Phantoms Weekly

Published on March 31, 2003 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Adirondack Phantoms News Release


The Phantoms went 2-1 on a three-game road trip last week before dropping a hard-fought 1-0 home decision on Sunday. The week began on Wednesday in Norfolk, as Philadelphia assumed a two-goal lead on goals by Jamie Wright and Jim Vandermeer before surrendering four straight tallies in a 4-2 loss to the Admirals. Neil Little made 24 saves in defeat, while counterpart Michael Leighton stopped 21 shots. On Friday, Wright scored two more goals, including the game-winner 3:33 into overtime, to lead the Phantoms to a 3-2 victory over the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks. Mark Greig and Dennis Seidenberg each added two assists in the win, while Antero Niittymaki finished with 20 saves. Ilja Bryzgalov made 39 saves in the loss. The Phantoms cruised to a 6-3 win in Cleveland on Saturday as Mike Siklenka, Ladislav Kohn and Patrick Sharp all registered a goal and an assist. Defensemen Brad Tiley and David Harlock each contributed two assists and Little made 23 saves. Cleveland goaltender Seamus Kotyk faced 49 shots and stopped 43. Playing their fourth game in five days, the Phantoms struggled for offense on Sunday and lost at home, 1-0, to Norfolk. Ajay Baines scored the lone goal in the second period and Leighton totaled 19 saves. Niittymaki turned aside 25 shots in suffering the hard-luck loss.

PHANTOMS TRANSACTIONS

3/25 - ADD Neil Little, reassigned from Flyers (NHL)
3/25 - ADD Jim Vandermeer, reassigned from Flyers (NHL)
3/26 - ADD Patrick Sharp, reassigned from Flyers (NHL)

PLAYOFF PICTURE

The Phantoms jumped into a tie for ninth place in the Western Conference playoff race over the weekend before Sunday's loss dropped them into 11th. Through games of March 30, Philadelphia has 76 points in 76 games, while 10th-place Rochester is at 77 points in 77 games. The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins have 77 points through 76 games for ninth place, and Utah and Milwaukee share the seventh and eighth spots with 79 points in 76 games.

GOOD SEASON VS. OHIO TEAMS

Philadelphia finished with a 5-1-2 combined record against the Cleveland Barons and Cincinnati Mighty Ducks this season. The Phantoms went 2-1-1 vs. Cleveland, including Saturday's 6-3 triumph, which was their highest offensive output since a 6-5 overtime win over Milwaukee on Nov. 22. Philadelphia posted a 3-0-1 mark against the Mighty Ducks to extend its unbeaten streak in the series to six games (5-0-1).

GREIG STREAKS COME TO AN END

Right wing Mark Greig had a pair of impressive streaks come to an end last week. The team captain recorded an assist in seven straight games (March 15-29), which ties for the longest in the AHL this season. Greig scored a goal on March 29 to extend his point streak to eight games, which is the second highest on the Phantoms this season after his 10-gamer from Oct. 30-Nov. 27. Greig also has the longest goal-scoring streak on the team this year - six straight games from Nov. 2-22 - which also ties for the best in the league.

UPCOMING OPPONENTS

The Phantoms are 3-2 vs. the Crunch heading into Wednesday's match-up vs. Syracuse. In the first encounter on Oct. 30, John Slaney had a goal and an assist and Ben Stafford scored the game-winner with 2:14 left in the second period as Philadelphia posted a 3-2 road win. Syracuse evened the series at home on Nov. 16 as rookie Tim Jackman scored his first two career goals and Karl Goehring made 23 saves in a 3-1 decision, but Neil Little stopped all 22 shots he faced in a 2-0 Phantoms home victory on Jan. 5. Kirby Law then recorded a hat trick and Patrick Sharp added a goal and two assists as the Phantoms notched a 5-3 home win on Feb. 9, but Syracuse answered with a 3-1 win on March 5 as Andrej Nedorost and Kent McDonell each totaled two assists. Philadelphia went 1-2-1 against the Crunch last season before getting swept by Syracuse in the best-of-five Western Conference Quarterfinals. Philadelphia is 16-8-7 all-time vs. Syracuse, including a 9-3-3 mark at home.

