Phantoms Weekly

Canadian Roadie

November 2, 2026

Allentown, PA – The Lehigh Valley Phantoms (4-5-1) head north for a three-game road swing through Canada this week. The Phantoms are looking to put a pair of setbacks behind them as they aim to get back on track with their stretch to Laval, Belleville, and Hamilton.

The Phantoms have been bolstered by several arrivals from the Philadelphia Flyers including the recent additions of Alex Bump and Hunter McDonald.

Fans can browse rosters and Media Materials for upcoming games here: https://www.phantomshockey.com/media/media-materials/

LAST WEEK
Friday, October 30 – Phantoms 3 at Rochester Americans 6
Sunday, November 1 – Providence Bruins 8 at Phantoms 0

THE WEEK AHEAD
Wednesday, November 4 (7:00) – Phantoms at Laval Rocket (MTL)
Friday, November 6 (7:00) – Phantoms at Belleville Senators (OTT)
Saturday, November 7 (7:00) – Phantoms at Hamilton Hammers (NYI)

WEEKLY RECAP
Friday, October 30, 2026
Lehigh Valley Phantoms 3 at Rochester Americans 6
The Lehigh Valley Phantoms were not able to overcome an early deficit as they closed out the month of October and sustained their first away loss of the season, 6-3, at Rochester. Lehigh Valley received goals from Zayde Wisdom (2nd), Zach Aston-Reese (1st) and Nolan Foote (2nd). But Jason Polin (4th, 5th) paced the attack with a two-goal effort for Rochester while veteran Matthew Peca (5th) racked up three points on a goal and two assists to propel the Amerks. Jake Richard (3rd) gave the Amerks early momentum with the fastest goal allowed by Lehigh Valley this season just 2:03 into the game. The Amerks were 2-for-4 on the power play while the Phantoms were 0-for-2. Rochester outshot Lehigh Valley 30-22. Trailing 4-1 in the third, Aston-Reese scored a shorthanded goal on a blind backhand off a rebound initially set up by Jack Studnicka. But the Amerks scored back-to-back shortly after that to put the game away.

Sunday, November 1, 2026
Lehigh Valley Phantoms 0 – Providence Bruins 8
Sometimes it isn’t your day. Alex Steeves recorded five points with a goal and four assists as the Providence Bruins overwhelmed the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in an 8-0 decision on a “Haunted on Hamilton” Sunday afternoon at PPL Center. Brendan Gaunce scored twice while six other Bruins found the back of the net, capped by Dans Locmelis scoring his first of the season to conclude the scoring as Providence extended its winning streak to three games. Aleksei Kolosov faced 31 shots in the setback as Lehigh Valley was shut out for the first time this season. Kolosov made one of the best saves in PPL Center history with his scorpion-style left-leg lift in the second period to rob Locmelis on the backdoor. He also denied Alex Steeves on a third-period penalty shot. The margin equaled the worst loss in Lehigh Valley history and was the first time the Phantoms had lost by eight goals since 2017 in a 9-1 decision also against Providence. Fans delighted in the Haunted on Hamilton fun including Pumkpin Painting and Trick-or-Treating plus the annual costume parade on the ice.

TRANSACTIONS –
Oct 29, 2026 – Add Jacob Gaucher (F) – Loaned to Phantoms by PHI
Oct 31, 2026 – Add Hunter McDonald (D) – Loaned to Phantoms by PHI
Nov 2, 2026 – Add Alex Bump (F) – Loaned to Phantoms by PHI

BUMP IN THE NIGHT – The Philadelphia Flyers have returned forward Alex Bump to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. Bump, 22 has played in eight games with the Flyers this season and also played in 17 games with Philadelphia last year scoring 5-4-9 while also registering two goals in six postseason games. He had a massive eight-day stretch with the Phantoms in October in which he racked up a five-game goal streak with seven goals. He had back-to-back two-goal games in Springfield, culminating the torrid run with the overtime winner in Lehigh Valley’s third straight win to earn AHL Player of the Week honors before his recall to the Flyers on October 19. Bump will carry his five-game goal streak into the team’s next game at the Laval Rocket on Wednesday with a chance to tie the all-time Lehigh Valley record six-game goal streak accomplished by Petr Straka and Danick Martel. The franchise record is a seven-game goal streak by Mike Maneluk and Shawn McCosh of the Philadelphia Phantoms.

MAC ATTACK – The Philadelphia Flyers have returned defenseman Hunter McDonald to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. McDonald played in five games with the Flyers since his recall two weeks ago, getting in two fights, laying out several big hits, and generally playing hard-nosed defense in the longest NHL stint of his career. The Fairport, NY native had only played in one career NHL game at the end of last season prior to his most recent opportunity. McDonald, 24, is in his third full season of professional hockey. The 6-foot-4, 238-pound defenseman has played in seven games with the Phantoms this season scoring 1-2-3. The Flyers’ sixth-round selection in 2022 out of Northeastern University has played 154 career AHL games recording 5-25-30.

WORDS OF WISDOM – Forward Zayde Wisdom has gone from the youngest player in Phantoms franchise history in 2021 to a veteran leader and frequent alternate captain while scoring 41-51-92 in his career with the Orange and Black.
Now in his sixth season with the team, Wisdom moved into third all-time in games played with the Phantoms passing Chris Conner on Sunday when we suited up for his 266th career game with Lehigh Valley. Wisdom now trails only Greg Carey (277) and Garrett Wilson (345). Not only can Wisdom catch Greg Carey for second all-time in Lehigh Valley history but he also has an opportunity this season to become just the seventh player in franchise history to reach 300 games with the Phantoms.

