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 Youngstown Phantoms

Game Notes vs Waterloo

March 20, 2015 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Youngstown Phantoms News Release


The Phantoms hit the road for the first time in a month when they battle the Waterloo Black Hawks on Fri- day night at 8:05pm, in the first of three games on the weekend for the Phantoms. Youngstown is coming off of a weekend sweep of the Sioux City Musketeers, and now sit atop the USHL standings, one point ahead of both the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders and Sioux City.

LAST SATURDAY RECAP: The Youngstown Phantoms (33-13-5) picked up a 5-1 win over the Sioux City Musketeers on Saturday night. Forwards Matt Alvaro and Kyle Connor each had a pair of goals, while forward Tyler Sheehy scored his first goal as a member of the Phantoms. It was a physi- cal affair as the two sides combined for 207 penalty minutes on the night. With the win, the Phantoms now sit in first place overall in the USHL.

The Phantoms lit the lamp early, as just 3:50 in while shorthanded, forward Josh Nenadal took a shot from the right wing circle that hit some bodies out front and eventually came to Alvaro who popped it in past Sioux City goaltender Collin Olson, putting the Phantoms up, 1-0.

That lead held up throughout the remainder of the first, and in the second, the Phantoms' special teams struck again while on the power play, when forward Kiefer Sherwood sent a pass to Connor coming over the blue line, and he split the Musketeer defense and tucked it past Olson, pushing the Phantoms' lead to 2-0, 4:43 into the frame.

The power play expanded the Phantoms' lead to 3-0 about seven minutes later, when forward Josh Melnick took a shot from the center blueline that was deflected in by Alvaro for his second of the game, 10:21 into the second period.

The Phantoms took that 3-0 lead into the locker room after the second period, and managed to push their lead to 4-0 1:38 into the third with their third power play goal of the game, when forward Taylor Best sent a pass from the left wing corner to Sheehy who slammed it home for his first goal as a member of the Youngstown Phantoms.

After Joe Snively put Sioux City on the board 13:53 into the third, Connor sealed the Phantoms' 14th win in a row with an empty netter from the center red line, capping the 5-1 win for the Phantoms.

PREVIEWING WATERLOO: The Black Hawks are in the thick of the Western Conference, sitting in sixth place just seven points out of the fourth, and final, playoff spot. They enter the weekend hav- ing won four straight, including a 4-1 win over Green Bay on Tuesday. They are led by Brock Boeser who is tied for fourth in League scoring with 55 points (29g, 26a). Behind him is Tom Novak who has accounted for 14 goals and 34 assists, and Henrik Rommel with 14 goals and 21 assists. In goal, Cale Morris has been nearly unbeatable since being traded from the Chicago Steel, accounting for a 14-3-3 record, along with a 1.54 goals-against average and a .949 save percentage in 20 games played with Waterloo.

CHASING HISTORY: The Phantoms are currently riding a 14-game winning streak, and are just two wins shy of tying the USHL Tier-1 era record (2002-Present) of 16, held by the 2013-14 Waterloo Black Hawks, and the 2005-06 Sioux Falls Stampede. The overall USHL record is 19, set by the Des Moines Buccaneers during the 1998-99 season.

HELLO, OLD FRIENDS: Friday marks the first time that forward Tyler Sheehy will be taking on his former team. Sheehy was acquired from Waterloo on the March 2nd trade deadline in exchange for Bryan Lemos. Sheehy accounted for 37 goals and 55 assists in 104 career games with Waterloo, has totaled a goal and four assists in his first four games with the Phantoms. Lemos has fit in nicely with the Hawks, registering a goal and three assists in his four games with Waterloo, after accounting for 13 goals and 21 assists in a Phantoms uniform.

WE'RE GOING STREAKING!: A number of Phantoms are riding some lengthy point streaks, as Max Letunov currently has points in 10 straight, while Kyle Connor, Ryan Lomberg, and Kiefer Sherwood each have points in five consecutive. Letunov has totaled eight goals and eight as- sists on his point streak, with multi-point efforts coming in five of those games. Connor has accounted for seven goals and six assists on his streak, with each game being a multi-point effort. Sherwood has three goals and eight assists in his last five games, with a career-high four point game (1g, 3a) on February 28th. Lomberg has potted three goals and dished out four assists over his last five games, with two of them serving as multi-point efforts.

Game 52: Youngstown Phantoms vs Waterloo Black Hawks

Friday, March 20, 2015

Young Arena, Waterloo, IA-8:05 pm

YNG: 33-13-5, 71 PTS-1st Place (East)

WAT : 23-23-6, 52 PTS-6th Place (West)

STANDING ON THE TOP: The Phantoms currently boast three of the top five point scorers in the USHL, including League-leader Kyle Connor (27G-38A-65P), Max Letunov, who ranks third with 57 points (23g, 34a), and Josh Melnick who is tied for fourth with 12 goals and 43 assists for 55 points. As a team, Youngstown leads the USHL in scoring, averaging 3.92 goals per game.

