Phantoms Weekly
April 15, 2002 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Adirondack Phantoms News Release
PHANTOMS SWEEP ROCHESTER IN WESTERN CONFERENCE QUALIFIER
The Phantoms opened the 2002 Calder Cup Playoffs last week with a two-game sweep of the Rochester Americans in a best-of-three Western Conference Qualifier. On Tuesday, Mike Watt and John Slaney scored 63 seconds apart early in the third period to snap a tie and lead the Phantoms to a 4-2 victory. Watt finished with two goals on the night, Pavel Brendl contributed a goal and an assist, and Neil Little made 25 saves. Philadelphia completed the sweep on Thursday thanks to 37 saves by Little. Brendl tallied two goals and Mark Freer netted his first of the postseason as the Phantoms built a 3-0 lead before Rochester's Ryan Shmyr scored two late goals to make things interesting. Philadelphia and Rochester were meeting in the playoffs for the fourth time in six years. The Phantoms have won three of the series and hold a 10-6 lead all-time.
PHILADELPHIA DOWN 1-0 TO SYRACUSE IN QUARTERFINALS
After disposing of Rochester, the Phantoms didn't have much time to catch their breath before heading up to Syracuse for Saturday's opener of their best-of-five Western Conference Quarterfinal series against the top-seeded Crunch. Syracuse captured Game One, 5-3, as Sean Pronger scored 2:58 into the third period to snap a 3-3 tie. Brad Moran also tallied a pair of goals and J.F. Labbe stopped 21 shots for the Crunch. Pavel Brendl, Kristian Kudroc and Mark Freer each scored for Philadelphia, Greg Koehler registered two assists and Neil Little made 27 saves in defeat. Game Two is set for this Wednesday in Syracuse before the series shifts to Philadelphia on Sunday, April 21 at 5:05 p.m. at the First Union Center. If necessary, Game Four would also be at the First Union Center on Tuesday, April 23 at 7:05 p.m., and Game Five would be back in Syracuse on Wednesday, April 24 at 7:00 p.m.
PHANTOMS TRANSACTIONS
* 4/9 - ADD John Slaney & Guillaume Lefebvre, reassigned from Flyers (NHL)
* 4/9 - DELETE Todd Fedoruk, recalled by Flyers (NHL)
* 4/14 - DELETE Pavel Brendl, recalled by Flyers (NHL)
* 4/14 - ADD Pavel Brendl, reassigned by Flyers (NHL)
UPCOMING OPPONENT
The Phantoms went 1-2-1 vs. the Syracuse Crunch during the regular season. Syracuse posted a 3-0 road shutout on Oct. 21 thanks to two goals and an assist by Brett Harkins. The win was the Crunch's first against Philadelphia since Oct. 3, 1997, spanning 17 games. The teams skated to a 2-2 tie in Syracuse on Nov. 17 before Pavel Brendl totaled four points (2g, 2a) and Mark Freer scored twice in a 5-2 Phantoms home win on Dec. 2. The Crunch clinched the season series on Dec. 8 as Karl Goehring made 29 saves and Sean Pronger and Brad Moran each contributed a goal and an assist in a 6-0 home rout. Philadelphia and Syracuse are meeting in the playoffs for the first time.
SLANEY WINS SECOND STRAIGHT EDDIE SHORE AWARD
John Slaney added to his 2001-02 accolades collection on April 4 when he was named the winner of the Eddie Shore Award as the American Hockey League's outstanding defenseman. This is the second consecutive year that Slaney has received the award, which is voted on by players and members of the media in each of the league's 27 cities. Slaney, who also picked up AHL First-Team All-Star honors for the second straight season the week before, led the Phantoms in assists (39) and game-winning goals (6) and tied for the team lead in points (59) and plus-minus (+12) despite missing 15 games due to a broken foot. At the time of his injury, he was tops among AHL defensemen in points, goals and assists, and Philadelphia proceeded to go 3-10-1-1 without him.
For his efforts, Slaney was called up by the Flyers on April 7 and made his debut with them the following night vs. Florida. The 30-year-old appeared in 263 NHL games for Washington, Colorado, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Nashville and Pittsburgh entering this season.
PHANTOMS TOP AHL IN ATTENDANCE FOR SIXTH STRAIGHT YEAR
It went down to the wire this year, but with 14,528 fans attending Philadelphia's 4-2 victory over the Norfolk Admirals on April 6 during Fan Appreciation Night at the First Union Spectrum, the Philadelphia Phantoms locked up their sixth straight American Hockey League attendance title. Over 40 home games, Philadelphia finished with an average of 8,450 fans per game, 113 more than the second-place Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (8,337). The Phantoms totaled 12 crowds of at least 10,000 people and own four of the top six attendance figures in the league this season.
PHANTOMS AMONG THE PLAYOFF LEAGUE LEADERS
* Goaltender Neil Little is tied for first in wins (2) and fourth in minutes (179) and saves (89).
* Forward Pavel Brendl is first in goals (4) and tied for first in points (5).
* Defenseman Jim Vandermeer is tied for third in penalty minutes (12).
* Philadelphia is tied for first in penalty killing, having stopped all 10 opponent power plays thus far.
PHANTOMS AMONG THE REGULAR-SEASON LEAGUE LEADERS
* Goaltender Neil Little finished second in the league in goals-against average (2.02).
* Defenseman John Slaney placed second among AHL defensemen in goals (20), fourth in points (59) and fifth in assists (39).
* Center Guillaume Lefebvre tied for first among AHL rookies with three shorthanded goals.
* Philadelphia led the AHL in penalty killing overall (.871 percent) and on the road (.892). The Phantoms also finished third in penalty minutes per game (27.3).
PHANTOMS NOTES
* Goaltender Neil Little became the Phantoms' all-time postseason games played leader on April 11, passing former center Peter White (46 games).
* Mark Greig passed Paul Healey as Philadelphia's all-time leading playoff scorer among right wings on April 11. Healey compiled 23 points over 45 games, while Greig recorded his 24th point during his 24th postseason game.
* Defenseman Kristian Kudroc scored his first goal as a Phantom on April 13 in Syracuse.
* The Phantoms are now 8-6 in the opener of a playoff series.
* Philadelphia is 8-5 all-time at the First Union Center during postseason play. The team went 1-0-3 there during the regular season this year.
TICKET INFORMATION
Tickets to all Phantoms home playoff games are $13, $17 and $19 for adults, and $8 for all children 14 and under, and are available now at the First Union Center box office and all Ticketmaster locations throughout the Delaware Valley. Tickets can also be charged by phone by calling (215) 336-2000 or (856) 338-9000 or online at www.ticketmaster.com
PHANTOMS ON-LINE
The Philadelphia Phantoms are on the World Wide Web at www.phantomshockey.com. The site is the best way for fans to stay updated with the latest news about the Phantoms, including timely scoring updates, statistics, news releases, player biographies and more.
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.
American Hockey League Stories from April 15, 2002
