN, 790-AM WAEB or via the iHeartRadio app and Phantoms365 app! Join Voice of the Phantoms, Bob Rotruck, for all of the heart-pumping action of Lehigh Valley Phantoms hockey whether the team is at home or on the road. “Countdown to Faceoff” begins 45 minutes prior to puck drop.
Ticket Information
Tickets for each and every Phantoms home game throughout the 2017-18 season are available online at pplcenter.com, by calling 610-347-TIXX [8499] or in-person at the QNB Box Office [7th & Hamilton].
