Phantoms edge Alpena
March 9, 2007 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Mahoning Valley Phantoms News Release
ALPENA, Mich. - Chad Boeckman scored with 2:01 left in the third period to give the Mahoning Valley Phantoms a 4-3 win over the Alpena Ice Diggers at Northern Lights Arena.
Brent Dexter's pressure in the left circle forced a turnover in the Alpena zone. Matt Quigley gathered the loose puck along the left wing boards and saw Boeckman charging towards the net.
Quigley fired a centering pass that Boeckman redirected between the circles and over the left shoulder of goaltender Mike Jarboe for his 15th goal of the season to give the Phantoms their 42nd win of the season (42-11-1.)
Mike Fillinger opened the scoring for the Phantoms. He took a touch pass from Johnny Meo in the neutral zone and entered the offensive zone on the left wing.
Fillinger skated into the left circle and around defenseman Korey O'Brien before beating Jarboe for his 18th goal of the season with 4:55 left in the opening period.
Meo and Drew Satterley received assists as Fillinger scored in his fourth consecutive game.
Satterley doubled the advantage just 32 seconds into the second period. Fillinger and Meo forechecked behind the Alpena goal to force a turnover. Fillinger took the loose puck on the goal line and fed Satterley on the edge of the left circle.
Satterley tapped the bouncing puck over the right shoulder of Jarboe for his first goal of the season.
Drew Pierson got Alpena on the scoreboard with a power play goal just past the midway point of the game. Chris Hendrickson's shot from the left point bounced hard off the backboard behind the net and right to Pierson, who was parked on the right goal line.
Pierson made an easy deposit into the open net at 10:06, but the Phantoms quickly regained their two-goal advantage.
Chris Fairbanks led a two-on-one charge down the left wing. He peeled to the outside and paused before floating a centering pass towards a charging Alden Hirschfeld.
Hirschfeld beautifully redirected the puck, in stride, past Jarboe for his 18th goal of the season. The Phantoms led 3-1 at the 11:25 mark.
Pierson and the Ice Diggers, 31-20-4, answered before the end of the period. Korey O'Brien skated into the left circle before getting spun around.
Maintaining possession, O'Brien threw the puck towards the net, where Pierson, parked in the same spot as his first goal, redirected the puck over the shoulder of goaltender Ryan Zapolski with 1:49 left in the period.
Pierson tied the game at 3-3 with his third goal of the game at 9:58 of the third period. Chris Hendrickson?s shot from the left point was stopped, but not secured, by Zapolski.
Pierson fought off a Phantoms defenseman for the rebound and his 28th goal of the season.
For the game, the Phantoms out-shot Alpena 37-35. On the power play, the Ice Diggers were 1 for 6, while the Phantoms were 0 for 5.
The Phantoms and Ice Diggers resume their weekend series tomorrow night at 7 p.m. The game will be webcast on www.mvpphantoms.com.
The Mahoning Valley Phantoms are owned by the B.J. Alan Company- Phantom Fireworks, which is headquartered in Youngstown, Ohio.
North American Hockey League Stories from March 9, 2007
- Bandits take first game of weekend series - St. Louis Bandits
- U-18s edge Stars, 2-1 - Traverse City North Stars
- U.S. National Under-17 Team Claims 2-1 Victory Over Traverse City - U.S. National Team
- Phantoms edge Alpena - Mahoning Valley Phantoms
- IceDiggers to honor Wildcats tonight - Alpena IceDiggers
- Bobcats defeat Jets, 4-2 - Bismarck Bobcats
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