December 15, 2015
This Week
Wednesday, December 16 (7:05 p.m.) – WB/Scranton Penguins @ Lehigh Valley Phantoms
(Military Appreciation Night.)
Friday, December 18 (7:05 p.m.) – Hershey Bears @ Lehigh Valley Phantoms
(Game Presented by PPL. Youth Winter Hat Giveaway to First 2,500 Kids 14 and Under Presented by PPL Corporation.)
Saturday, December 19 (7:05 p.m.) – Lehigh Valley Phantoms @ Binghamton Senators
Upcoming
Coming off a pair of wins in three games to kick off a five-game stretch at PPL Center, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms (13-13-1-0, 27 pts.) continue their holiday home stand with a pair of rivalry showdowns in downtown Allentown this week. The Phantoms do so in fourth place in the Atlantic Division with the top four teams in each division set to qualify for the 2016 Calder Cup playoffs.
First, on Wednesday, December 16, Lehigh Valley welcomes the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins back to PPL Center. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (19-5-0-0, 38 pts.) enters the week atop the Atlantic Division and with the highest points percentage (.792) in the American Hockey League. The Penguins claimed each of their three games last week, including back-to-back 4-0 shutout victories over the Phantoms and Albany Devils on Friday and Saturday after Wilkes-Barre/Scranton opened the week with a 6-2 triumph over the Syracuse Crunch.
Wednesday’s contest, which is Military Appreciation Night at PPL Center, marks the fourth of 12 total meetings during the 2015-2016 regular season between the Phantoms and Penguins and the second to take place in downtown Allentown.
Then, on Friday, December 18, Lehigh Valley concludes its season-high five-game home stand in a tilt against the Hershey Bears. Hershey (14-6-1-5, 34 pts.) enters the week second in the Atlantic Division and earned a pair of victories in three outings a week ago. After falling in a 3-2 overtime decision in downtown Allentown on Wednesday, the Bears responded with a 5-2 win at home over the Binghamton Senators on Friday followed by a 2-1 shootout victory at the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Saturday. Hershey enters the week having won four of its last five games overall.
Friday’s collision will mark the sixth of 12 total meetings this year between the Phantoms and Bears with Lehigh Valley holding a 3-2 mark against its in-state rival.
Friday’s game, which is presented by PPL, will also feature a Youth Winter Hat Giveaway presented by PPL Corporation where the first 2,500 kids 14 and under will receive a free Phantoms youth winter hat.
Tickets for both games this week, along with each of the Phantoms’ 24 remaining home games, are currently available at pplcenter.com, by calling 610-347-TIXX [8499] or in-person at the Mealey’s Furniture Box Office at PPL Center [701 Hamilton Street].
Lehigh Valley then plays its final game before the AHL’s holiday break on Saturday, December 19 when the Phantoms travel to Binghamton for a 7:05 p.m. showdown with the Senators. Binghamton (6-15-2-0, 14 pts.) is currently seventh among the seven teams in the North Division and enters the week having dropped seven of its last eight games overall. In just two games last week, the Senators lost a 4-3 decision at the Springfield Falcons on Friday before falling in a 5-3 loss in Hershey on Saturday.
Saturday’s contest will mark the third of eight total meetings during the 2015-16 regular season between Lehigh Valley and Binghamton with the two sides having split the first two meetings. After dropping a 4-1 decision at home on November 8, the Phantoms rebounded in the season series with a 6-3 victory just three days late.
- Phantoms By The Numbers
- Center Nick Cousins enters the week first among all Phantoms and tied for 10th among all AHL skaters in total scoring with 22 points (7 goals, 15 assists). The 22-year-old center from Belleville, Ontario has managed at least one point in 14 of 19 games this season and has already produced six multi-point outings.
- Forward Petr Straka enters the week tied with Texas Stars forward Devin Shore for the AHL lead with 15 goals. In just 27 games this year, Straka has already surpassed his 68-game goal total from a season ago.
