Lehigh Valley, Pa. — With an overtime game-winning goal and three total points (1G-2A) in two games against the Binghamton Devils this past weekend, Lehigh Valley Phantoms forward Mike Vecchione has been named the PSECU Player of the Week for the first time this season.
Friday marked the final game of the Phantoms longest road swing of the season — six games — and the second of three meetings against the Binghamton Devils in eight days. While the Phantoms posted a 5-2 victory against the Devils in the Southern Tier of New York a week prior, this past Friday’s game proved to be much tighter.
After falling behind 2-0 in the first period, the Phantoms battled back to score three consecutive goals and take a 3-2 lead over the Devils. The last of which, scored by Mikhail Vorobyev, was assisted by Vecchione at the 7:29 mark of the third period. Despite taking the lead, Lehigh Valley would surrender a late goal which would force the game into overtime. The extra time was largely dominated by the Phantoms until the 3:25 mark when Binghamton defenseman Colton White netted the game winner.
On Saturday, the Phantoms returned home to PPL Center to complete the weekend home-and-home series with the Devils. Largely a scoreless contest through nearly the first 43 minutes of play, the Devils would net a pair of goals just 2:43 apart in order to take a 2-0 lead.
The Phantoms finally broke the goose egg on the board — with the goalie pulled — when Vecchione fed T.J. Brennan on the point for a one-time shot that was tipped in by Colin McDonald to make it a 2-1 game at the 13:59 mark of the third period.
In dramatic fashion Lehigh Valley would net another extra-attacker goal, this time from Phil Varone, with just 4.5 seconds remaining in the contest to force overtime.
After a rare icing call in the three-on-three overtime period, Vecchione won a faceoff in his own end back to defenseman Mark Friedman who rimmed it into the corner for forward German Rubtsov. The rookie pushed it up to a fast breaking Vecchione who skated in on the right-wing side and fired a shot past the stick side of Devils’ goaltender Mackenzie Blackwood to lift the Phantoms to a 3-2 victory over the visitors.
Vecchione now has three goals and three assists for a total of six points in 11 contests this season.
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Prior PSECU Players of the Week
10-29-18 Phil Varone
10-22-18 T.J. Brennan
10-15-18 Greg Carey
10-8-18 Nic Aube-Kubel
