Sports stats



Phantoms Weekly

February 2, 2004 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Adirondack Phantoms News Release


The Phantoms collected a win and a tie over the weekend to remain among the AHL's elite teams. Trailing 3-1 after two periods on Friday, Boyd Kane and Kirby Law scored the only goals of the third period to help Philadelphia rally for a 3-3 tie against the Hartford Wolf Pack. Ian MacNeil added a shorthanded marker and Antero Niittymaki stopped 26-of-29 shots as the Phantoms improved to 2-0-2 in their last four meetings with the Wolf Pack. On Saturday, Philadelphia trailed the Milwaukee Admirals three times until defenseman Kirk Furey evened the score at 3-3 with 7:06 to go in the third period and John Slaney netted the game-winner 1:23 into overtime. Peter White added a goal and an assist, while Niittymaki turned aside 23 shots.

PHANTOMS SOLID IN JANUARY

Philadelphia posted an impressive 10-2-1 record (21 pts.) in January to assume the third-best winning percentage (.646) in the AHL. It was the Phantoms' most successful month since going 11-2 (22 pts.) in January 2000. Philadelphia is currently tied with Grand Rapids for most wins (28) in the league and is tied for second in home wins (15) and tied for third in road wins (13).

COACHES CONTRACTS EXTENDED THROUGH 2004-05

The Phantoms announced on Jan. 29 that the contracts of head coach John Stevens and assistant coach Kjell Samuelsson have been extended through the 2004-05 season. Stevens and Samuelsson, both in their fourth year in their current positions, have guided the Phantoms to a 28-14-5-1 record this season. The team has won 10 of its last 12 games and is in a neck-in-neck race with Bridgeport for the Eastern Conference lead. In addition, left wing Craig Berube was named a player/assistant coach for the remainder of this season, as well as a full-time assistant coach in 2004-05. Signed to a player tryout contract on Nov. 18, Berube has four assists and 86 PIM in 23 games this season and the team is 22-6-3 since he joined the organization.

15,603 FANS ATTEND SATURDAY'S WIN

Philadelphia posted a 4-3 overtime win over the Milwaukee Admirals on Saturday at the Wachovia Center in front of an AHL season-high crowd of 15,603. The crowd topped the previous league-best total of 13,342 set by the Houston Aeros on Jan. 16. It was Philadelphia's largest crowd since 19,730 fans packed the then First Union Center on Feb. 10, 2001.

PENALTY LEADERS

The Phantoms continue to lead the league in penalty minutes (29.92 per game), major penalties (74), minor penalties (373), 10-minute misconducts (13) and game misconducts (18). The game misconduct total is already more than any AHL team had all of last season.

UPCOMING OPPONENTS

Philadelphia is 3-2 vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton as the teams continue their 10-game season series this Tuesday. The Penguins won the first match-up, 3-1, on Oct. 24 as Michel Ouellet netted two of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's three third-period goals. Philadelphia responded on Nov. 22 by rallying from a three-goal deficit to post a 5-4 road win. Former Penguin Mark Murphy scored twice in the comeback. The Phantoms posted a 3-2 home win on Nov. 28 thanks to second-period power-play goals by Kirk Furey and Patrick Sharp, and made it three in a row on Jan. 4 when Sharp scored twice in a 3-2 triumph. Wilkes-Barre got back in the win column on Jan. 17 as Kris Beech netted the game-winner 6:01 into the third period of a 4-3 decision. The Phantoms hold a 29-14-3-1 lead in the all-time series, including a 13-7-2-1 mark at home. The next showdown between the teams is scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 18 in Philadelphia.

The Albany River Rats make their first of three visits to Philadelphia this Friday. Albany scored the first three goals and held on for a 4-3 win in the series opener on Nov. 1. John Slaney had a goal and an assist for Philadelphia in defeat. Philadelphia then evened the series with a 4-0 victory on Nov. 29 as Antero Niittymaki made 24 saves and Peter White scored twice. The Phantoms are 11-12-4-1 all-time vs. the Rats, including a 6-4-2-1 mark when playing in Philly. The teams will next meet on March 7 & 8 in Philadelphia.

The Phantoms are 1-2 vs. the Senators heading into Saturday's showdown in Binghamton. In the teams' first-ever meeting on Oct. 10, Denis Hamel scored twice and added an assist to lead the Senators to a 4-2 victory. Binghamton then posted a 5-1 win on Dec. 28 as Josh Langfeld recorded a goal and two assists. The game also included a combined 373 penalty minutes. Philadelphia got in the win column with a 2-1 victory on Jan. 10 thanks to goals by Ian MacNeil and Nick Deschenes. The Phantoms and Senators will meet six times in 2003-04, with the next match-up scheduled for Saturday, March 27 in Binghamton.

