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Phantoms Announce 2008-09 Schedule

August 7, 2008 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Adirondack Phantoms News Release


PHILADELPHIA - The Philadelphia Phantoms, in conjunction with the American Hockey League, today released their complete 80-game schedule for the 2008-09 regular season. It includes 39 games at the historic Wachovia Spectrum, which the Phantoms have called home for the past 12 seasons.

The final season of hockey at the Spectrum will commence with the building's final Opening Night on Friday, October 10 when the Phantoms play host to the Bridgeport Sound Tigers at 7:05. The final regular season hockey game at the Spectrum will be played on Sunday, April 12 at 5:05 PM against the Norfolk Admirals.

Comcast-Spectacor recently announced that the Wachovia Spectrum will close after the Phantoms and Philadelphia KiXX indoor soccer team conclude their 2008-09 seasons. The Spectrum opened on September 30, 1967 with the Quaker City Jazz Festival. After nearly 30 seasons of Philadelphia Flyers hockey and Philadelphia 76ers basketball, the Spectrum gave way to the Wachovia Center in 1996.

As such, the entire 2008-09 Phantoms season will be a tribute to the historic building, with a full lineup of special events in the works and slated for announcement in the coming weeks.

"The Spectrum is my baby," said Comcast-Spectacor Chairman Ed Snider. "The Spectrum has been one of the greatest thrills of my life. This will be a very emotional year for me and our entire organization."

"We want this year to be a celebration of all of the terrific memories from the Spectrum," said Comcast-Spectacor President Peter Luukko. "In addition, we will make sure every Phantoms home game is an opportunity for our fans to remember all of the great hockey history in the Spectrum."

"I grew up just a few blocks from the Spectrum and I'm one of millions of people who have a lot of fond memories of hockey in South Philadelphia," said Phantoms COO Frank Miceli. "From Phantoms Opening Night on October 10, through the final regular season game on April 12, we are going to celebrate hockey on Broad Street and create more great memories at the Spectrum."

Other significant dates on the docket are the annual School Day Game on Wednesday, November 19 at 11:05 AM against the Albany River Rats, a President's Day contest on Monday, February 16 at 5:05 against the Hamilton Bulldogs, and a Black Friday doubleheader with the Philadelphia Flyers on Friday, November 28 in which the Phantoms will play the Springfield Falcons at 7:05 at the Wachovia Center. It's the only game of the year scheduled to be played there, with the other 39 all taking place at the storied Spectrum.

Once again this year, the Phantoms have a fan-friendly schedule that is heavy on weekend contests. A remarkable 33 of the 40 home games will be played on weekend dates, with 17 of them coming on Friday nights. Phantoms fans will have a new weekend treat this year in the form of eight Saturday home games - twice as many as the team has ever had in a single season. Another eight games will be played on Sunday evenings. The President's Day contest is the lone Monday game, and goes along with one Tuesday contest and five Wednesday games, including the morning School Day Game. The longest homestand of the season comes around the All-Star break, when the club will play six consecutive home games from January 23 to February 8.

The Phantoms will waste no time lighting a fire under their rivalry with the Hershey Bears. The two clubs will meet seven times in the first two months of the season, including six tilts in November alone. Fans will want to catch the rivalry early - the Bears play in Philadelphia four times between October 17 and November 21, and then won't return until February 6.

The road portion of the schedule is anchored by two long stretches of away games. In a ten-game stretch from October 19 to November 9, the Phantoms will play nine games on the road, with one home game against Hershey mixed in on November 2. After the New Year, the Phantoms will head north and west for five games from January 3 - 11. They'll cross the border into Canada to play Toronto and Hamilton, then head to Grand Rapids, Michigan for two games and make a stop in Cleveland on the way home to face the Lake Erie Monsters.

As has been the case in past years, late-season games will be crucial to Philadelphia's playoff run. All eight games in April are in-division games, with four of them against Norfolk and two each against Albany and Hershey. Beginning March 7, the Phantoms will play 17 of their final 20 games against East Division foes.

One difference to the club will be a stressed importance on picking up standings points in the first half of the season. The team has traditionally played the bulk of its games in the second half of the schedule, but this year the Phantoms will actually see their busiest month come in November, when they'll take the ice 15 times. January is a 14-game month. The rest of the schedule will be relatively tame compared to past years, with just 32 of the 80 games being played in February, March and April.

As announced earlier today, former Flyer John Paddock, a four-time Calder Cup champion and former AHL Coach of the Year, will lead the Phantoms in their final season at the Wachovia Spectrum. Paddock, who brings five years of NHL head coaching experience to the Phantoms bench, will be embarking on his 13th season as an American Hockey League bench boss.

Paddock's teams have qualified for the Calder Cup Playoffs in each of his previous 12 AHL seasons, winning the Calder Cup three times. He led Flyers AHL affiliates to two championships - 1983-84 with the Maine Mariners and 1987-88 with Hershey - and also in 1999-2000 with Hartford. Paddock is the only coach in the history of the AHL to win Calder Cup championships with three different franchises.

Start times are 7:05 Monday through Saturday and 5:05 on Sunday. Exceptions are Wednesday, November 18 (11:00 AM) and Monday, February 16 (5:05 PM). All home games will be played at the Wachovia Spectrum except for the Friday, Nov. 28 game at the Wachovia Center.

A complete written version of the 2008-09 schedule is attached to this release. The schedule is also available on the Phantoms website at www.phantomshockey.com in various formats, including a downloadable file that fans can import directly into their Microsoft Outlook calendar.

Season tickets and game plans are now available for the historic last season at the Wachovia Spectrum. The best way to guarantee the same great seat to all the big rivalry games, great theme nights and the Spectrum's final hockey game is through a Phantoms season ticket or game plan package. Prices start at just $60 and include a long list of exclusive behind-the- scenes benefits! For more information on how you can be there for the last season or to make a deposit, call the Phantoms at 215-465-4522 during normal business hours. More information is also available at the Phantoms website, www.phantomshockey.com.



American Hockey League Stories from August 7, 2008


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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