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Phantoms Close Regular Season With 3-2 Win Over Albany

April 13, 2008 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Adirondack Phantoms News Release


PHILADELPHIA - Michael Ratchuk dazzled the crowd with his first professional goal and also added an assist to take first star honors and lead the Phantoms to a 3-2 win over the Albany River Rats in the season finale for both teams. It set the stage for as many as seven more games between the teams when they open up the East Division Semifinals on Wednesday night at Albany's Times Union Center.

It took the Phantoms only 4:38 to get on the board, scoring first for the fifth consecutive game. This time around it was Jonathan Matsumoto firing a slapshot from the top of the right-wing circle through a screen and past goaltender Justin Peters, giving Philadelphia the 1-0 advantage.

Ratchuk made it 2-0 on one of the most outstanding goals of the entire year for the Phantoms. He staged an end-to-end rush during another power play, blazing right down the middle of the ice and eluding all four Rats on the sheet before beating Peters on a backhand to the right side. Ratchuk's first as a professional came with 8:01 remaining.

"I picked it up behind the net and I heard someone, it could have been someone from the bench or from the crowd, just yell ‘go,'" Ratchuk said afterwards. "I just kind of picked it up and went, and everyone sort of parted for me, and I just went through and took a shot and it went in."

Albany leveled the score in the second period. The first goal came 5:58 into the frame off the stick of Mike Angelidis. He fired a shot that Scott Munroe stopped with his pads, but the puck squirmed free of the pillows and crawled over the line to make it a 2-1 contest.

The second came during a four-on-four situation. Steve Ward put a shot on net, and immediately in front of that net was Jakub Petruzalek. He of the ten-letter last name deflected the puck through Munroe's pads, knotting the game at 2-2 with just 2:06 to play in the period.

The Phantoms, however, regained their advantage at the 9:23 mark of the final period. Denis Gauthier took a shot from the left point that Peters stopped, but he lost it to his right. It hit a teammate and slid over the line before Peters could get a glove on it, giving Philadelphia the 3-2 lead that would end the scoring.

Munroe took the victory with 28 saves on 30 shots, while Peters took the loss with 18 saves on 21 Philadelphia bids.

The Phantoms finish their 12th American Hockey League regular season with a mark of 46-27-4-3 for 99 points. It's the best regular season finish for the Phantoms since they went 48-25-3-4 en route to the Calder Cup in 2004-05. The 46 wins and 99 points are the third most the team has accumulated in the last nine seasons.

The Phantoms and River Rats will get started in the East Division Semifinals on Wednesday, April 16 at 7:00 at the Times Union Center. The series returns to Philadelphia on Friday for Game 2 at 7:05 at the Wachovia Center, and on Sunday for Game 3 at 5:05, also at the Wachovia Center. Single game playoff tickets and 16-game playoff strips are available at the Wachovia Complex box office, online at ComcastTIX.com or phantomshockey.com, or by phone at 1-800-298-4200.

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