PREVIEW: Phantoms at Penguins, Game 5
TONIGHT – The Lehigh Valley Phantoms (3-1-0) conclude their three-game road trip at the undefeated Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (4-0-0), AHL affiliate of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Tonight is Game 5 of the 2025-26 regular season and is also Game 2 out of 12 in the season rivalry series.
Fans can browse rosters and Media Materials for tonight’s game here: Media Materials
LAST TIME – Veteran forward Carl Grundström scored in the fourth round of the shootout after Carson Bjarnason was a perfect 4-for-4 on his end of the ice and Lehigh Valley finished the two-game series sweep with a 3-2 shootout victory to spoil Cleveland’s Opening Weekend. 20-year-old rookie goaltender Carson Bjarnason was outstanding with 33 saves in securing his first pro win. Denver Barkey scored his first career pro goal hammering away at the right pad of Fedotov to pot the rebound try. Anthony Richard gave the Phantoms a 2-1 lead in the second period but Cleveland tied the game at 2-2 with just 2:20 left to force overtime.
HOT START – Lehigh Valley’s 3-1-0 start is tied for the best in team history. The Phantoms also went 3-1-0 in Lehigh Valley’s inaugural 2014-15 season on its way to a 4-1-0 start.
The franchise record for most games before recording a second regulation loss is 15 when the 2007-08 Philadelphia Phantoms began 5-0-0 and then eventually 8-1-0 as well as 13-1-1.
Phantoms Franchise – One regulation loss or fewer in first four games (8 times):
2024-25: (3-1-0)
2014-15 (4-1-0)
2011-12 (4-1-0) (Adirondack)
2007-08 (5-0-0) (Philadelphia)
2006-07 (3-1-0)
2005-06 (4-1-0)
2001-02 (4-0-0)
1996-97 (3-1-0)
GREAT GOALTENDING – It was an impressive weekend in Cleveland for the Lehigh Valley goaltending duo of Aleksei Kolosov and Carson Bjarnason. Kolosov stopped all 35 shots he faced to pick up his first AHL shutout while beating former teammate Ivan Fedotov. And then Carson Bjarnason made several strong denials in a 33-save gem that included a perfect 4-for-4 skills competition run to land his first pro win.
Kolosov, 23, has raced out to a strong start in his second pro season in North America and currently leads the AHL in save percentage. Kolosov was a Round 3 selection of the Philadelphia Flyers in 2021 who split his time between Lehigh Valley and Philadelphia in his rookie campaign. Bjarnason, 20, was a second-round choice of the Flyers in the 2023 draft out of Brandon, Manitoba.
AHL Leaders – Save Percentage:
1. Aleksei Kolosov LV .969
2. Filip Larsson WBS .963
3. Dennis Hildeby TOR .962
AHL Leaders – GAA:
1. Dennis Hildeby TOR 0.97
2. Aleksei Kolosov LV 1.00
2. Carl Lindbom HSK 1.00
THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT – Lehigh Valley has scored 11 goals through the first four games of the season and seven of those markers have come from the team’s corps of exciting new rookie prospects. Denver Barkey, Alex Bump, Karsen Dorwart (2), Devin Kaplan (2) and Ty Murchison have all lit the lamp for the Phantoms. Barkey, Dorwart and Kaplan all wasted little time picking up their first career pro goals while Bump and Murchison had already knocked off that milestone by scoring a goal shortly after initially joining the team very late last season.
KILLING IT – The Phantoms are 22/25 on the penalty kill for an 88.0% rate that ranks ninth in the AHL. Unfortunately, Lehigh Valley has been shorthanded more than any other team in the league but they have found ways to thrive against the adversity including an 8-for-8 performance in Friday’s 3-0 shutout win at Cleveland as well as a perfect 7-for-7 achievement on Opening Night, October 11, against the Belleville Senators in a 5-2 win.
