Gobble Gobble!! It’s Thanksgiving Weekend Hockey
November 23, 2022
Lehigh Valley, PA – The Lehigh Valley Phantoms had their five-game win streak snapped and will look to start another streak on Friday at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Lehigh Valley (7-6-1) returns to PPL Center on Saturday night against the Rochester Americans (8-5-2) with a Postgame Skate with the Phantoms players.
WEEKLY RECAP
Friday, November 18, 2022
Phantoms 4 – Bruins 2
The Phantoms knocked off the top team in the league with a 4-2 victory at Providence on Friday night. Isaac Ratcliffe scored his first two goals of the season while Tyson Foerster and Elliot Desnoyers also contributed markers. When tied at 2-2 after two periods, the Phantoms dominated the third with a 12-1 shots advantage through 16 minutes to snag the exciting win. NHL veteran Artem Anisimov made his Phantoms’ debut and played in his first AHL game since 2009 contributing four shots on goal.
Saturday, November 19, 2022
Phantoms 3 – Bruins 2 (SO)
Tanner Laczynski accounted for all of the team’s scoring with a goal, an assist, and then the shootout winner as the Phantoms won their fifth straight and completed a weekend sweep at first-place Providence. Jackson Cates also scored and the Phantoms cranked out a season-high 46 shots. Laczynski easily could have had more than just the one goal. He had eight shots on goal including two that came very close to going in plus another shot off the post.
Sunday, November 20, 2022
Thunderbirds 6 – Phantoms 4
Ronnie Attard and Jackson Cates both posted two-point games but it wasn’t enough to overcome the Thunderbirds as Lehigh Valley’s five-game win streak came to an end at Springfield on Sunday evening. Anthony Angello recorded his second career hat trick against the Phantoms to lead the T-Birds. Angello also scored a hattie at Lehigh Valley in 2019 when he played for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Garrett Wilson had a goal and a fight and Jackson Cates scored for a second consecutive game. The Phantoms had a 2-1 lead in the first period and the game was tied at 3-3 a few minutes into the third before Springfield took the lead for good. Springfield blasted out 46 shots on goal and had a 4-for-6 power play attack while the Phantoms had 41 shots in the see-saw affair.
TRANSACTIONS –
Nov 21 – Delete Tanner Laczynski (F) – Recalled to Philadelphia
Nov 21 – Add Egor Zamula (D) – Assigned from Philadelphia
Nov 22 – Delete Jackson Cates (F) – Recalled to Philadelphia
Nov 22 – Add Charlie Gerard (F) – Recalled from Reading (ECHL)
Nov 22 – Add Nolan Maier (G) – Recalled from Reading (ECHL)
TANN THE MAN
Tanner Laczynski benefitted from his bevy of minutes on the ice during his quick two-game stretch with the Phantoms on Friday and Saturday. The 25-year-old center, and new father of son Leo, had a goal and two assists plus a shootout winner on the weekend. He was rewarded for his performance with a recall back up to the Philadelphia Flyers where he proceeded to score his first career NHL goal on Monday against Calgary. Congrats, Tanner!
EVERYDAY ERSSON
Sam Ersson has thrived as the team’s everyday goalie and now has a five-game win streak on the heels of picking up his first career pro win on November 5 at Laval. The Flyers’ fifth-round selection in 2018 had a string of seven consecutive starts ended on Sunday. During his win streak and in his last five games since November 5, Ersson has gone 5-0-0 with a 1.76 GAA and .940 save percentage allowing nine goals on 151 shots.
Ersson was limited to just five total games last season due to injury (and did not finish two of those due to injury) but has come into his second season in North America re-energized while benefitting from his regular schedule between the pipes. He excelled right from the start with 35 saves in the Flyers vs. Rangers Rookie Game at PPL Center on September 17 followed by an outstanding training camp with the Flyers in which he posted a .947 save percentage in the preseason.
UPCOMING
Friday, November 25
Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza
Phantoms at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
The Phantoms conclude their stretch of four straight road games with a return visit to Northeast Pennsylvania to tangle with the rival Penguins. The last time the Phantoms were in Wilkes-Barre was in the season opener on October 15 when Louie Belpedio scored the winning goal with just 1.4 seconds remaining in overtime.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (7-5-2) raced out of the gate with a 6-0-1 record and were the last team in the AHL to lose a game in regulation. But the Penguins have scuffled since then with a 1-5-1 mark in their last seven. The Penguins lost 5-4 in a shootout at Charlotte on Monday and rematch at the Checkers again tonight.
