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USHL Youngstown Phantoms

Phantoms Handle Ice 5-1, Pick up 7th Straight Win at Home

March 22, 2013 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Youngstown Phantoms News Release


YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio - After a grueling five-game road trip, the Youngstown Phantoms returned home Thursday night and went straight to work. First-year forward Kyle Connor opened the scoring before the game was four minutes old and Alexander Dahl and Cam Brown followed suit shortly after as the Phantoms converted on three of their first five shots en route to a 5-1 trouncing of the Indiana Ice.

The win was Youngstown's seventh straight at Covelli Centre and 18th of the season, tying a franchise record set last year. Dan Renouf and Nathan Walker also scored and Sam Anas set up a pair of goals as the Phantoms (32-22-0, 64 points) moved within two points of the Muskegon Lumberjacks for third place in the United States Hockey League Eastern Conference.

After a rare night off, Sean Romeo returned between the pipes for Youngstown and turned away 21 shots to pick up his 27th win of the season and improve to 7-1-0 vs. the Ice (19-31-5, 43 points).

"Our big focus over the past two days has been on our starts [to games]," head coach Anthony Noreen said. "Our start was the big reason we felt like we didn't have success in [the loss Tuesday against Team USA] in Ann Arbor. And I think our start tonight was very good."

Connor opened up the scoring with a nearly identical goal to the one he scored two nights earlier against Team USA. Austin Cangelosi won it straight to the 16-year-old left-winger off an offensive zone faceoff and before Ice goaltender Anderson Snair could react, the puck was in the back of the net. The goal extended point streaks for both Connor and Cangelosi to seven straight games.

"It was a great play," Connor said. "Austin's been a beast on faceoffs lately. He's been winning them all and I just got it and threw it to the net."

Dahl put the Phantoms up 2-0 t the 5:36 marks when he redirected a point shot from Kyle Mackey to pick up his 10th goal of the season. Brown made it 3-0 just 1:23 later off a quick transition and gorgeous spinning, no-lookm backhand pass that Anas slid behind the goaltender and through the crease.

"The puck was kind of behind me and I was thinking to shoot, but I saw Cam cut to the backdoor," Anas said. "I was hoping that the defenseman wouldn't stay with him so I threw it behind my back and it luckily it went right on his tape and he had an open net."

Play settled for the remaining 13 minutes of the opening period and the entirety second. But just past the midway point of the third, the Ice got on the board when Alex Talcott beat Romeo with a wrist shot from the left circle that clanged off the far posts and rocketed in.

The goal jolted the Phantoms bench and less than five minutes they stretched the their lead back to four. JJ Piccinch, who put in one of his best efforts of the season, was forced wide toward the corner on an odd-man a rush, but reached around a sprawled out Ice defenseman and threaded a pass to a crashing Renouf, who slotted it five-hole for his eighth goal of the season.

Play began to get chippy over the final six minutes and, after a roughing penalty to Ice defender Joshua Jacob and a five-minute checking from behind major and game misconduct assessed to forward Alex Talcott just 25 second later, the Phantoms found themselves on a prolonged 5-on-3 power play.

They capitalized just 16 seconds in. Anas corralled the puck at the top of the left circle and swung a pass across the high slot. Defenseman Ryan Lowney purposely fanned on a would-be one-timer as the puck made its way to Walker at the right circle, where the Australian winger stepped right into it and blasted it top shelf to cap off the scoring with his fifth goal of the season, all while his mother, Ceri, watched from the stands.

"We've been practicing that a lot and Lowney was actually supposed to get the chance today, but I actually called it and said, "Lowns, I want this,'" Walker said. "I thank him for letting me get that.

"It was really special to score in front of my mom. She means the world to me. I haven't seen her in 10 months."

Phantoms by the Numbers

Shots - 25

Saves - 21

Power Play - 1-for-3

Penalty Kill - 2-for-2

Goals - Brown, Connor, Dahl, Renouf, Walker

Assists - Anas (2), Brown, Cangelosi, Lowney, Mackey, John Padulo, Piccinch, Luke Stork, Walker

Next on the Slate

The Phantoms and Indiana Ice are right back at it again Friday night at the Covelli Centre. Puck drop is set for 7:15 p.m. EST.

Friday the Phantoms are partnering with March of Dimes to kick off the 2013 March of Babies campaign, presented by ValleyCare Health Systems of Ohio. March for Babies teams from Northside Medical Center, Trumbull Memorial Hospital, General Motors and the local Union Auto Walkers chapter will join many other company and family teams to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the March of Dimes. Plus, the first 1,000 fans in through the door will receive a FREE Phantoms team poster, sponsored by Cerni Motors, and all fans are invited to attend a full-team postgame autograph session!

Tickets are available for the Phantoms March of Dimes Night through any of the current walkers or at the Covelli Centre box office. Again, the Phantoms are donating $5 from every $10 ticket sold before March 19 to the March of Dimes. And additionally, $1 from walk-up tickets purchased at the box office the night of the game will go to the charity.

Phantoms Flex Packages are on sale now starting at the low price of just $75. Flex Packages include 10 undated ticket vouchers that can be redeemed at any game and in any increment throughout the rest of the season. Call 330.747.PUCK (7825) for more information or to reserve a Phantoms Flex Package today. For all the latest news, visit www.YoungstownPhantoms.com, follow the Phantoms on Twitter ( @YtownPhantoms ) and "˜like' them on Facebook ( www.Facebook.com/YoungstownPhantoms ).

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