YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio - These are the Phantom Philes, a weekly comprehensive look at Youngstown's very own stop on the road to the National Hockey League.After conquering the road in October, going 4-1-1 away from the Covelli Centre, last weekend the Youngstown Phantoms turned their attention to righting a few wrongs at home, namely their 0-3 record downtown in the season's first month.
Now, in the aftermath of a pair of one-goal victories over the Des Moines Buccaneers, the Phantoms (6-4-1, 13 points) are winners of four in a row overall and aiming at higher goals.
"Our next pursuit is getting over.500 at home," said Head Coach/GM Bob Mainhardt. "We have a good road record because our young group has reacted well to some tough opponents and environments, but the next step is becoming a dominant home team."
The Phantoms overpowered the Bucs for long stretches of play, outscoring the visitors 4-1 over the final 40 minutes of play in Thursday's 4-3 win and then leaping out to a 5-1 lead midway through Friday's 5-4 result. Those bursts were enough to sweep Des Moines out of town, but Mainhardt warned that may not always be the case.
"The holy grail in hockey coaching is achieving that complete 60-minute effort," he said. "We can save coach's heart over the course of the season if we are able to do that. The experiences we've had over the course of the season should reinforce our need to play a consistent game."
With a three-game week looming, all at home and including a rare Wednesday evening faceoff, the Phantoms' coaching staff is taking precautions to keep the players' energy at workable levels. According to Mainhardt, that means toning down the intensity of practices and off-ice training sessions in anticipation of this Wednesday-Friday-Saturday gauntlet against two of the teams fourth-place Youngstown is chasing in the East Division standings.
The first of this week's trio of tilts is tomorrow night at 7:15 p.m. against the first-place Green Bay Gamblers, a Veterans Day matchup in which $3 from each ticket purchased goes to the USO of Northern Ohio. For Phantoms players and staff, it's an opportunity to pay respect to those who have served America past and present, as well as appreciate the freedom protected by that service.
"We talk with [the players] all the time about how privileged and lucky they are," Mainhardt said. "These guys are at the age where they could very well be fighting for our country overseas. We take the sport of hockey seriously and it's a commitment, but to be able to pursue a career in athletics is a luxury afforded to us by our soldiers and veterans."
Also during the Veterans Day game, fans will be able to sign up for The Vindicator's popular Operation Holiday Cheer program, in which well-wishers can send greetings and cards overseas to American soldiers with local ties.
The Phantoms and the Gamblers will enjoy a day off Thursday and then conclude their two-game set Friday night at the Covelli Center, also at 7:15 p.m. National celebrities Joey Fatone (of *NSYNC and "Dancing with the Stars" fame) and the Food Network's Guy Fieri will be taking pictures and signing autographs throughout the game, and the first 2,000 fans will receive a free T-shirt courtesy of Callos.
Saturday's game will feature the second-place Chicago Steel making their first visit to Youngstown for a single 7:15 p.m. showdown. Kids Club Night will be the main attraction, as any young fan who joins Saturday will receive a free ticket to the game. After the game, all members are invited to a special postgame skate with Phantoms players on the Covelli Centre ice.
FOLLOW THE PHANTOMS ALL SEASON LONG!
Listen to Voice of the Phantoms Matt Gajtka call exciting Phantoms hockey on Youngstown's ESPN 1240. Broadcasts begin approximately 15 minutes prior to opening faceoff. Phantoms fans outside the listening area can log onto www.wbbw.com and use ESPN 1240's streaming audio player, so there's no need to miss a second of the action.
In addition, tune in to ESPN 1240 every Tuesday evening at 6 p.m. for "Phantoms Phever presented by House of Speed," an hour-long talk show that brings you an inside look at your Youngstown Phantoms. Join host Matt Gajtka live from Jeremiah Bullfrog's Sports Bar & Grille on US Route 224 in Boardman, as he chats with coaches, players and front office staff about northeast Ohio's most exciting team and the great sport of hockey. This week's featured guests will be Head Coach/GM Bob Mainhardt, first-year forward Rich Young and Steve Halloran from House of Speed.
Also, make "Youngstown Phantoms" your friend on Facebook and follow "ytownphantoms" on Twitter to stay plugged into the Phantoms 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
RADIO REPLAYS, PRESS BOX OPINIONS AND MUCH MORE...
Relive heart-pounding Phantoms action on demand! Listen to all the best goal calls from the past week's worth of games and get Matt Gajtka's take on Youngstown's inaugural season in the USHL at the onlineVoice of the Phantoms blog.
THE WEEK THAT WAS:
Thursday, November 5: YOUNGSTOWN 4, DES MOINES 3
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio - Add a game-winning goal and the No. 1 star to Rich Young's quickly growing USHL portfolio.
The 6-foot-3, 215-pound first-year forward played big indeed Thursday night, putting the Phantoms ahead to stay with 3:15 to play as they claimed their first-ever home win, 4-3 over the Des Moines Buccaneers at the Covelli Centre. Youngstown (5-4-1), winners of three in a row, will host the Buccaneers (4-5-0) again tomorrow at 7:15 p.m.
