Phantoms defeat Hershey 5-1

Published on November 7, 2003 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Adirondack Phantoms News Release


(PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 7, 2003) - Antero Niittymaki made 27 saves and five different Phantoms recorded two points as Philadelphia posted its second straight blowout win over the Hershey Bears with a 5-1 decision tonight at the Wachovia Spectrum.

Following a six-game winless streak, Philadelphia has now won two in a row - both over Hershey by a combined score of 11-3. Niittymaki also notched the win in last Sunday's 6-2 triumph in Hershey by making 28 saves to pick up his first victory of the season. The teams will meet again on Saturday night in Hershey.

Patrick Sharp, Boyd Kane, John Slaney, Kirby Law and Randy Jones all totaled two points for Philadelphia, which improved to 39-32-8-5 all-time vs. the Bears.

"It's a big rivalry, as you can see by the amount of fans (7,156) we got out here tonight," said Phantoms defenseman Jeff Woywitka. "The fans were into it and the players were into and it's a thing we get focused for and strive to be on top for."

Tom Lawson finished with 37 saves for Hershey, which has lost three of its last four games.

The Phantoms played to a scoreless tie after one period for the seventh time in 11 games this season before scoring twice in a 27-second span early in the second.

Kane put Philadelphia on the board at the two-minute mark with his second goal of the year. On the power play, Woywitka uncorked a pair of slap shots before Kane collected the second rebound and deposited it past Lawson. Jones also picked up an assist on the play.

Just 27 seconds later, Ben Stafford made it 2-0 when he scored for the third game in a row. P.J. Stock and Slaney assisted on the follow-in goal, which was Stafford's third of the year.

Philadelphia killed a full two-minute 5-on-3 disadvantage before Mark Murphy put the Phantoms up by three goals with 1:28 left in the middle stanza. With Hershey's Shane Willis serving a holding minor, Slaney took a pass from Peter White and found Murphy cutting to the net for a roller that beat Lawson five-hole.

"I was very happy with the way we played tonight," said Phantoms head coach John Stevens. "We played good to a point, but we weren't digging in the areas we should. We made a commitment to get to the net. The five-on-three was a key part of the game. Niittymaki has been coming on strong. Hopefully he'll stay healthy. He's starting to gain some confidence. He's a likeable guy on the team."

Following an entertaining fight between Stock and Mark Jerant, Philadelphia made it 4-0 with its third power-play goal of the game. Law netted his third goal - all in the last two games - at 9:45 of the third off assists by Sharp and Kane.

Sharp capped the Phantoms scoring at 15:06 of the third with his third of the year. Law and Jones set up the play before Niittymaki had his shutout bid foiled with 3:54 remaining on Ryan Craig's first goal of the season.

"I wasn't that sharp (two games ago) in Albany, but the last two games I felt pretty good," said Niittymaki, who has started three games in a row. "The last game (vs. Hershey) we had five or six fights and tonight we had four - I think we kind of hate each other."

The Phantoms play at Hershey on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. before returning home to host the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Sunday at 6:05 p.m.

Phantoms Notes: Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Darwin Walker dropped the ceremonial opening puck ... Mike Siklenka, who re-joined the Phantoms on Wednesday after being claimed off waivers from the New York Rangers, tonight served the final game of his five-game suspension he received last April ...B.J. Abel was a healthy scratch ... Jones has five assists in the last two games ... Law has six points in the last two games.

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American Hockey League Stories from November 7, 2003


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