Phantoms and North Stars Renew Rivalry in Playoffs
Published on April 2, 2009 under North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Mahoning Valley Phantoms News Release
YOUNGSTOWN, OH (Thursday, April 2nd, 2009) - The Mahoning Valley Phantoms kick off the 2009 NAHL Playoffs Friday at the Chevrolet Centre when they host the Traverse City North Stars for Game One of the North Division Semifinals.
The team wants fans to PACK THE HOUSE for Friday and Sunday's first round home games, so they are selling all tickets for $5.00 each and, in conjunction with local sponsors, giving away T-shirts (while supplies last) to fans at each game.
The best-of-five showdown is the culmination of what has been a smoldering rivalry between the two North Division squads during the regular season.
"It's always been a big rivalry," says Phantoms captain Johnny Meo, "but this year it's gotten a lot bigger because of the way we battled with 'T.C.' at the top of the standings all year long. This series is definitely going to be a test of who wants it more."
In 13 regular season meetings, the Phantoms went 6-4-3 against the third-place North Stars, including a 4-2-1 record at home against Traverse City.
The last time the two teams met was March 13-15 at the Chevrolet Centre. The Phantoms took the series opener with a dominating 9-2 win before the North Stars captured the next two games with 4-1 and 3-2 wins at the Centre.
At Centre ICE Arena in Traverse City, the Phantoms went an even 2-2-2 in six games.
The two sides match up very well by the numbers, with the Phantoms sporting the league's third-best offense with 224 goals scored against Traverse City's 7th-rated defense that allowed only 171 goals all year long.
On the other side of the coin, the North Stars' offense enters the postseason as the league's 11th-rated unit with 182 goals; they'll face off against Mahoning Valley's "D" that allowed 173 scores, the 9th-lowest total in the NAHL.
Special teams will be a particular concern for both sides in the opening round series as the North Stars notched 10 of the 39 goals they scored against the Phantoms while on the power play with a 16.4% efficiency rating in the 13 regular season contests.
"Staying out of the box is going to be very important," notes Meo. "We need to be extremely disciplined out there and then capitalize when we get our own power play chances."
Mahoning Valley, meanwhile, had a 13.2% efficiency rating on the power play against Traverse City but scored four short-handed goals against the North Stars in the season series; including two in the March 13th 9-2 win.
Nick Kenney led the charge for Mahoning Valley against Traverse City, netting seven goals while adding six assists for a one point per game average against the North Stars during the regular season.
Stefan Salituro finished as the Phantoms' overall leading regular season scorer with 14 goals and 34 assists; Brandon Saad topped the team's goal scorers list with 29 markers in '08-'09.
Goaltender Jordan Tibbett, who finished with the second-most regular season wins in Phantoms history with 24 this season, went 5-3-1 against Traverse City with a 2.08 goals against average and a .924 save percentage.
Kyle Bonis proved the most dangerous North Star against the Phantoms, tallying seven goals and nine assists in thirteen games, including two game-winning scores.
Forward Kyle Jean supplied Traverse City with three game-winning goals in the season series.
"Jean and Bonis are definitely [Traverse City's] two best players on the ice," says Mahoning Valley defenseman and assistant captain Carl Nielsen, "they're always a threat to put the puck in the net. We don't want to abandon our defensive gameplan and just focus on those two, but we definitely need to constantly be aware of them when they're on the ice."
Bonis is also the Stars' top scorer with 30 goals and 27 assists.
Netminder C.J. Motte set a new franchise regular season record with a record of 22-9-2 for Traverse City, finished 3-2-0 against the Phantoms with a 2.85 GAA and a .920 SV%.
Game one is Friday at 7:30 PM and game two is Sunday afternoon at 3:00 PM; both contests are at the Chevrolet Centre. The series takes a three-day break before the scene shifts to Centre ICE Arena in Traverse City on Thursday at 7:05 PM.
If necessary, game four would be at Centre ICE Arena next Friday at 7:05 PM while game five would be back in Youngstown at the Chevrolet Centre on Sunday, April 12th.
All Phantoms playoff games will be broadcast locally on ESPN Radio 1240, WBBW-AM, and worldwide at MVPPhantoms.com via B2 Networks. The pregame show for each contest will begin 15 minutes before the opening faceoff.
Tickets for the 2009 Playoffs are now on sale. For more information or to reserve your 2009 Playoff seats, call the Phantom Box Office at (330) 965-7500.
North American Hockey League Stories from April 2, 2009
- Phantoms and North Stars Renew Rivalry in Playoffs - Mahoning Valley Phantoms
- Grogan Commits to UCONN - Bismarck Bobcats
- Jr. Blues Fan Bus Is Heading To St. Louis - Springfield Jr. Blues
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