- Forward Danick Martel enters the week third among all AHL rookies with 10 goals and tied for 11th among all first-year AHLers in total scoring with 15 points. The Phantoms are 9-1 this season when Martel finds the back of the net.
- Lehigh Valley enters the week as the AHL’s ninth-highest scoring offense averaging 2.96 goals per game.
Last Week
Wednesday, December 9: Hershey Bears 2 – Lehigh Valley Phantoms 3 (OT)
Petr Straka and Danick Martel netted equalizing tallies in the third period before Nick Cousins buried the overtime winner in a come-from-behind 3-2 triumph over the Hershey Bears at PPL Center. Martel (goal, assist) and Taylor Leier (2 assists) registered multi-point efforts in the victory while Anthony Stolarz backstopped the win with 19 saves on 21 Hershey shots.
Friday, December 11: WB/Scranton Penguins 4 – Lehigh Valley Phantoms 0
The Phantoms limited the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins to a season-low 20 shots on goal, but it wasn’t enough as the Penguins were able to outlast Lehigh Valley 4-0 at PPL Center. Dominik Simon and Scott Wilson each scored twice for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton while Matt Murray earned his fourth shutout of the season as he turned away each of the Phantoms’ 23 total shots on goal.
Saturday, December 12: Springfield Falcons 4 – Lehigh Valley Phantoms 5 (SO)
Andrew MacDonald scored twice in regulation before Taylor Leier and Petr Straka capped a dramatic 5-4 shootout win over the Springfield Falcons in front of a standing room-only crowd of 8,439 fans at PPL Center on Saturday. Leier also converted in regulation, as did Danick Martel, as Lehigh Valley garnered its 13th win of the season.
Anthony Stolarz backstopped the triumph with 33 saves in regulation and overtime before a perfect 2-for-2 performance in the shootout. The Phantoms also dominated the special teams going 2-for-5 on the power play alongside a perfect 5-for-5 display on the penalty kill.
Broadcast Coverage
Service Electric’s TV2 Sports will be broadcasting live all of the Phantoms’ 24 remaining regular season home games. 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, Peter Zingoni, Doug Heater and Kristi Fulkerson! Pre-game coverage begins with “Phantoms Front and Center” 30 minutes before puck drop. And don’t miss “Phantoms – Breaking the Ice” every Monday from 7:00 – 7:30 p.m. throughout the season live at Chickie’s & Pete’s at PPL Center!
Be sure to also catch each and every Phantoms game this season live on Fox Sports 1470 AM, online at Fox1470.com or via the iHeartRadio 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 all of the Phantoms’ 24 remaining regular season home games are available now online at pplcenter.com, by calling 610-347-TIXX [8499] or in-person at the Mealey’s Furniture Box Office at PPL Center (7th & Hamilton).
RISE UP! Don’t miss the action and fun of Lehigh Valley Phantoms hockey at PPL Center in downtown Allentown! Contact the Phantoms Front Office for information on season tickets and groups for the 2015-2016 season of Phantoms hockey by calling 610-224-GOAL [4625].
In the midst of their 20th season of operation, the Phantoms are coming off their Inaugural Season as the Lehigh Valley Phantoms playing at the state-of-the-art PPL Center. Established in 1996, the Philadelphia Phantoms spent their first 13 seasons at the Spectrum before re-locating to Glens Falls, New York in 2009 where the team spent the next five seasons as the Adirondack Phantoms. A new era of Phantoms hockey began in the fall of 2014 when the Lehigh Valley Phantoms began play at the state-of-the-art PPL Center. Through 18 incredibly successful campaigns, the Phantoms have captured two Calder Cup Championships (1998, 2005), two Conference Championships (1998, 2005), two Regular Season Titles (1996-97, 1997-98) and four Division Championships (1996-97, 1997-98, 1998-99, 2003-04).