GAMES – Lehigh Valley
1. GARRETT WILSON 344
2. Greg Carey 277
3. ZAYDE WISDOM 265
4. Chris Conner 265
5. Colin McDonald 248

UPCOMING MILESTONES
Jacob Gaucher – 99 Points with Phantoms
Zack Aston-Reese – 197 Pro Points
Zayde Wisdom – 97 Pro Points
Cam Dineen – 393 AHL Games
John Snowden – 97 Pro Coaching Wins

UPCOMING –
Wednesday, November 4 (7:00)
Place Bell, Laval, Quebec
Lehigh Valley Phantoms at Laval Rocket
Laval (8-3-0) is in familiar territory yet again, at the top of the division. The Rocket feature a league-leading power play clicking at 29.2% and an impressive 14 man-advantage goals in just 11 games. The two-time North Division champs are paced by rookie defenseman Luke Mittelstadt (5-11-16), brother of Casey Mittlestadt of the Boston Bruins, who stunningly leads the AHL in scoring. Not bad for a seventh-rounder who only had 11 career goals in four years at the University of Minnesota.
Former Utica Comet and Providence Bruins Reilly Walsh (5-8-13) is also among the league’s top-scoring blueliners. Sasha Pastujov (6-5-11) arrived from San Diego to lead the Rocket in goals with all six coming on the power play while 31-year-old veteran center Laurent Dauphin (1-11-12) is thriving again in his third season with the team after racking up 15-44-59 last year. 2023 fifth-overall selection David Reinbacher (1-3-4) from Austria garners the media hype and 2022 second-rounder Owen Beck has been recalled to Montreal. Head coach Pascal Vincent has moved on to accept an assistant coaching position with Seattle. Daniel Jacob has stepped up from assistant coach to head coach.

Friday, November 6 (7:00)
CAA Arena, Belleville, ON
Lehigh Valley Phantoms vs. Belleville Senators
Belleville (5-5-2) snapped a three-game losing streak with a 4-1 win over Toronto on Sunday after falling 4-1 to Hartford on Friday. The Senators were also shut out 2-0 by Aleksei Kolosov and the Phantoms on October 25. Kasper Halttunen (9-3-12) erupted for his second hat trick of the season against Toronto with all three goals coming on the power play. The 21-year-old Finnish winger, a San Jose second-rounder in 2023, arrived in the blockbuster William Eklund trade last summer and is tied for second in the AHL in goals. Belleville has lost its top two scorers to NHL recalls with former Phantom Phil Tomasino (4-7-11) and Xavier Bourgault (3-6-9) both joining Ottawa on October 30. Former Phantoms defenseman Christian Kyrou (0-7-7) scored 10-24-34 in 55 games for Lehigh Valley last season. Former Carolina first-rounder Ryan Suzuki (3-6-9), younger brother of Montreal captain Nick Suzuki, is in his first season with Belleville. Ottawa 2021 first-round selection Tyler Boucher (3-3-6) is the son of former Phantoms and Flyers goalie Brian Boucher. The 23-year-old has battled injuries throughout his development, playing just 115 AHL games over his first three seasons. Belleville head coach Andrew Campbell, a former AHL captain with Manchester, Toronto and Tucson, is in his first full season behind the Senators bench after taking over on an interim basis last December.

Saturday, November 7 (7:00)
TD Coliseum, Hamilton, ON
Lehigh Valley Phantoms at Hamilton Hammers
The Hamilton Hammers (3-7-2) are finding the going tough in their inaugural season as the new AHL affiliate of the New York Islanders. Hamilton. The Hammers were hammered 7-0 at Syracuse on Friday before earning a point in a 3-2 shootout loss at Utica on Sunday behind 35 saves from rookie Josh Kotai. The former Augustana University standout was the CCHA Player of the Year last season. Hamilton captain Matthew Highmore (4-2-6) scored the overtime winner in a 5-4 victory over Hartford on October 29. The Hammers are coached by former Buffalo Sabres defenseman Jay McKee, who played 802 NHL games and guided the Brantford Bulldogs to the best record in the OHL last season. Former Columbus first-rounder Liam Foudy (3-8-11) leads Hamilton in scoring after collecting 26 goals with Bridgeport last season. The Hammers feature several highly regarded Islanders prospects including 2024 first-rounder Cole Eiserman (2-4-6), a Boston University product who scored a record 127 goals in 119 games with the U.S. National Team Development Program. Rookie defenseman Kashawn Aitcheson, selected 17th overall in 2025, scored 28 goals last season with the Barrie Colts. Veteran Pierre Engvall (2-5-7) returns after missing all of last season due to injury while former NHL defenseman Ethan Bear (2-4-6) adds experience on the blue line. Goaltender Vitek Vanecek has more than 300 games of NHL experience with Washington, New Jersey, San Jose, Florida and Utah.

Phantoms Scoring Leaders
Jacob Gaucher 4-5-9
x – Alex Bump 7-1-8
Jett Luchanko 1-5-6
Jack Studnicka 3-2-5
Cam Dineen 2-3-5
Spencer Gill 0-4-4
Ty Murchison 0-4-4

Atlantic Division Standings:
1. Charlotte8-4-0 = 16
2. Hartford 6-6-1 = 13
3. Hershey 6-4-0 = 12
4. W-B/Scranton 5-4-1 = 11
5. Providence 5-6-0 = 10
6. Lehigh Valley 4-5-1 = 9
6. Springfield 3-4-3 = 0

NEXT UP –
The Phantoms embark on a three-game Canadian road-swing beginning Wednesday, November 4 at the first-place Laval Rocket and continuing Friday, November 6 at the Belleville Senators and Saturday, November 7 at the Hamilton Hammers.

The Phantoms return to PPL Center for their special Friday the 13th promotion against the Hamilton Hammers and are also at home on Saturday, November 14th against the Charlotte Checkers on Hockey is for Everyone Night.

Nov

Sun 3:05 PM