USHL Youngstown Phantoms

Phantom Philes: Top Trio Churning Out Points

Published on January 26, 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 very own stop on the road to the National Hockey League.

Amidst an arduous January, the Youngstown Phantoms have at least been able to count on one thing: offensive production from the forward line of Jefferson Dahl, Cody Strang and Andrew Lamont.

Since the Jan. 8 home game against Fargo, a span of six contests, the Phantoms' top trio has combined to register seven goals and and a total of 18 points - an impressive three-points-per-game average for the triumvirate.

"They're all quick guys and are using their speed well," said Phantoms Associate Coach and Director of Player Development Curt Carr. "They're getting pucks to the net, and once they do they all have the scoring touch to take advantage."

Dahl, who centers the line, has paced this prolific group with nine points, eight of which are assists, during his current six-game point-scoring streak. Dahl's stretch of torrid play has propelled the second-year USHLer to a season total of 27 points, one more than he accumulated last season with the Green Bay Gamblers and within one of All-Star Taylor Holstrom for the team lead.

"Jefferson's a guy that we expected to produce and obviously his play has been fantastic lately," Carr said. "He sees the ice well, he's strong on the puck and he keeps his feet moving all the time. He's one of our go-to guys."

Flanking Dahl during the past three weeks have been Lamont and Strang, both of whom have achieved offensive milestones in 2010. In a 3-2 loss to Fargo Jan. 9, Lamont rang up the first two-goal game of his Tier I career, along with a season-best six shots and a +2 rating.

"We all play a similar way," said Lamont, trying to explain the line's success. "We're three shifty forwards who work the puck down low really well. () get into the offensive zone with speed and go to work," Carr said. "They're generating goals from going in hard and not engaging in one-on-one situations. They're just keeping it simple."

PHANTOMS GAMES THIS WEEK...

Friday at 7:15 p.m. vs. SIOUX FALLS

- Hockey Across America Night / Celebrate the great sport of hockey with Tyler Kennedy of the Pittsburgh Penguins, who will be appearing from 5-7 p.m. Anyone wearing hockey apparel can buy a half-priced ticket to meet the Stanley Cup champion forward, then enjoy the Phantoms' showdown with Sioux Falls!

Sunday at 3 p.m. vs. SIOUX FALLS

- Family Day / The Phantoms offer four tickets for just $20 for this special early start time. Meet SpongeBob SquarePants during the game, and then jump onto the Covelli Centre ice after the contest for a post-game skate with Phantoms players! **Please note earlier start time**

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.

Phantoms Phever, presented by House of Speed, is an hour-long weekly talk show that brings you an inside look at your Youngstown Phantoms. Matt sets up shop Tuesdays at 6 p.m. at Jeremiah Bullfrog's Sports Bar & Grille on US Route 224 in Boardman, chatting with coaches, players and front office staff about northeast Ohio's most exciting team and the great sport of hockey. Catch Phantoms Phever on Youngstown's ESPN Radio 1240 AM and online at www.wbbw.com

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 Gajtka's take on Youngstown's inaugural season in the USHL at the online Voice of the Phantoms blog at www.youngstownphantoms.com

THE WEEK THAT WAS:

Friday, January 22: WATERLOO 3, YOUNGSTOWN 2

WATERLOO, Iowa - One game after rallying back from a 2-0 first-period deficit at home, a similar hole proved too much to overcome on the road for the Youngstown Phantoms, as they were held off by the Waterloo Black Hawks Friday night, 3-2 from Young Arena.

J.T. Brown and Jacob MacDonald each registered a goal and an assist, with Brown's rebound goal at 7:41 of the third standing as the game winner after Phantoms defenseman Scott Mayfield brought Youngstown back within striking distance later in the frame.

After the Black Hawks (16-16-2, 34 points) killed a 51-second Youngstown two-man advantage early in the third with the score 2-1, Brock Montpetit dished to Derek Arnold, whose slapshot was stopped by Phantoms goalie Jordan Tibbett. However, Brown was charging the left post and had an easy finish when the puck deflected into his wheelhouse.

Mayfield's long-range power-play wrister off the left post with 3:02 to go kept the Phantoms comeback hopes alive, but despite two offensive-zone faceoffs in the final seven seconds, the Phantoms were stymied by Waterloo and netminder C.J. Motte in the end, who made 34 saves to even his record at 11-11-0.

