Phantoms Comeback Falls Short In Wilkes-Barre 4-3

Published on December 28, 2009 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Adirondack Phantoms News Release


WILKES-BARRE, PA - Patrick Maroon had a goal and an assist, but the Adirondack Phantoms had their third period comeback fall short in a 4-3 loss to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins Monday night at Wachovia Arena.

The Phantoms came into the game looking for their first three-game winning streak of the season, but knew they were in for a difficult task against a strong defensive team like the Penguins. Wilkes-/Barre/Scranton held Adirondack to just five first period shots and grabbed the lead when defenseman Lane Caffaro scored his first goal of the year at 5:41. Caffaro was in the right place to find the puck after Nick Johnson's shot missed the net, but bounced off the back wall right to Caffaro at the far side of the net and the Penguins defenseman had a tap in on the open side of the net. The Phantoms were good defensively other than on the goal and even held the Penguins in check during a short five-one-three power play.

Things went from bad to worse early in the second period as Penguins leading scorer Dustin Jeffrey scored twice in the span of 68 seconds. First he lit the lamp at 1:41 by skating around a Phantoms defenseman, moving to his backhand and beating goaltender John Grahame to the right post. Just over a minute later Jeffrey scored his 10th goal of the year, his third point of the game, when Caffaro made a cross-ice pass to an unmarked Jeffrey standing at the far post and all the Penguins' forward had to do was catch the puck and slide it into the open net. Adirondack got on the board at 13:07 on Jon Matsumoto's 13th goal of the year, assisted by Patrick Maroon and David Laliberte. Maroon sent a nice pass from behind the net to a wide-open Matsumoto in the low slot and the Phantoms' leading scorer calmly deposited his shot into the roof of the net. That goal seemed to lift Adirondack and they out-shot Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 11-9 in the frame, but trailed by two goals after forty minutes.

The Phantoms rally continued in the third period when Patrick Maroon scored for the second straight game to pull the score to 3-2 at 6:54. Adirondack pushed for the tying goal and had a momentary defensive breakdown as Joe Vitale centered a pass from behind the net to Eric Tangradi for a one-timer over the glove of Grahame at 13:49 to regain the Penguins two-goal lead. Adirondack was not done thanks to a power play goal from Stefan Legein at 17:59, his 15th goal of the year, but they could not complete the comeback as they fell short 4-3.

Penguins goaltender John Curry stopped 32-of-35 shots to record the win as Wilkes-Barre/Scranton improved to 17-14-1-1. Adirondack goaltender John Grahame made 19 saves on 23 shots in the loss as the Phantoms dropped to 14-14-2-0 on the year. The Adirondack out-shot the Penguins 35-23 in the game and went 1-for-6 on the power play; Wilkes-Barre/Scranton was 0-for-2 with the man-advantage

The Phantoms will complete their four-game road trip down as they travel down the Northway on Wednesday, December 30th for a Time Warner Cable Cup battle with the Albany River Rats at 7:00 pm at the Times Union Center. Adirondack's next home game is on Thursday, December 31st for a special 3:00 pm face off against Albany for Round Six of the Time Warner Cable Cup series at the Glens Falls Civic Center.

There is no better way to watch Phantoms Hockey than by sharing it with a group of your family and friends. Bring a group of 15 or more people to the Glens Falls Civic Center and qualify for incredible discounted ticket prices off the regular box office rates. For more information about group tickets, contact the Phantoms at 518-480-3355 or visit www.phantomshockey.com.



American Hockey League Stories from December 28, 2009


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.

OurSports Central