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Youngstown Phantoms

Youngstown Phantoms Notebook: Week No. 17

January 15, 2013 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Youngstown Phantoms News Release


YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio - The Youngstown Phantoms made headlines on and off the ice last week. After making a high-profile addition to the roster with Australian Nathan Walker, the Phantoms (16-16-0, 32 points) hit the road and grabbed a pair of wins over the Chicago Steel and Lincoln Stars to close out the first half of the season on a three-game winning streak. Now they are back in the Mahoning Valley to open up the second half with a pair of games against the Des Moines Buccaneers this Friday and Saturday in the Covelli Centre.

The Week In Review

Game No. 31: Evancho's 3rd-Period Tally Propels Phantoms Past Steel 3-2

Youngstown never trailed Friday night, but had to fend off several furious comeback attempts from Chicago. The Steel (14-16-3, 31 points) were able to pull even with the Phantoms once in the first period and again in the second, but Zach Evancho put them away for good with a goal 4:07 into the third. Nathan Walker scored in his first USHL game and Alexander Dahl also found the back of the net for the Phantoms. Sean Romeo played solid between the pipes, allowing just a pair of goals on 34 shots to pick up his 13th win of the season and lift Youngstown past Chicago in the Eastern Conference standings.

Game No. 32: Phantoms Turn Out Lights On Stars

Youngstown was ready for everything Lincoln had to throw at it, jumping out to a 3-0 lead Saturday night at the Ice Box. And when the Stars tried to drop the gloves to re-take the momentum, the Phantoms more than obliged. Sam Anas and Alfred Larsson both potted a pair of goals and Kyle Connor also added one to lead the Youngstown to a 5-2 victory. Romeo, who's night ended early after a second-period scrap with Stars goaltender Michael Bitzer, saved 19 of 20 shots thrown his way to pick up his 14th win of the season. Jake Moore took over between the pipes for the Phantoms and turned away 14 of 15 in his second USHL appearance.

Loose Pucks

-- New addition Nathan Walker hardly had any time to acclimate before making his debut for the Phantoms. The Australian forward joined the Phantoms for a brief practice Thursday before the team loaded up the bus and hit the road for Chicago. Despite all that, Walker showed no signs of rust, promptly scoring on his first shift against the Steel and adding an assist Saturday in Lincoln.

-- One of the reasons the head coach and general manager Anthony Noreen brought in Walker was to add more balance to Phantoms lineup, and through two games, consider it a resounding success. Sixteen different skaters registered at least a point for Youngstown last weekend. How's that for balance?

-- Goaltender Sean Romeo's string of consecutive starts will end at 17 - two short of the franchise record held by Jordan Tibbett. The Cary, N.C. native received an automatic two-game suspension after his second-period fight with Lincoln's Michael Bitzer Saturday. The Phantoms are 11-6-0 since Romeo was made the No. 1 goaltender on Nov. 11.

-- It's not all bad news for Romeo. The third-year netminder came in at No. 30 on NHL Central Scouting's Midterm Rankings for North American goaltenders. Romeo ranks No. 4 among USHL "˜tenders in their first year of eligibility for the NHL Entry Draft.

-- The Phantoms closed out the official first half of the season on a three-game winning streak, bringing their record back to .500. More importantly, they vaulted up to fifth in the Eastern Conference standings. As of Tuesday, they trail fourth-place Cedar Rapids (15-15-4, 34 points) by just two points with two games in hand and three more head-to-head meetings on the schedule.

The Week Ahead

Games No. 33 & 34: Friday, Jan. 18 & Saturday, Jan. 19 at 7:15 p.m. EST - Phantoms vs. Des Moines

The Phantoms and Buccaneers (18-18-1, 37 points) wrap up their season series this weekend at the Covelli Centre. Youngstown is 10-4-3 all-time vs. Des Moines and 2-1-0 this season, but needed some third-period magic the last time the teams met in the Mahoning Valley - a 3-2 overtime win that included goals from JT Stenglein and Austin Cangelosi scored in the final 51 seconds of regulation with the goaltender pulled. Des Moines is tied with Muskegon and Indiana for the most games played in the USHL with 37, but has been treading water for more than a month, unable to string together consecutive wins since Dec. 1 and 2. The Bucs have relied heavily on their Swedish imports forward Alex Wemmenborn and blue liners Eric Martinsson and Marcus Ericsson this season, and Wemmenborn has been especially deadly against the Phantoms, racking up 2-2-4 in three games.

They Said It

"This says a lot about our team and how far we've come, especially over the past few weeks. It's not easy to come to this rink and win like we did."

-- Head coach Anthony Noreen on the Phantoms' 5-2 win over the Stars, who were 10-2-3 at home coming into Saturday night's at the Ice Box.

Phantoms Leaders

Points: Austin Cangelosi (10-22-32)

Goals: Sam Anas (14)

Assists: Cangelosi (22)

Power-Play Goals: Anas (4)

Short-Handed Goals: Cangelosi (2, T-third in USHL)

Plus/Minus: Dan Renouf (plus-23, T-fourth in USHL)

Penalty Minutes: Markus McCrea (89)

Points by a Defenseman: Ryan Lowney (5-15-20, fifth in USHL)

Wins: Sean Romeo (14, T-fifth in USHL)

Goals Against Average: Romeo (2.94)

Save Percentage: Romeo (.903)

Shutouts: Romeo (4, second in USHL)

Phantoms Alumni Watch

-- Denver defenseman Scott Mayfield (2009-11) recorded four assists - two each night - during the Pioneers' weekend series with No. 13 Nebraska-Omaha. Denver routed UNO 7-4 Friday, but the Mavericks bounced back Saturday as the teams were forced to settle for a 3-3 tie.

-- UNO defenseman Andrej Sustr (2009-10) also registered a goal and an assist in the Friday-night loss to Denver.

-- Wisconsin forward Jefferson Dahl (2009-10) racked up 2-1-3 as the Badgers swept Minnesota State, winning 4-3 Friday and 2-1 Saturday. Dahl notched a goal and an assist Friday and added another goal Saturday.

-- Princeton forward Mike Ambrosia (2010-12) scored the game-opening goal in the Tigers' 4-1 win over Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Saturday. After being sidelined with an injury for much of the first half of his freshman season, the former Phantoms captain has put up 2-3-5 over the last five games.

Events and Promotions

Saturday, Jan. 19: Pregame Music With J-Dub

Make sure arrive early Saturday night when the Phantoms take on the Buccaneers. Radio personality J-Dub will be spinning all the latest hits on the concourse from when the doors open at 6:15 p.m. until the puck drops an hour later. Stop by for a picture with J-Dub and the Phantoms Promo Team or to request your favorite tunes and get amped up to cheer on the Phantoms.

Phantoms Flex Packages are on sale now starting at the low price of just $75. Flex Packages include 10 undated ticket vouchers that can be redeemed at any game and in any increment throughout the rest of the season. Call 330.747.PUCK (7825) for more information or to reserve a Phantoms Flex Package today. For all the latest news, visit www.YoungstownPhantoms.com, follow the Phantoms on Twitter ( @YtownPhantoms ) and "˜like' them on Facebook ( www.Facebook.com/YoungstownPhantoms ).

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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