January 13, 2015
This Week
Friday, January 16 (7:05 PM) – Albany Devils @ Lehigh Valley Phantoms
(Debut of the Phantoms Brand-New Orange Third Jerseys!)
Saturday, January 17 (7:05 PM) – Binghamton Senators @ Lehigh Valley Phantoms
(Legends Night! Bob Clarke, one of hockey’s greatest legends and the architect of the Phantoms’ 1998 and 2005 Clark Cup championship teams, will be at the game! FREE Collector’s Edition Poster for all fans in attendance!)
Upcoming
After a five-game road trip and a 19-day hiatus from PPL Center, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms return home for a pair of Eastern Conference showdowns this Friday and Saturday.
Lehigh Valley (18-12-4-1, 41 pts.) enters the week in the midst of a season-high four-game winning streak and has used its recent surge to move into the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference. The Phantoms, who are presently in sole possession of third place in the East Division and eighth overall in the Eastern Conference, have garnered at least one standings point in 10 of their last 12 games overall and look to carry that positive momentum into a pair of games in Lehigh Valley this weekend.
The Phantoms play their first home game of 2015 this Friday as Lehigh Valley welcomes the Albany Devils to PPL Center. Friday’s contest will mark the debut of the Phantoms’ Orange Third jerseys, which the team plans to wear for Friday games throughout the remainder of the 2014-2015 regular season.
Albany (16-14-2-5, 39 pts.) enters the week fifth among the five teams in the Northeast Division but just two points back of the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Devils, who host the Springfield Falcons tomorrow before traveling to Lehigh Valley, have dropped three of their last four outings and five of seven overall. Friday’s contest marks the third of four total meetings between the Phantoms and Devils this season with Lehigh Valley holding a 0-1-1 record head-to-head against Albany.
The Phantoms then conclude their weekend home stand on Saturday when Lehigh Valley welcomes the Binghamton Senators back to PPL Center. Saturday’s game is another Legends Night at PPL Center as Bob Clarke, one of hockey’s greatest legends and the architect of the Phantoms’ 1998 and 2005 Calder Cup championship teams, will be at the game. In addition, all fans in attendance this Saturday will receive a FREE Collector’s Edition Poster spotlighting Clarke.
Binghamton (15-17-3-1, 34 pts.) is presently fourth among the five teams in the East Division but enters the week a full seven points back of the Phantoms. The Senators enter the week in the midst of a five-game winless skid (0-4-1) during which Binghamton has been outscored 25-8. Saturday’s tilt marks the fifth of 10 total meetings during the 2014-2015 regular season between Lehigh Valley and Binghamton with the Phantoms holding a 2-2 record head-to-head against the Senators.
Phantoms By The Numbers
- Lehigh Valley is 10-2-2-1 at PPL Center this season and has outscored its opposition 42-32 on home ice. The Phantoms boast the fewest regulation losses (two) at home and currently feature the league’s third-highest attendance average (7,973).
- The Phantoms enter the week in the midst of a season-high four-game winning streak. Lehigh Valley has outscored its opposition 16-8 during its recent surge and enjoyed 15 goals from 13 different goal scorers during its two-game series in St. John’s last weekend.
- Lehigh Valley is 10-2-4-1 in one-goal games this season. The Phantoms have already enjoyed 12 overtime/shootout decisions (second in AHL) and are 7-5 in games decided in overtime/shootout.
- Lehigh Valley is 16-1-1 when scoring three or more goals this season. Meanwhile, the Phantoms are 17-5-3-1 when limiting their opposition to three goals or fewer.
- Forward Nick Cousins has been on a roll lately for Lehigh Valley. The 21-year-old pivot has produced nine points (five goals, four assists) over his last 10 games. As a result, Cousins enters the week second among all Phantoms in total scoring with 22 points (nine goals, 13 assists).
- Forward Jason Akeson continued his stellar play with three more assists in two games last weekend. The 24-year-old forward has now recorded 16 points (eight goals, eight assists) and five multi-point outings over his last 14 games. With 189 career points with the Phantoms, Akeson enters the week seventh on the franchise’s all-time scoring list. What’s more, with 66 career goals scored with the Phantoms, he’s just one conversion shy of tying Boyd Kane for 10th place on the Phantoms’ all-time list.
Last Week
Saturday, January 10: Lehigh Valley Phantoms 4 – St. John’s IceCaps 2
Andrew Gordon netted the game-winner with less than three minutes to play against his former team as the Phantoms opened their weekend series in St. John’s with a 4-2 triumph over the IceCaps. Robert Hagg, Brett Hextall and Ryan White also scored for Lehigh Valley while Rob Zepp earned his 11th win of the season after a 29-save performance.
The Phantoms’ penalty kill was a perfect 4-for-4 in the contest while Lehigh Valley went 1-for-4 with the extra attacker in leveling its regular season series with St. John’s at a game apiece.
Sunday, January 11: Lehigh Valley Phantoms 6 – St. John’s IceCaps 2
The Phantoms completed their weekend sweep of the IceCaps and grabbed their fourth consecutive victory with a thoroughly dominant 6-2 victory over St. John’s. Nick Cousins notched a goal and two assists while Austin Fyten, Taylor Leier and Jason Akeson each contributed a pair of assists and Oliver Lauridsen and Andrew Gordon each added a goal and an assist.
Six different Phantoms found the back of the net on Sunday while 10 different Lehigh Valley skaters notched at least one point. Anthony Stolarz earned his sixth victory of the season with 21 saves on 23 IceCaps shots while the Phantoms’ penalty kill produced another perfect 4-for-4 effort. Lehigh Valley’s power play was 1-for-2 in the triumph as the Phantoms improved to 13-4 when converting a man-advantage marker this season.
Broadcast Coverage
Service Electric’s TV2 Sports will be broadcasting live all of the Phantoms’ 23 remaining regular season home games. If you can’t make it out to the rink, be sure to catch all the exciting action in high definition with Steve Degler and former Flyers and Phantoms goaltender Brian Boucher! And don’t miss “Phantoms – Breaking the Ice” every Monday from 7:00 – 8:00 PM throughout the season live at Chickie’s & Pete’s (701 Hamilton Street)!
Be sure to also catch each and every Phantoms game this season live on Fox Sports 1470 AM, online at Fox1470.com 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. Nazareth Pallett Countdown to Faceoff begins 45 minutes prior to puck drop.
Ticket Information
Tickets for all of the Phantoms’ 23 remaining regular season home games are available now at the Mealey’s Furniture Box Office at PPL Center (7th & Hamilton), by calling 610-347-TIXX (8499) or online at pplcenter.com.
Check it out! Don’t miss the action and fun of Lehigh Valley Phantoms hockey at PPL Center in downtown Allentown! Contact the Phantoms Front Office for information on group rates and fan experiences by calling 610-224-GOAL (4625).
In their 19th season of operation, the Phantoms are currently in the midst of their Inaugural Season as the Lehigh Valley Phantoms playing at the brand-new PPL Center. Established in 1996, the Philadelphia Phantoms spent their first 13 seasons at the Spectrum before re-locating to Glens Falls, New York in 2009 where the team spent the next five seasons as the Adirondack Phantoms. A new era of Phantoms hockey began in the fall of 2014 when the Lehigh Valley Phantoms began play at the state-of-the-art PPL Center. Through 18 incredibly successful campaigns, the Phantoms have captured two Calder Cup Championships (1998, 2005), two Conference Championships (1998, 2005), two Regular Season Titles (1996-97, 1997-98) and four Division Championships (1996-97, 1997-98, 1998-99, 2003-04).