MEET THE PHANTOMS – Carl Grundström scored the shootout winner for the Phantoms on Saturday at Cleveland. The 27-year-old veteran has played 292 games in the NHL with Los Angeles and San Jose. That’s the most NHL experience of any player on the Phantoms. He was acquired by the Flyers shortly before Opening Night on October 5, 2025 in a trade with the San Jose Sharks in exchange for Ryan Ellis. A second-round selection of the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2016, Grundström had not regularly played in the AHL since the 2018-19 season with Toronto and Ontario (Cal.) and has played in 103 career AHL games scoring 30-42-72.
ROAD WARRIORS – After Friday’s home game against Hershey, the Phantoms will play five straight on the road as they had to Hershey, Laval, Hartford and Bridgeport. The Phantoms are in the early stages of a busy road-stretch that has the team playing eight out of nine away from PPL Center.
MILESTONES –
– Dennis Gilbert, 300th pro game (Oct 17, 2025 LV at CLE)
– Zayde Wisdom, 199 pro games
– Carl Grundstrom 395 pro games
– Garrett Wilson, 888 pro games
– Garrett Wilson, 290 games with Phantoms
– Emil Andrae, 99 games with Phantoms
PENGUIN PANDEMONIUM! – Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (4-0-0) is off to a perfect start after overcoming a 3-0 deficit at Bridgeport on Sunday to post a 6-3 win including five goals in the third period against former Phantoms’ goaltender Parker Gahagen.
The Penguins won 4-1 at PPL Center on Sunday, October 12. Tristan Broz (3-1-4) scored twice and added one assist in that game. Broz has 10 career goals against the Phantoms in barely over one season.
NHL veteran Danton Heinen (1-6-7) leads the team in his first season back in the AHL since 2018 after 566 career NHL games with Boston, Anaheim, Pittsburgh, and Vancouver. 30-year-old defenseman Ryan Graves (1-3-4) has 433 career NHL games with PIT, NJ and COL. Ville Koivunen (1-3-4) scored 21-34-55 last year to lead the Penguins and make the All-AHL Rookie Team. 21-year-old lefty goaltender Sergei Murashov (3-0-0, 2.00, .930) is partway to repeating his incredible 11-0-0 start last season. Kirk MacDonald’s team is tops in goals allowed at just 1.75 per game (tied with Syracuse) and is third in offense scoring 4.25 per contest.
The Phantoms went 4-7-1 against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton last year including 1-4-1 in northeast Pennsylvania but then went on to sweep the Baby Pens out of the first round of the playoffs for a second consecutive season. Alexis Gendron scored four of his 20 goals last season against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
SCORING LEADERS
Lehigh Valley
Devin Kaplan 2-2-4
Anthony Richard 2-2-4
Karsen Dorwart 2-1-3
Emil Andrae 0-3-3
Denver Barkey 1-1-2
Alex Bump 1-1-2
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
Danton Heinen 1-6-7
Sam Poulin 1-4-5
Tristan Broz 3-1-4
Ville Koivunen 1-3-4
Ryan Graves 1-3-4
SPECIAL TEAMS
LV PP 28.6% (6th) / PK 88.0%, (9th)
WBS PP 17.6%, 19th / PK 90.0% (6th)
SEASON SERIES –
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins: (0-1-0)
10/12/25 Home L 1-4
10/22/25 Away
11/28/25 Away
12/5/25 Away
12/28/25 Home
2/1/26 Home
2/6/26 Home
3/14/26 Away
3/15/26 Home
3/29/26 Away
4/3/26 Away
4/4/26 Home
UP NEXT – The Phantoms will be back at PPL Center on Friday, October 24 celebrating “Haunted on Hamilton” when they host the rival Hershey Bears. Following the home game on Friday, Lehigh Valley will be on the road for five straight making treks to Hershey, Laval, Hartford, and Bridgeport.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
Hershey Bears
Laval Rocket
Hartford Wolf Pack