BIRD IS THE WORD: Goaltender Chris Birdsall earned his sixth win in a row on Saturday, turning out a 27-save perfor- mance in the 5-1 win over Sioux City. The Boston College commit is 8-2-0 in his last 10 starts, posting a 2.38 goals-against av- erage and a .917 save percentage in that span. He has allowed more than two goals just once on his current winning streak.

JUST WIN, BABY!: Goaltender Colin DeAugustine extended his winning streak to eight games, with a 33 save perfor- mance in last Friday's 4-2 win over Sioux City. He has won nine of his last 10 starts, and is 12-1-0 overall in his last 15 games played. He has posted a 1.83 goals-against average, and a .931 save percentage on his current eight game winning streak.

OFF THE SCHNEID: With a pair of goals last Friday, forward Kevin Conley snapped his 18-game scoring drought, dating back to December 19th. The NHL Draft top prospect now has six goals to go along with a pair of assists in his first USHL sea- son.

CENTURY CLUB: With a power play goal in March 7th's 6-2 win over Sioux Falls, forward Max Letunov now has 100 points in his USHL career. He joins current teammate Kyle Connor, and alums Austin Cangelosi and JT Stenglein, as the only Phan- toms to score 100 or more points in their USHL careers. The Arizona Coyotes prospect has 42 goals and 58 assists through 109 career USHL games, and is currently third in the League with 57 points (23g, 34a) this season. He is on a 10-game point streak, accounting for eight goals and eight assists in that span.

MAN DOWN? NO PROBLEM: The Phantoms continued their shorthanded prowess last Friday night as Josh Melnick scored a shorthanded goal late in the third, giving the Phantoms 14 on the year, which leads the USHL. Youngstown has scored a shorthanded marker in four of their last eight games. Forward Ryan Lomberg leads the USHL with six shorthanded goals on the year.

WELL AREN'T YOU SPECIAL: The Phantoms special teams units have been amongst the best in the USHL all season long. The Phantoms currently boast the fifth-ranked power play in the League, converting on 21.74% of their chances (55/253), Their 55 power play goals leads the USHL, and forward Kiefer Sherwood is currently third in the League with 11 power play markers on the year. The penalty kill has been just as solid, ranking second in the USHL, killing off 175/202 opposition power plays (86.63%), while scoring a League-leading 15 shorthanded goals; six of which belong to forward Ryan Lomberg, who leads the USHL in that category. In Overall, 20 different players have recorded at least one special teams point this season.

LEAGUE LEADERS: The Phantoms are amongst the leaders in the USHL in many offensive categories, including goals (200) assists (323), points (523), power play goals (55), and shorthanded goals (15). Currently, the Phantoms lead the League in scoring, averaging 3.92 goals per game.

PHANTOMS STEAL THE SHOW: The Phantoms were the main topic of conversation at the USHL/NHL Top Prospects Game in Dubuque, IA, as the first three goals of the game were scored by Youngstown Phantoms. Forward Kevin Conley had a pair of first period goals and an assist, while forward Chase Pearson tallied a first period goal of his own and also dished out an assist, helping Team East to a 7-4 win. For his efforts, Conley was named Team East Most Valuable Player. It did not stop there, as midway through the second period, goaltender Chris Birdsall came into the game for Team West and proceeded to stop all nine shots he faced. Despite being held off the scoresheet, the Phantoms' other two representatives, forward Kyle Con- nor and defenseman Kris MyllarI, each finished with a plus-one on-ice rating.

ALL-TIME LEADER: With his goal in November 16th's 4-3 overtime loss to the Lincoln Stars, Kyle Connor became the Phan- toms' all-time goal-scoring leader, with the 55th goal of his career, surpassing Sam Anas' 54. Connor scored his 50th career goal back on October 11th, making him the 18th player in USHL history to reach the mark, and just the third player in League history to score 50 before his 18th birthday, joining former Waterloo Black Hawk Taylor Cammarata, and former Omaha Lancer Seth Ambroz. In addition to Connor and Anas, former Phantom Austin Cangelosi is the only other Phantom to score 50 goals in a career.

THE NHL COMES CALLING: Three players with Youngstown ties were chosen in last June's NHL Draft - Max Letunov, JJ Piccinich and Nathan Walker. Letunov was selected by the St. Louis Blues in the second round with the 52nd overall se- lection, making him the second-highest NHL Draft selection in Youngstown Phantoms history (Scott Mayfield, 2nd RD, #34 Overall to NYI in 2011). Next up was Walker, who was selected in the third round (89th overall) by the Washington Capitals. He suited up for the Phantoms during the 2012-2013 season, and last September signed a professional contract with the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League (AHL), making him the first Phantoms player to make the jump from the USHL to the AHL. Hailing from Sydney, Australia, Walker is the first Australian-born player to be selected in the NHL Draft. The Final Phan- tom taken off the board was Piccinich who was selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the fourth round with the 103rd overall pick. Currently a freshman at Boston University, Piccinich just wrapped up a two-year USHL career in which he totaled 30 goals and 43 assists in 123 games played.


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