The Phantoms are 3-6-0-1 against the Hershey Bears heading into this weekend's home-and-home series. On Nov. 29 in the teams' first encounter of the season, Brian Willsie scored twice and rookie Peter Budaj stopped all 31 shots he faced in a 2-0 Bears victory. A week later, Charlie Stephens and Eric Bertrand each had a goal and an assist as Hershey prevailed 3-1. The Phantoms got in the win column on Dec. 14 in Hershey as Peter White's goal with 4:16 remaining was the difference in a 2-1 decision. Jim Vandermeer and White each had a goal and an assist in a 4-2 Phantoms victory six days later. Philadelphia made it three wins in a row on Dec. 27 when Neil Little made 23 saves in a 4-2 decision, but Bears goaltender Phil Sauve made 33 saves in a 3-0 Hershey win the next night. Bertrand registered a goal and two assists on Jan. 29 as Hershey posted a 4-1 home win, and the Bears made it three wins in a row on Feb. 8 thanks to 30 saves by Budaj in a 2-1 decision. Hershey kept rolling on Feb. 22 with a 3-2 victory on Willsie's goal 3:14 into overtime, won its fifth straight in the series the next night when Sauve stopped all 33 shots he faced in a 3-0 decision. The Phantoms hold a 36-31-8-5 lead in the all-time series, going 21-14-4-1 at home and 15-17-4-4 on the road.

The Phantoms hold a 6-3 season-series lead vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton as the teams prepare for Sunday's regular-season finale. The teams first met on Oct. 18, when Mark Greig scored twice and Andre Savage had four assists in a 5-4 Phantoms win. The next night in Wilkes-Barre, Sebastien Caron registered 28 saves as the Penguins prevailed, 4-1. Savage totaled another four assists and Greig added three points on Nov. 6 to lead the Phantoms to a 7-2 win, but Wilkes-Barre retaliated with a 6-1 rout on Dec. 13 behind four points by Matt Murley. The Penguins also won big (5-1) on Dec. 21 thanks to a pair of goals by Tom Kostopoulos before rookie Jack Baker's goal 1:28 into overtime was the difference in a 4-3 Phantoms win on Dec. 26. The Phantoms cruised to a 5-1 win on Jan. 3 as Greig totaled a goal and three assists and Antero Niittymaki made 38 saves, and made it three straight wins on Feb. 5 when John Slaney had a goal and two assists in a 4-3 decision. Neil Little then made 21 saves and Brad Tiley scored twice on March 17 in a 3-0 Phantoms win. Philadelphia is 26-12-3 all-time vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, going 15-4-1 at home.

UPCOMING PROMOTIONS

On Wednesday, April 2, the Phantoms will host their second annual Sports and Entertainment Career Fair from 1:30-5:30 p.m. at the First Union Spectrum. This event will provide a chance for the public to speak to people in the sports industry, submit resumes and find out about internships and full and part-time positions. The cost of the career fair is $12 in advance and $18 the day of the event. All attendees receive admission to that night's game at 7:05 p.m. against the Syracuse Crunch, as well a free one month membership to www.workinsports.com. The Cartoon Network's very own Johnny Bravo will be appearing at the Phantoms' game on Friday, April 4, courtesy of Comcast. Johnny Bravo will be greeting the public and taking pictures with fans who bring their own cameras. One lucky fan will win a Cartoon Network Prize Pack, while plenty of Cartoon Network t-shirts and gifts will be up for grabs throughout the game. Miss Pennsylvania USA Camille Young and Miss New Jersey USA Vanessa Baker will be dropping the opening puck on Friday. Don't miss Fan Appreciation Night during the Phantoms' final regular-season home game this Sunday. Loads of prizes will be given away, including the Phantoms' jerseys that night through the Shirts Off Our Backs promotion. Be there before the puck is dropped to see who wins the Phantoms annual team awards and stop by the display on the concourse to get a look at the AHL Calder Cup trophy.

PHANTOMS AMONG THE LEAGUE LEADERS (thru 3/30)

* Mark Greig is tied for seventh in points (72), tied for fourth in game-winning goals (8) and fourth in minor penalties (59)
* Neil Little is ninth in goals-against average (2.40)
* Antero Niittymaki is 18th in goals-against average (2.60)
* John Slaney is tied for 15th among defensemen in points (37) and first in game-tying goals (2)
* Brad Tiley is tied for 18th among defensemen in points (35)
* Peter Vandermeer is second in penalty minutes (316) and major penalties (34)
* The Phantoms are third in penalty minutes per game (25.1)
* The Phantoms are third in shots allowed per game (26.83)

PHANTOMS NOTES

* John Stevens notched his 100th career coaching win on Friday at Cincinnati
* Andre Savage scored his 100th AHL goal on Friday
* Mark Greig played in his 600th AHL game on Friday
* Ben Stafford played in his 100th AHL game on Friday
* The Phantoms established season highs for most shots in a game (49) and period (23) and power-play goals in a game (3) on Saturday at Cleveland
* Philadelphia is 21-0-2 when scoring four goals or more

TICKET INFORMATION Ticket prices for Phantoms home games are $18, $17 and $13 for adults, and $8 for children 14 and under. The team also offers group rates, Game Plans, attractive premium area seating, birthday party and youth hockey packages, and the popular Family Value Pack. Please call the Phantoms sales office at 215-465-4522 for information, or log on to www.phantomshockey.com.

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American Hockey League Stories from March 31, 2003


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