On the game-deciding play, Brian Dowd centered the puck for Brett Gensler, who fired a shot-pass toward the goalmouth, where Young deposited his second of the season. The Phantoms led 3-2 to start the third but Des Moines' Danny Heath snuck in the backdoor to tie the game near the period's midway point with the Bucs on their fifth power play.
Youngstown rallied from an early deficit for the third-straight game, this time overcoming a 2-0 hole through 20 minutes courtesy of even-strength goals by Des Moines' Mike Fink (14:20) and Chris Stafne (19:55). The Phantoms roared back in the second, though, outshooting the Bucs 17-11 and pumping three goals past goalie Charles Williams to grab the lead.
Set up by Andrew Lamont from behind the goal, Jefferson Dahl pounded a one-timer over Williams' shoulder to make it 2-1 seven minutes into the middle frame. It was Dahl's third goal in his first game back in action after missing four due to a shoulder injury.
Ryan Jasinsky converted Scott Mayfield's short rebound from the right side of the crease to tie the score at 11:39. The Richmond, Va., native's second completed the rally and came mere minutes after his left skate broke behind the Bucs' net, leaving pieces strewn about the ice.
Youngstown took its first lead on another follow-up chance with 4:34 left in the second, as Nick Czinder nailed his third under the crossbar from between the circles.
Jordan Tibbett earned the win to even his record at 3-3-0, making 26 saves. The Phantoms won the shots-on-goal battle 35-29, their highest total since Oct. 10 at Des Moines when they rifled 42 at the goaltending combination of Eric Mihalik and Williams.
Join the Phantoms at the Covelli Centre tomorrow night as they present Bargain Beer Night by Back to Health Chiropractic. Enjoy $1 beers all night long! Also, college students can bring their IDs to the Box Office for a $4 discount ticket.
Go to http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/boxscore.html?gameid1048782 for full box score.
Friday, November 6: YOUNGSTOWN 5, DES MOINES 4
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio- They don't ask how, they ask how many.
Up 5-1 midway through Friday night's game at the Covelli Centre, the Youngstown Phantoms ultimately held on to prevail 5-4 over the feisty Des Moines Buccaneers, running their season-long winning streak to four in a row. The Phantoms have now grabbed a pair of wins to kick off a five-game homestand.
Brett Gensler was the only Phantom with multiple points on the night with a goal and an assist. His unassisted tally at 8:37 of the second held up as the game winner, his third decider of the campaign. Gensler now has 10 points, tying him with Taylor Holstrom for the team lead.
Holstrom capped a three-goal Phantoms first period by driving home a loose puck in the low slot with 4:50 to go in the opening stanza. Brian Dowd (power play - 1:29) and Nick Czinder (7:14) ripped the twine in the opening minutes to counteract Ryan Walters' even-strength rebound goal 2:18 into the contest.
The 3-1 Youngstown lead quickly became a three-goal margin when Adam Berkle nailed his fourth of the season, converting the huge rebound of Stuart Higgins' long shot. Berkle buried the puck between goalie Keegan Asmundson's legs, who was seeing his first action as a member of the Bucs.
Asmundson contributed to his own demise on Gensler's presumed backbreaker, as he attempted to flip the puck past the forechecking Phantoms winger but instead fired it right at him. Gensler calmly gloved it down and banked a 30-footer off a Des Moines defenseman and into the yawning cage to make it 5-1.
The Bucs didn't back down, generating two momentum-switching goals less than three minutes apart late in the middle frame. Taylor Wolfe one-timed a centering pass at 14:27 to cut it to 5-2, then set up Dan O'Donoghue with a sharp feed of his own with 2:39 to go before the second intermission.
H.T. Lenz's wrister fooled Youngstown goalie Jordan Tibbett at 9:39 of the third, making the Bargain Beer Night crowd uneasy, but the Phantoms locked down their own zone the rest of the way to preserve the victory.
Special teams played a key role, as Youngstown scored twice on the power play while killing off all four Des Moines opportunities with the man advantage. The Phantoms had given up a power play goal in all 10 of their previous games this season, but the penalty kill came up aces Friday, including a clutch denial with just over five minutes to play.
The Phantoms claimed the season series with Des Moines three games to one, and these two interdivision sparring partners won't meet again unless it's in the Clark Cup Final. It's a shame because each match-up between the two was a thriller; the aggregate score was 17-16 in favor of Youngstown with the Phantoms claiming all three wins by just one goal apiece.
Join the Phantoms next Wednesday as they battle the Green Bay Gamblers for the first time. In honor of Veterans Day, $3 from each ticket sold will go directly to the USO of Northern Ohio. Also, take the time to send season's greetings to local soldiers overseas as part of The Vindicator's Operation Holiday Cheer program.
Go to http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/boxscore.html?gameid1048798 for full box score.
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