Phantoms' Fast Start Fades
AHL Lehigh Valley Phantoms

Phantoms' Fast Start Fades

Published on February 14, 2026 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Lehigh Valley Phantoms News Release


Allentown, PA - The Lehigh Valley Phantoms delivered a strong opening frame and energized PPL Center with an early surge on Valentine's Night, but costly second-period breakdowns swung momentum sharply as the Cleveland Monsters pulled away for a 5-2 victory to open Winter Games Weekend.

"We just stopped playing," head coach John Snowden said. "We controlled a complete period, beat a good hockey team up and down the rink for 20 minutes, and then we strayed from what was working. Penalties, turnovers, not clearing pucks - it all ended up in our net. It's on us."

Oscar Eklind (2nd) and Tucker Robertson (9th) both tallied for Lehigh Valley in the opening salvo. Cleveland was led by multi-point nights from Justin Pearson and Mikael Pyyhtiä.

The other major storyline of the evening was the return touted Flyers' prospect Alex Bump returned to the Phantoms lineup after a 13-game absence due to injury.

"I'm just happy, honestly, to be back out there," Bump said. "It was getting frustrating in those last few weeks, but it feels good to be back out there trying to help."

Before the Phantoms roared back in the first period, Cleveland wasted little time silencing the crowd, striking just 53 seconds into the contest when Will Butcher wired a shot past Carson Bjarnason off a harmless-looking zone entry to give the Monsters the early edge.

But Lehigh Valley (21-21-4), skating in its new Orange Out jerseys, quickly responded with grit and pressure. A hardworking forecheck from Eklind, Zayde Wisdom, and Garrett Wilson forced chaos in the crease as Wisdom's sharp-angle shot created a rebound that Eklind raced to and jammed home at 8:34 to tie the game.

Momentum continued to build late in the period when Tucker Robertson produced a highlight-reel rush, slicing to the net with a silky move before roofing a short-side finish with 1:35 remaining to give the Phantoms a 2-1 lead. Lehigh Valley controlled the frame with a commanding 15-5 shot advantage and carried the energy into the intermission.

The tone shifted quickly in the second.

After killing an early penalty, the Phantoms found themselves back on the penalty kill moments later - and Cleveland made them pay. A crisp tic-tac-toe passing sequence freed Mikael Pyyhtiä at the left circle, where he buried the equalizer at 6:36.

Just 43 seconds later, a turnover at the blue line opened the door for Hunter McKown, who walked in alone and slid a low shot past Bjarnason to suddenly flip the game in the Monsters' favor at 3-2.

Lehigh Valley's struggles compounded when a costly puck misplay behind the net led to a shorthanded goal against. Corson Ceulemans intercepted the turnover and fed Justin Pearson at the doorstep, who calmly waited out Bjarnason before sliding it home at 12:45 to push the Cleveland lead to 4-2.

Despite a late power-play opportunity, the Phantoms couldn't claw back before the second intermission as momentum firmly swung toward the visitors.

"I thought the first period we stuck to the game plan, and then we fell off after that," Bump said. "We have everything we need - it's just about playing our structure for a full 60 minutes."

Lehigh Valley pushed in the third and killed another penalty midway through the period to keep hope alive, but sustained pressure proved difficult to generate with Cleveland locking down defensively. The Phantoms nearly broke through with the extra attacker late, ringing a shot off the crossbar with just over a minute remaining.

Any comeback hopes were finally dashed when Brendan Gaunce slid an empty-net goal home with 7.3 seconds left to seal the 5-2 result.

The Phantoms return to action Sunday afternoon at 3:05 p.m. against the Syracuse Crunch as Winter Games Weekend continues at PPL Center.

Check out the Lehigh Valley Phantoms Statistics

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American Hockey League Stories from February 14, 2026


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