Phantoms Conclude Preseason
Snowden Continues Evaluations
September 29, 2026
Allentown, PA – The Lehigh Valley Phantoms wrapped up their preseason slate on Tuesday night fielding a mixed lineup of Opening Night starters as well as bubble players. A lack of success on special teams ultimately led to a 3-0 decision for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in the last of the exhibition tuneups.
“I thought there was a lot of moments in that game that we can teach from,” Phantoms head coach John Snowden said. “A lot of moments in the first game that were really positive. So we’ll build. I mean, at the end of the day…you get through today, and now the real stuff starts. And we got to spend the next three days really dialing in our systematical play, making sure everybody’s on the same page. Make sure everybody’s pushing the same way.”
‘The real stuff’ refers to the final decisions for the team’s Opening Night roster which will be submitted on Thursday afternoon. And the first of 72 regular-season games on Saturday against the Hartford Wolf Pack.
A Jack Studnicka breakaway was repelled by Penguins goaltender Joel Blomqvist early on. Other strong chances for Zayde Wisdom and Ilya Pautov were also fought off.
After an evenly played and scoreless first period that saw shots tied at 7-7, the Penguins started to take control. And both sides ramped up the aggression as well.
Noah Powell got in the first of his two fights. And Andrew Perrott mixed it up with Max Graham for his second fight in as many preseason games. It was good stuff from some hard-nosed competitors looking to catch Snowy’s attention.
But the Penguins were slowly gaining control as they racked up an 11-3 shots advantage in the middle frame.
Daniel Russell zipped up the left wing in open space to receive a cross-ice pass which he buried past Aleksei Kolosov for a 1-0 lead at 6:45 into the second.
Jake Livanavage rifled home a point-shot on the power play through traffic that beat relief goaltender Carson Bjarnason to make it 2-0 at 15:21.
Opportunity was knocking for the Phantoms to start the third with a generous five-minute major power play stemming from a Finn Harding tackle of Noah Powell at the end of the season period. Lehigh Valley generated some strong chances but 2024 AHL Rookie Team goaltender Blomqvist denied them all.
Lehigh Valley’s lineup was absent some key players who might normally be on the power play as well. Zack Aston-Reese and his 400+ NHL games was watching from the press box. As well Jett Luchanko, Oliver Bonk, Jacob Gaucher and Danila Klimovich among others.
Mikhail Ilyan closed out the scoring with a Penguins power-play goal at 6:40 of the third from the right side of the cage that he may have banked off the leg of Bjarnason.
Especially for the younger players who are new to the rigors of the American Hockey League, tonight’s contest was a wake-up call regarding how heavy the professional style of play can be. It was harder than the earlier preseason contest and the Rookie Series games. This one saw several experienced, veteran players on both sides showing how its done.
“I think for guys that haven’t played in the league,” Snowden said. “They got a little bit of a taste what it’s gonna be like. Obviously, come Saturday, it’s gonna be way heavier than that, because you’re going to get everybody’s best. Obviously, we had quite a few guys out alive tonight. That would be in the lineup come Saturday, and we’ll see what it looks like.”
The Penguins outshot the Phantoms 22-17. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton was 2-for-3 on the power play while Lehigh Valley was 0-for-4. The Phantoms and Penguins will continue their rivalry throughout the upcoming season with 12 scheduled encounters on the docket.
Next time out, we do it for real!! Opening Night for the 13th season of the Lehigh Valley Phantoms is this Saturday against the Hartford Wolf Pack. Come celebrate with us in an exciting atmosphere enhanced by rally towel and schedule poster giveaways!
Goals by Period
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Hartford Wolf Pack
