USHL Youngstown Phantoms

Phantom Philes: USHL Alumni Chase Stanley Cup

Published on May 3, 2010 under United States Hockey League (USHL)
Youngstown Phantoms News Release


YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio - These are the Phantom Philes, a weekly comprehensive look at Youngstown's stop on the road to the National Hockey League.

Although the Pittsburgh Penguins' Sidney Crosby helped his team reach the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs with a remarkable 14 points in a six-game series win over the Ottawa Senators, the most surprising story of the NHL postseason thus far is the unstoppable play of San Jose Sharks forward Joe Pavelski.

Pavelski claimed the solo playoff goal-scoring lead Sunday night with a pair of power-play tallies in the Sharks' 4-3 defeat of the Detroit Red Wings, helping San Jose to a 2-0 lead in a Western Conference semifinal series. The Wisconsin-born center has now accumulated nine goals and 14 total points in eight playoff games as the Sharks look for redemption after falling to eighth-seeded Anaheim in last year's opening round, the latest in a string of recent postseason disappointments for San Jose.

If this scoring blitz seems oddly familiar to longtime USHL fans, it should. In the spring of 2004, Pavelski registered 12 points (six goals, six assists) in a dozen playoff contests for the Waterloo Black Hawks as they surged to a Clark Cup championship.

Current Waterloo head coach/GM P.K. O'Handley was in his second year with the 'Hawks when Pavelski helped his club to the USHL's venerable postseason crown. He was also in the stands Sunday in San Jose's HP Pavilion as his former charge electrified Sharks' fans with his continued brilliance.

O'Handley, who just completed his eighth season as bench boss for the 'Hawks, told Versus that he wasn't shocked to see the former University of Wisconsin Badger light up the scoreboard in the springtime, mainly because he had the best seat in Waterloo's Young Arena for a similar display six years ago.

Pavelski produced at more than a point-per-game pace in two USHL seasons (2002-04) before clicking at a similar rate in a pair of campaigns in Madison with the Badgers. After playing just 16 games in 2006 in Worcester, Mass., for the Sharks' American Hockey League affiliate, Pavelski made the jump to the "show" and has been a valuable part of San Jose's attack since.

Sharks' fanatics have taken to calling him "The Big Pavelski" in homage to the 1998 cult-hit movie The Big Lebowski, and who can blame them - Pavelski has scored the game-winner in three of San Jose's six playoff wins to date.But there have been other USHL alumni looming large since the "second season" began almost three weeks ago.

Veteran Detroit defenseman Brian Rafalski, who played for the USHL's Madison Capitols, is doing all he can to push his Red Wings past Pavelski's Sharks. The Michigan native is the second-highest scoring blueliner in the playoffs thus far, totaling a goal and seven assists in nine contests. Justin Abdelkader (Cedar Rapids RoughRiders) and Drew Miller (Omaha Lancers) join the U.S. Olympian on the two-time defending Western Conference champions.

Other USHL grads among the NHL's top offensive playoff performers include Chicago's Patrick Sharp (Thunder Bay Flyers), and Penguins defenseman Alex Goligoski (Sioux Falls Stampede). In addition, Andreas Nodl (Sioux Falls) and Matt Carle (Omaha) are logging major minutes on the Philadelphia Flyers' blue line while Vancouver's Andrew Albers (Waterloo), Chicago's Adam Burish (Green Bay Gamblers) and Boston's Blake Wheeler (Green Bay) are familiar names for those keeping up with this year's chase for the Stanley Cup.

PHEELS LIKE THE PHIRST TIME:

Help the offseason go faster by looking back at the Phantoms' first season in the USHL. This week, the Phantoms sweep a two-game series on the road against the defending West Division playoff champs:

Saturday, October 31, 2009: YOUNGSTOWN 6, FARGO 3

FARGO, N.D. - Paging the USHL league office: the Youngstown Phantoms would like to be designated the visiting team for all their remaining games.

Tom Serratore's two-goal, three-point third period boosted the barnstorming Phantoms to a 6-3 victory Saturday night against the Fargo Force, as the visitors improved to 4-1-1 away from home on the strength of a two-game weekend sweep at the Urban Plains Center.

Brett Gensler also scored twice for Youngstown (4-4-1), who extended Fargo's losing streak to three games, dropping the Force (4-5-0) under the .500 mark. The Phantoms swept a two-game road trip for the second time in four weeks.

Youngstown goalie Jordan Tibbett held the fort valiantly with the Phantoms trailing early and was rewarded by the offensive explosion with his second win of the campaign. The former Mahoning Valley Phantom (NAHL) made 26 saves to outduel Fargo counterpart Ryan Holfeld.

With the score tied 2-2 after Fargo's Alex Lippincott slammed in a power-play goal in the early moments of the third, Serratore took over. The third-year USHL veteran assisted on Adam Berkle's go-ahead marker at 5:34, then scored his first of the season from the left-wing boards just 1:56 later to push Youngstown up by two.

Joe Rehkamp's stuff from the left post drew Fargo to within 4-3, but both Gensler and Serratore found the back of the Force goal with netminder Holfeld pulled for an extra skater. For Gensler it was his fourth goal in two nights and his seventh in the Phantoms' first nine games.

After defeating Fargo 3-1 Friday night to end a three-game losing streak, the Phantoms rallied from an early 1-0 deficit for the second straight night to drop the Force to 1-3 at home. Youngstown has now surrendered the first goal in its last five games, but for the second time in two nights the Phantoms rendered that moot.

The Phantoms trailed 1-0 after Corey Leivermann's even-strength tally midway through the first, but rallied back on second-period goals by Stuart Higgins (power play) and Gensler about four minutes apart to grab a 2-1 edge heading into the final frame. Higgins earned his third of the season when he tipped Dan Senkbeil's wrister past Holfeld's glove hand at 13:28.

A fortunate bounce gave Youngstown its first lead with 2:21 to go in the second. Gensler attempted a cross-crease pass that deflected off a Fargo defender and through Holfeld's legs to make it 2-1.

Just over two minutes after Lippincott's one-timer drew the Force even, Berkle buried the rebound of Serratore's wraparound to push the Phantoms back on top. The assist was Serratore's first point of the season, but he wouldn't take long to record his second.

At 7:30 of the final frame, Serratore snapped a low shot at the net from outside the left circle that hit Holfeld's goal stick and hopped over his shoulder for an improbable goal and a 4-2 Phantoms lead. Rehkamp answered off a goalmouth scramble at 9:24, but Youngstown stymied the Fargo attack and then poured it on with Holfeld on the bench.

Gensler tossed a blind backhander from 90 feet into the empty net with 1:11 to go to push it to 5-3, followed by Serratore's second of the period 27 seconds later. Those duel daggers send the Force faithful scrambling for the exits and into the Halloween night.

Go to http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/boxscore.html?gameid1048776 for full box score.

Check out the Youngstown Phantoms Statistics

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United States Hockey League Stories from May 3, 2010


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