Youngstown (14-18-2, 28 points) outshot the Hawks 28-12 over the final 40 minutes and 36-27 for the game. The Phantoms will conclude their brief two-game road trip Saturday night in Cedar Rapids; their current four-game road losing streak began there on New Year's Eve with a 5-1 loss to the RoughRiders.

The two clubs traded chances back and forth through the opening 14 minutes of the game, but the Hawks broke the building tension with a power play goal on their third chance of the evening. Just nine seconds after the advantage began, Jamie Hill deflected his seventh of the season past the outstretched right pad of Tibbett.

Defenseman MacDonald set up Hill's tally by tossing the puck to the crease, but he had a lot more purpose behind his next attempt on goal, which found the top-left corner of the net with 1:56 left before the first intermission. Brown's end-to-end rush created space for MacDonald to trail the play, taking Brown's drop pass at the top of the right circle to push the lead to 2-0.

Andrew Lamont and Jefferson Dahl, two of the Phantoms' hottest offensive players in recent weeks, teamed up late in the second to draw Youngstown within one headed for the third. Dahl pushed the puck to the inner edge of the right circle, where Lamont deposited his eighth under the crossbar from in close against goaltender Motte with 2:20 left in the middle frame.

Go to http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/boxscore.html?gameid=1049067 for full box score.

Saturday, January 23: CEDAR RAPIDS 3, YOUNGSTOWN 2

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - David Boehm's rebound goal with 54 seconds to play in the third period provided the winning margin, as the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders struck the final blow Saturday night at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena, prevailing 3-2 over the Youngstown Phantoms.

With the Phantoms pinned in their own zone as the clock ticked under a minute, Bryce Aneloski's heavy slapshot from the right point slammed off the right pad of Youngstown goalie Matt Mahalak and toward the left circle, where Boehm found himself alone for the clincher.

Mahalak made a career-high 44 saves for the Phantoms (14-19-2, 30 points), who will return to Youngstown to begin a five-game homestand Friday night against Sioux Falls. Cody Strang, with his fourth goal in three games this week, and Brett Gensler tallied goals for the visitors, who fell for the sixth-straight time away from Covelli Centre.

The two teams entered the third tied 1-1, but Cedar Rapids' Eric Robinson nailed his second goal of the season series with Youngstown to give the home side its first lead at 5:12 of the final stanza. Robinson was assisted by blueliner Steven Hensley's feed from the right boards.

The RoughRiders had a chance to extend their lead moments later when they were awarded power play, but the Phantoms, who killed all nine Cedar Rapids man-advantages on the evening, extinguished it and promptly went back to work offensively.

Their persistent efforts paid off with 9:30 left, when Gensler struck from the doorstep. Jiri Sekac's backhand pass found Taylor Holstrom open in front, but Cedar Rapids netminder Cody Campbell made the save, kicking the puck to Gensler. The former RoughRider punched in his 12th of the campaign to draw the contest even once more, setting up the late dramatics.

The story of the first period was the perfect play of both goaltenders. Mahalak, getting his third start in the Phantoms' last five games, denied all 12 Cedar Rapids shots gunned his way, including more than a couple quality scoring chances. Campbell, whom Youngtown defeated Oct. 30 when he was a member of the Fargo Force, matched his counterpart by keeping the game scoreless despite a late offensive push by the visitors.

The momentum accrued by the Phantoms at the end of the first stanza carried over into the second, with Strang finally finding a way to beat Campbell at 3:17. Jefferson Dahl's centering pass deflected off Ryan Jasinsky and into the right corner, where Strang hopped to it and whistled a bad-angle shot off the body of Campbell and into the twine at even strength.

Youngstown soon was faced with a Cedar Rapids two-man advantage, but the Phantoms negated the 51-second five-on-three to stay on top heading into the latter half of the period. However, the RoughRiders forged a 1-1 tie after Cason Hohmann converted a second-change opportunity from the left edge of the crease with 5:11 to go before the second intermission.

Go to http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/boxscore.html?gameid=1049075 for full box score.

The Youngstown Phantoms are a Member Club of the United States Hockey League (USHL), America's only Tier I hockey league and premier developer of National Hockey League talent with more than 100 alumni on current NHL rosters.

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United States Hockey League Stories from January 26, 2010


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