UPCOMING PROMOTIONS

The Phantoms and the Camden Courier Post will be holding a Career Fair this Tuesday, Feb. 3 from 1:00-5:00 p.m. on the concourse of the Wachovia Spectrum. Admission is free and will include a ticket to that night's game vs. the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Sponsored by Chick-Fil-A, the Phantoms' second-annual Christian Night on Friday, Feb. 6 will feature a postgame concert by the Katinas. Made up of Samoa-born brothers Sam, Joe, Jesse, John and James, the Katinas recently released their fourth album ROOTS, which sews together such sleek sounds as classic Motown, urban hip-hop, neo-soul and islands-influenced pop. Chick-Fil-A will have a table on the concourse with interactive games, as well as a promotion during an intermission.

PHANTOMS TRANSACTIONS

1/27 - DELETE Kirby Law, recalled by Flyers (NHL)
1/29 - DELETE Chris Houle, loaned to Trenton (ECHL)
1/29 - SIGNED Kirk Furey & Craig Berube to AHL contracts
1/29 - SIGNED John Stevens & Kjell Samuelsson to contract extensions through 2004-05
1/30 - ADD Antero Niittymaki & Kirby Law, reassigned from Flyers (NHL)
1/30 - ADD Chris Houle, recalled from Trenton (ECHL)
1/30 - DELETE Neil Little, recalled by Flyers (NHL)

PHANTOMS AMONG THE LEAGUE LEADERS (thru 2/1)

· Kirby Law is third in points (49), tied for third in assists (31), tied for 15th in goals (18), 17th in shots (141) and tied for 17th in power-play goals (6)
· Peter White is tied for 16th in points (38) and eighth in assists (28)
· Patrick Sharp is tied for 12th in game-winning goals (4) and tied for ninth in power-play goals (7)
· Mike Peluso is tied for ninth in shots (155)
· Peter Vandermeer is first in penalty minutes (288) and tied for third in major penalties (20)
· Boyd Kane is first in minor penalties (46)
· Neil Little is tied for seventh in goals-against average (2.02), tied for eighth in wins (14) and tied for seventh in shutouts (3)
· Antero Niittymaki is 12th in goals-against average (2.11), tied for eighth in wins (14) and tied for fifth in shutouts (4)
· Dennis Seidenberg is tied for 12th in game-winning goals (4). He is also first among defensemen in game-winning goals, fifth in shots (123), tied for fifth in goals (7) and tied for 11th in plus/minus (+11)
· Randy Jones is tied for 10th among rookies in assists (15)
· Kirk Furey is tied for ninth among defensemen in plus/minus (+12)
· John Slaney is tied for fifth among defensemen in goals (7)
· The Phantoms are third in shots allowed per game (26.38) and fifth in goals allowed per game (2.17)

PHANTOMS NOTES

· Mike Siklenka played in his 100th AHL game on Jan. 31 vs. Milwaukee.
· Philadelphia's current eight-game home unbeaten streak (7-0-1) is its longest since going 4-0-4 from Nov. 9-Dec. 12, 2001.
· The Phantoms are 3-0 when wearing their purple third jerseys this season.
· Philadelphia is now 8-7-6 all-time at the Wachovia Center.

TICKET INFORMATION

Tickets to all Phantoms home games are $19, $18 and $14 for adults, and $8 for all children 14 and under, and are available now at the Wachovia Center box office and all Ticketmaster locations throughout the Delaware Valley. Tickets can also be charged by phone by calling (215) 336-2000, (856) 338-9000 or (302) 984-2000 or online at www.ticketmaster.com. Contact the Phantoms office at 215-465-4522 or log on to www.phantomshockey.com for information on group discounts, birthday packages and the Family Value Pack.

UPCOMING GAMES

Date Opponent Site Time (ET)
Feb. 3 W-B/Scranton Penguins Wachovia Spectrum 7:05 p.m.
Feb. 6 Albany River Rats Wachovia Spectrum 7:05 p.m.
Feb. 7 Binghamton Senators Veterans Memorial Arena 7:05 p.m.

LAST WEEK'S RESULTS

Date Opponent Site W-L-T Score
Jan. 30 Hartford Wolf Pack Wachovia Spectrum T 3-3
Jan. 31 Milwaukee Admirals Wachovia Center W 4-3 (OT)

• Discuss this story on the American Hockey League message board...

American Hockey League Stories from February 2, 2004


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.

Other Recent Adirondack Phantoms Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central