Phantoms alum Dustin Tokarski remains the top goalie in the league at 5-2-2, 1.65, .940. The two-time Calder Cup winner (Norfolk 2012, Charlotte 2019) spent all of last season in the NHL with the Buffalo Sabres. Former Buffalo first-rounder Alex Nylander leads the team with 6-6-12. The Penguins are allowing just 2.4 goals per game, second-best in the AHL behind Hershey.
Saturday, November 26 at 7:05 p.m.
PPL Center, Allentown, PA
Phantoms vs. Rochester Americans
It’s the lone visit to Allentown for the second-place in the North when Rochester (8-5-2) arrives on Saturday night. The Amerks ended a three-game winless slide with a 3-2 victory at the Utica Comets on Saturday.
Former Penn State star Brandon Biro leads the Americans scoring 3-9-12 while 19-year-old first-rounder Isak Rosen has scored 3-8-11. Veteran defenseman Matt Bartkowski joined the team on a PTO on October 29 and brings 256 games of NHL experience with Boston and Calgary to the Amerks’ blueline. Bartkoski played for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton last year and was previously teammates with Louie Belpedio and Cal O’Reilly on the Iowa Wild. With the recall of young prospect Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen to Buffalo, ECHL veteran Michael Houser is now the team’s top goalie (2-1-0, 2.59, .917). Former long-time RPI head coach Seth Appert is in his third season at the helm of the Amerks.
PHANTASTIC!
– Rookie Rookie Elliot Desnoyers leads the Phantoms with five goals
– Tyson Foerster has a three-game point streak with one goal and two assists
– Four of the top five scorers on the Phantoms are either rookies or young prospects: Tyson Foerster (3-7-10), Cam York (3-7-10), Ronnie Attard (4-5-9), Elliot Desnoyers (5-2-7)
– Nine out of 14 games this season have been decided by one goal including the last four games in a row.
– The Phantoms 35 or more shots on goal in the last three games as well as five of the last seven. Lehigh Valley has 41 or more shots on goal in its last two games.
– The Phantoms are 3-1 in decisions after regulation having gone 2-1 in overtime and 1-0 in shotoouts.
Team Scoring Leaders
Cam York 3-7-10
Tyson Foerster 3-7-10
Ronnie Attard 4-5-9
Garrett Wilson 3-5-8
Elliot Desnoyers 5-2-7
x Jackson Cates 4-3-7
Cal O’Reilly 2-5-7
Phantoms Tickets are available HERE
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Friday, November 25 (7:05) at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
Saturday, November 26 (7:05) vs. ROCHESTER AMERICANS
Wednesday, November 30 (7:05) vs. HERSHEY BEARS
Friday, December 2 (7:00) at Charlotte Checkers
Saturday, December 3 (6:00) at Charlotte Checkers
UPCOMING PROMOTIONS
Saturday, November 26 (7:05) vs. Rochester Americans – Postgame Skate with Phantoms Players
Wednesday, November 30 (7:05) vs. Hershey Bears – Military Appreciation Night Presented by Netizen
Friday, December 9 (7:05) vs. Charlotte Checkers – Berks $1 Hot Dogs!
Saturday, December 10 (7:05) vs. Charlotte Checkers – Phantoms Hat Giveaway Presented by Service Electric
Saturday, December 17 (7:05) vs. Providence Bruins – Teddy Bear Toss Presented by Big Woody’s
Broadcast coverage of all Phantoms games, home and away, is available on the Phantoms 365 app and on Real Oldies 1470-AM in Allentown. Fans can watch on AHLTV.com and can listen on their Smart Speakers at: “Play Phantoms Radio 24/7.” Join the Voice of the Phantoms, Bob Rotruck, for all the action!
Service Electric Network again provides exclusive television coverage of all Phantoms home games with veteran announcer Steve Degler and Phantoms’ alum Steven Swavely on the call from the booth. Kristi Fulkerson reports from ice level and also from the Chickie’s and Pete’s studio with Dan Fremuth for pregame, intermission and postgame show analysis.
