December 22, 2014
This Week
Friday, December 26 (7:00 PM) – Lehigh Valley Phantoms @ Hershey Bears
Saturday, December 27 (7:05 PM) – Norfolk Admirals @ Lehigh Valley Phantoms
(Post-Game Photographs On The Ice With Phantoms Players!)
Upcoming
After a well-deserved holiday break, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms return to action this weekend for a pair of showdowns against East Division rivals.
After an extremely productive week in which the Phantoms claimed five of a possible six standings points, Lehigh Valley (13-10-4-1, 31 pts.) returns to the frozen surface this Friday evening when the team heads to Hershey for a rivalry showdown with the Bears. Hershey (14-11-3-1, 32 pts.) enters the week in sole possession of second place in the East Division but just one point clear of the third-place Phantoms who still hold a game-in-hand on the Bears. Lehigh Valley enters the week in the midst of a season-high five-game point streak (3-0-2) while Hershey will be looking to snap a three-game winless skid (0-1-2). Friday’s tilt marks the fifth of 12 total meetings during the 2014-2015 regular season between the Phantoms and Bears with Lehigh Valley holding a 3-1 record head-to-head against Hershey. The home team has won each of the first four head-to-head meetings between the in-state rivals.
The Phantoms then return home to PPL Center on Saturday when they welcome the Norfolk Admirals to town for just the second time this season. Norfolk (12-17-0-0, 24 pts.) currently ranks fifth among the five teams in the East Division and enters the week seven standings points behind the third-place Phantoms after claiming three of its last five outings. Saturday’s tilt will be just the second of eight total meetings between the Phantoms and Norfolk during the 2014-2015 regular season after Lehigh Valley claimed the opener with a 4-3 triumph at PPL Center back on November 29th.
Saturday’s match-up also features a post-game photograph session with Phantoms players! Fans will have the opportunity to go down onto the ice and get pictures with their favorite Phantoms players. The photograph session will begin approximately 20 minutes following the conclusion of Saturday’s game and will last 45 minutes. Fans are required to provide their own cameras.
A limited number of tickets for Saturday’s highly-anticipated showdown, which includes free entry to the post-game photograph session, are available now at the Mealey’s Furniture Box Office at PPL Center (701 Hamilton), by calling 610-347-TIXX (8499) or online at pplcenter.com.
Phantoms By The Numbers
Lehigh Valley is 9-2-2-1 at PPL Center this season and has outscored its opposition 39-30 on home ice. The Phantoms are tied for the fourth-most home wins (nine) in the Eastern Conference and boast the AHL’s second-fewest regulation losses (two) at home.
- The Phantoms are 7-2-4-1 in one-goal games this season. Lehigh Valley has already enjoyed nine one-goal decisions at PPL Center (5-1-2-1) this season and is 4-5 overall in games decided in overtime/shootout.
- Lehigh Valley is 11-1-1 when scoring three or more goals this season. Meanwhile, the Phantoms are 12-5-3-1 when limiting their opposition to three goals or fewer.
- The Phantoms are 8-3-2-1 when scoring first this season and are undefeated in regulation time (11-0-0-1) when leading after two periods of play.
- Defenseman Brandon Manning leads all Phantoms in both assists (14) and total points (20). He’s also first among all Lehigh Valley skaters in power play points (nine), game-winning goals (three) and shots on goal (80).
Last Week
Wednesday, December 17: Binghamton Senators 3 – Lehigh Valley Phantoms 5
Petr Straka, Jason Akeson and Andrew Gordon combined to score three goals in just 21 seconds in the opening 36 seconds of Wednesday’s contest at PPL Center en route to a 5-3 victory over the Binghamton Senators. The feat, which matched an AHL record and established a new franchise mark for the fastest three goals scored by a single team, kick started Lehigh Valley’s offense which received a pair of power play conversions from Nick Cousins before the night was through.
Rob Zepp earned the victory in goal for the Phantoms as he registered the third 40-save performance (41 saves) by a Lehigh Valley netminder this season. The Phantoms went 2-for-6 on the power play as well as Lehigh Valley improved its record when scoring a man-advantage marker this season to 9-4.
Friday, December 19: Hershey Bears 0 – Lehigh Valley Phantoms 2
Anthony Stolarz registered his second professional shutout with a 32-save blanking of the rival Hershey Bears as part of a 2-0 triumph at PPL Center. Jason Akeson provided the offense for Lehigh Valley with his fifth and sixth goals of the season as the Phantoms improved to an impressive 9-2-2-1 at home.
Lehigh Valley’s penalty kill rose to the occasion as it went a perfect 2-for-2 in the contest while producing its third shorthanded conversion of the year. The victory was Stolarz’s fourth consecutive triumph over his last four starts between the pipes.
Saturday, December 20: Lehigh Valley Phantoms 1 – Hartford Wolf Pack 2 (OT)
The Phantoms opened the scoring for the third straight game as Zack Stortini punched in his fourth goal of the season but the Hartford Wolf Pack were able to level the game just past the midway point of regulation before landing the game-winner with just over two minutes remaining in overtime as Lehigh Valley extended its point streak to a season-high five games with a 2-1 overtime setback.
Nick Cousins and Taylor Leier earned assists in the contest while Anthony Stolarz registered 24 saves on 26 Hartford shots as the Phantoms claimed five of a possible six points during their busy three-game week. Lehigh Valley’s penalty kill was a perfect 4-for-4 against the Wolf Pack.
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 in high definition with Steve Degler and former Flyers and Phantoms goaltender Brian Boucher! And don’t miss “Phantoms – Breaking the Ice” every Monday from 7:00 – 8:00 PM throughout the season live at Chickie’s & Pete’s (701 Hamilton Street)!
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. Nazareth Pallett Countdown to Faceoff begins 45 minutes prior to puck drop.
Ticket Information
Tickets for all of the Phantoms’ 24 remaining regular season home games, including this Saturday’s highly-anticipated showdown, are on sale now at the Mealey’s Furniture Box Office at PPL Center (7th & Hamilton), by calling 610-347-TIXX (8499) or online at pplcenter.com.
Check it out! 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 affordable partial-season plans by calling 610-224-GOAL (4625).
In their 19th season of operation, the Phantoms are currently in the midst of their Inaugural Season as the Lehigh Valley Phantoms playing at the brand-new 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).
