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USHL Youngstown Phantoms

Game Notes vs Muskegon

April 4, 2015 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Youngstown Phantoms News Release


Having dropped their first game in nearly two months on Friday, the Phantoms rebounded for a hard-fought 2-1 win over the Omaha Lancers on Saturday. The Phantoms still sit atop the USHL standings in first place, two points ahead of the Sioux City Musketeers. The Phantoms need just one point to clinch home ice ad- vantage in the first round of the 2015 Clark Cup Playoffs.

LAST SATURDAY RECAP: The Youngstown Phantoms (37-14-5) earned a 2-1 win over the Oma- ha Lancers on Saturday night. Forward Taylor Best and defenseman Alec Vanko scored the goals for the Phantoms, who tie the USHL lead with their 37th win of the season.

The bodies and hits were flying in the opening period as both teams set a physical tone early in the contest. Emotions ran high throughout the opening 20 minutes, and as a result, forwards Matt Alvaro and James Winkler were assessed five minute majors and game misconducts for checking from be- hind and head contact, respectively.

The two sides headed to the locker room scoreless after the first, and in the second, the hard hitting, physical play continued, highlighted by a fight between forward Ryan Lomberg, and Omaha's Jake Henderson, midway through the frame.

Not long after, the Phantoms netted the game's first goal, when Best came over the Omaha blueline on a three-on-two rush and launched a wrister off the crossbar and in past Lancer goaltender Kris Oldham, putting the Phantoms up, 1-0, after 40 minutes.

The Phantoms got a little insurance early in the third while on the power play, when a shot from Lomberg came off of the end boards right to Vanko to the left of the net, and he flipped it past Old- ham, putting the Phantom up, 2-0.

The Lancers cut the lead in half on a goal from Steven Spinner with eight minutes left in the third, however netminder Colin DeAugustine was strong in net, stopping 35 of the 36 shots he faced to backstop the Phantoms to the 2-1 win.

PREVIEWING MUSKEGON: The Lumberjacks currently sit in fourth place in the USHL's East- ern Conference, seven points behind the Phantoms for first. They are coming off of a 4-0 loss to Team USA's Under 17 squad on Friday night, snapping their five-game winning streak. Despite the loss, have won seven of their last eight overall. This will be the sixth and final time the Phantoms and Lum- berjacks will meet in the regular season, with the Phantoms winning three of the first five. The season series has also been a tight affair, with four of the first five games having been decided by one goal.

They are led by 60-point scorer Griffen Molino, who has accounted for 16 goals and 44 assists. Be- hind him is Mark Petaccio, who has totaled 48 points (22g, 28a), with 22 of them (12g, 10a) coming over his first 22 games with the team. Forwards Matej Paulovic (16g, 30a), and Tom Marchin (23g, 22a), have also been driving forces in the Lumberjacks' offense. In goal, Eric Schierhorn is amongst the League goaltending leaders, compiling a 25-12-4 record, long with a 2.41 goals-against average and a .929 save percentage.

CENTURY CLUB: With an assist in last Friday's 4-2 loss to the Omaha Lancers, forward Tyler Sheehy hit 100 points for his USHL career. Acquired in a trade with the Waterloo Black Hawks at the trade deadline, Sheehy has accounted for a pair of goals and nine assists through his first nine games in a Phantoms uniform. Through 114 career USHL games, the University of Minnesota commit has accounted for 39 goals and 62 assists. He joins current teammates Kyle Connor and Max Le- tunov, and alums Austin Cangelosi and JT Stenglein as the only Phantoms to score 100 or more points in their USHL careers.

BROTHERLY LOVE: Saturday's lineup for the Phantoms will feature a set of brothers, as Affili- ate-List forward Kole Sherwood, the younger brother of current forward Kiefer Sherwood, will make his USHL debut. Kole spent this past season with the Ohio Blue Jackets U18 program, where he to- taled 22 goals and 26 assists in 31 games played. He recently committed to Boston University, follow- ing his USHL career.

RECORD BREAKERS: The Phantoms set a new USHL Tier-1 era record (2002-Present) with their 17th consecutive win on March 22nd. The 2013-14 Waterloo Black Hawks and the 2005-06 Sioux Falls Stampede both held the previous record with 16. The overall USHL record is 19, set by the Des Moines Buccaneers during the 1998-99 season.

Game 57: Youngstown Phantoms vs Muskegon Lumberjacks

Saturday, April 4, 2015

Covelli Centre, Youngstown, OH-7:05 pm

YNG: 37-14-5, 79 PTS-1st Place (East)

MUS : 34-19-4, 72 PTS-4th Place (East)

PLAYOFF CLINCHER: Youngstown's 4-0 win Over Waterloo on March 21st clinched a spot in the USHL Clark Cup Playoffs for the Phantoms for the third time in team history. Youngstown previously participated in the USHL's second season in 2012 and 2013, advancing to Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Final in 2013.

JUST WIN, BABY!: Goaltender Colin DeAugustine extended his winning streak to 11 games, with a 35 save perfor- mance in Saturday's 2-1 win over Omaha. He has won 12 of his last 13 starts, and is 15-1-0 overall in his last 18 games played. DeAugustine has posted a 1.79 goals-against average, and a .929 save percentage on his current 11 game winning streak.

BIRD IS THE WORD: Despite having his seven-game winning streak snapped in last Friday's 4-2 loss to Omaha, goaltender Chris Birdsall has been stellar over the last couple of months, posting a 7-1-0 record over his last eight starts, allowing more than two goals on just two occasions. The Boston College commit is 9-3-0 in his last 12 starts, posting a 2.32 goals- against average and a .918 save percentage in that span.

MAN DOWN? NO PROBLEM: The Phantoms are second in the League in penalty killing, killing off 187 of 217 opposi- tional power plays. Youngstown has scored a League-leading 16 shorthanded goals on the season, with forward Ryan Lomberg accounting for six of them, which also in a USHL best.

STANDING ON THE TOP: The Phantoms currently boast three of the top 10 point scorers in the USHL, including League-leader Kyle Connor (29G-40A-69P), Max Letunov who is tied for sixth with 59 points (23g, 36a), and Josh Melnick who ranks eighth with 14 goals and 44 assists for 58 points. As a team, Youngstown leads the USHL in scoring, averaging 3.82 goals per game.

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 20.96% of their chances (57/272), Their 57 power play goals leads the USHL, and forward Kiefer Sherwood is currently fourth in the League with 11 power play markers on the year. The penalty kill has been just as solid, leading the USHL by killing off 187/217 opposition power plays (86.18), while scoring a League-leading 16 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 (214) assists (347), points (561), power play goals (57), and shorthanded goals (16). Currently, the Phantoms lead the League in scoring, averaging 3.82 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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