April 4, 2017
This Week
Wednesday, April 5 (7:05 p.m.) – Hershey Bears @ Lehigh Valley Phantoms
Friday, April 7 (7:05 p.m.) – Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins @ Lehigh Valley Phantoms
Saturday, April 8 (7:05 p.m.) – Springfield Thunderbirds @ Lehigh Valley Phantoms
(Phantoms Wall Cling Giveaway Presented by PSECU. Free to First 2,500 Kids 14 and Under.)
(Canned Food Drive Presented by Giant Food Stores.)
Upcoming
Coming off a 4-2 win over the Hershey Bears on Sunday, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms (44-22-4, 92 pts., 2nd Atlantic Division) continue to charge closer and closer to securing a berth in the 2017 Calder Cup Playoffs. The Phantoms’ magic number (standings points needed to guarantee a postseason berth) currently stands at just six with a trio of highly-anticipated tilts at PPL Center set for the coming week.
Lehigh Valley returns to action this Wednesday, April 5 as it welcomes the Bears to PPL Center for the final time this season. Hershey (38-22-11, 87 pts., 5th Atlantic Division) is coming off a tough week in which it dropped three games in the span of just three days. After a 3-0 shutout at the Hartford Wolf Pack on Friday, the Bears returned home only to absorb a 4-2 setback to the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Saturday followed by a 4-2 defeat at the hands of the Phantoms on Sunday.
Wednesday’s contest will be the 12th and final meeting of the 2016-17 regular season between Lehigh Valley and Hershey with the Phantoms having posted an impressive 7-4 mark against their in-state rivals. Lehigh Valley has won three straight head-to-head collisions and has outscored the Bears 38-30 in 11 previous meetings.
A limited number of tickets remain for Wednesday’s game and can be purchased online HERE.
The Phantoms then continue this week’s action on Friday, April 7 when they host the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins at PPL Center for the final time this regular season. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (47-19-4, 98 pts., 1st Atlantic Division) enters the week atop the Atlantic Division standings as the Penguins continue to boast the most wins (47) and standings points (98) in the entire American Hockey League. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton has won six of its last seven games overall and was the first Eastern Conference team to clinch a berth in the 2017 Calder Cup Playoffs thanks to a pair of victories in three outings last weekend.
Friday’s game will mark the 11th of 12 total meetings this season between the Phantoms and Penguins with Lehigh Valley having gone 4-5-1 in 11 prior head-to-head clashes with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. The Phantoms are 2-2-1 against the Penguins in games played at PPL Center this season.
A limited number of tickets remain for Friday’s game and can be purchased online HERE.
Lehigh Valley then wraps up this week’s three-game home stand on Saturday, April 8 when the Springfield Thunderbirds, AHL affiliate of the Florida Panthers, invade PPL Center. Springfield (29-30-11, 69 pts., 6th Atlantic Division) won two of three games last week but enters the week having dropped four of its last six games overall. After a 3-2 setback against Bridgeport last Wednesday, the Thunderbirds rebounded with a 3-1 triumph over Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Friday followed by a 3-2 win against the Providence Bruins on Saturday.
This Saturday’s clash will be the sixth and final meeting of the 2016-17 regular season between Lehigh Valley and Springfield with the Phantoms having posted a 4-1 mark against the Thunderbirds to date. Lehigh Valley is 2-0 in two prior head-to-head meetings at PPL Center while the Phantoms have outscored Springfield 22-18 in the season series.
Saturday’s game features a Phantoms Wall Cling Giveaway free to the first 2,500 kids 14 and under presented by PSECU. Saturday’s game also is the team’s annual Canned Food Drive presented by Giant Food Stores. A limited number of tickets remain for Saturday’s game and can be purchased online HERE.
- Phantoms By The Numbers
- With 243 goals this season, the Phantoms are first among all 30 AHL clubs in goals scored this year. What’s more, Lehigh Valley continues to lead the Eastern Conference averaging 3.47 goals per game.
With Sunday’s 4-2 victory in Hershey, the Phantoms earned their league-leading 23rd road win this season. Lehigh Valley is an impressive 23-12-1 on the road this year and leads all AHL clubs with 115 road goals scored.- The Phantoms are 21-10-3 at home this season and have outscored their opposition 128-104 in games played at PPL Center. Lehigh Valley enters the week tsecond among all Eastern Conference clubs in goals scored on home ice. What’s more, Phantoms fans have produced 16 standing room-only sellouts this season and have generated capacity crowds in eight of Lehigh Valley’s last 12 home games.
- Defenseman T.J. Brennan enters the week leading all Phantoms and is tied for second among all AHL blueliners in scoring with 55 points (20 goals, 35 assists). He currently leads all AHL defenders in goals (20) and power play goals (11) and is second in both shots on goal (201) and man-advantage points (27).
- Thanks to his impressive four-point game (3 goals, assist) in Hershey last Sunday, Chris Conner (right) moved into second place on Lehigh Valley’s roster in total scoring with 54 points (22 goals, 32 assists). Conner’s 22 conversions is a new career high for the 33-year-old winger who has now produced five 50-point AHL campaigns during his impressive career.
- With Brennan (55 points), Conner (54 points) and Andy Miele (52 points), the Phantoms are one of just three AHL clubs (along with Grand Rapids and Hershey) to feature three 50-point producers this season.
Last Week
Friday, March 31: Bridgeport Sound Tigers 3 – Lehigh Valley Phantoms 1
Colin McDonald netted his 23rd goal of the season and Anthony Stolarz turned in an impressive 34-save performance but the visiting Bridgeport Sound Tigers were able to escape PPL Center with a 3-1 win in front of 7,666 rabid Lehigh Valley fans. Travis Sanheim and Mark Zengerle collected assists on McDonald’s marker as Lehigh Valley moved to 21-10-3 on home ice this season.
Saturday, April 1: Lehigh Valley Phantoms 0 – Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 3
Lehigh Valley goaltenders Alex Lyon and Martin Ouellette combined for 42 saves on 45 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins but it was the Penguins who were able to earn a 3-0 victory over the Phantoms inside Mohegan Sun Arena. Lyon recorded a 34-save performance while Ouellette turned aside each of the eight shots he faced following Anthony’s Stolarz’s recall to the Philadelphia Flyers.
Derrick Pouliot (7th), Frank Corrado (2nd) and Troy Josephs (1st) provided the offense for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in support of netminder Casey DeSmith who earned the shutout after denying each of Lehigh Valley’s 26 total offerings.
Sunday, April 2: Lehigh Valley Phantoms 4 – Hershey Bears 2
Chris Conner recorded the ninth hat trick in Lehigh Valley Phantoms history as part of an impressive four-point game (3 goals, assist) as the Phantoms doubled up the Hershey Bears 4-2 inside Giant Center. Greg Carey also found the back of the net for Lehigh Valley with his team-leading 27th goal of the year. Meanwhile, Conner’s conversions were his 20th, 21st and 22nd of the season as he moved into second place on Lehigh Valley’s roster in total scoring with 54 points (22 goals, 32 assists).
Alex Lyon earned his 25th win of the season after turning aside 32 of Hershey’s 34 total shots.
Broadcast Coverage
Service Electric’s TV2 Sports will be broadcasting live all of the Phantoms’ four 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, Todd Fedoruk, 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 1470-AM WSAN, 790-AM WAEB 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 each of the Phantoms’ four remaining regular season home games are available now online at pplcenter.com, by calling 610-347-TIXX [8499] or in-person at the PPL Center Box Office [7th & Hamilton].
