Phantoms Weekly

Published on February 21, 2005 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Adirondack Phantoms News Release


The Phantoms went 3-0 over the weekend to maintain the best winning percentage in the AHL's East Division. On Friday, Antero Niittymaki stopped all 36 shots he faced in a 3-0 victory at Cincinnati. Rookie Ben Eager recorded his first career multi-point game with a goal and an assist, Jon Sim and Dennis Seidenberg also lit the lamp, and R.J. Umberger contributed two assists for Philadelphia. The Phantoms moved on to Milwaukee on Saturday and posted a 2-0 victory over the Admirals. Niittymaki made 28 saves to register his fourth shutout of the year and 11th as a Phantom, while Patrick Sharp and Tony Voce each scored third-period goals. Philadelphia made it a perfect weekend with Sunday's 6-1 rout of the Grand Rapids Griffins. Sharp led the way with two goals and an assist, while Seidenberg, Umberger and John Slaney all added a goal and an assist. Making his first start in over a month, Neil Little turned aside 30-of-31 shots to notch the victory.

UPCOMING OPPONENTS
The Phantoms bring a six-game unbeaten streak against the Mighty Ducks into Wednesday's game in Cincinnati. Philadelphia registered a win and two ties in the final three meetings of 2003-04 before posting a 4-2 victory back on Nov. 3 and a 3-1 triumph four days later. The Phantoms made it 3-for-3 last Friday when Antero Niittymaki stopped all 36 shots he faced in a 3-0 victory. Philadelphia holds a commanding 34-9-5 lead in the all-time series, including a 15-6-2 mark when playing on the road. The Phantoms are also unbeaten in their last six visits (5-0-1) to the Cincinnati Gardens since their last loss there on March 28, 2001.

Philadelphia and Hershey square off for the eighth time on Friday. The Phantoms captured all 12 match-ups with the Bears in 2003-04 and won the first four meetings this season before Hershey answered by winning the last three. Mark Murphy is leading the Phantoms with eight points (2G, 6A) and a plus-seven rating in the seven Hershey games this season, while Mathieu Darche has compiled 11 points (8G, 3A) for the Bears. Philadelphia owns a 53-40-8 lead in the all-time series, including a 30-16-4 mark at home. The teams will next meet on March 26 in Hershey.

The Phantoms are 3-3 against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins heading into Sunday's showdown. Philadelphia began the season series with a pair of 3-2 shootout wins, as R.J. Umberger and Ben Stafford tallied the deciding goals on Nov. 12 and Dec. 1, respectively. Wilkes-Barre answered with a 6-4 win on Dec. 11 and then captured a 5-3 decision on Dec. 26 before Philadelphia countered with a 4-3 shootout win on Jan. 8 and Wilkes-Barre won 4-1 on Feb. 5. Last season, the teams split 10 match-ups before meeting in the East Division Finals. The Penguins captured the best-of-seven series in six games before eventually bowing out in the Calder Cup Finals. Philadelphia owns a 34-21-3 lead in the all-time series, including a 16-12-2 mark at home. The 10-game series continues with a home-and-home on March 5 & 6.

THREE PHANTOMS PARTICIPATE IN 2005 AHL ALL-STAR CLASSIC
Patrick Sharp, Joni Pitkanen and Antero Niittymaki all participated in the 2005 Dodge AHL All-Star Classic on Feb. 13-14 at Verizon Wireless Arena in Manchester, N.H. After capturing the Skills Competition the night before, PlanetUSA posted a 5-4 shootout win over the Canadians during the All-Star Game. Pitkanen and Niittymaki were on the victorious PlanetUSA squad, as Niittymaki stopped all six shots he faced during the second period and Pitkanen was voted a starter via on-line balloting at theahl.com. Sharp recorded an assist for the Canadian team.

NIITTYMAKI HAS PERFECT WEEK
Goaltender Antero Niittymaki had quite a week to remember. It all began when the 24-year-old made his first-ever AHL All-Star Game appearance and stopped all six shots he faced during the second period for PlanetUSA in its 5-4 shootout win. Niittymaki then recorded back-to-back shutouts in Cincinnati and Milwaukee on Friday and Saturday, turning aside all 64 shots that came his way. With his performance, Niittymaki joined Brian Regan and Neil Little as the only Phantoms to compile shutouts on consecutive days.

WHAT A TRIP!
The Phantoms are 4-0 on their season-high five-game road trip, which ends this Wednesday in Cincinnati. Philadelphia has outscored Norfolk, Cincinnati, Milwaukee and Grand Rapids by a combined 13-2 margin on the trip and killed all 19 power plays along the way. This is Philadelphia's most successful road trip of at least four games since going 5-1 from Feb. 24-March 10, 2001 in Hershey, Quebec (twice), Saint John and Kentucky (twice).

UPCOMING PROMOTIONS
On Friday, Feb. 25 when the Hershey Bears visit the Wachovia Spectrum at 7:05 p.m., the Phantoms will hold a teddy bear toss. Fans are encouraged to bring new or gently used stuffed animals to the game, and then toss them onto the ice following the Phantoms' first goal. The stuffed animals will then be distributed to local children's hospitals in the Philadelphia area. The Philadelphia Zoo will also be selling stuffed animals for $5 at the game if fans don't have any at home. In addition, the Philadelphia Zoo will be holding a raffle that will go towards the Phantoms adopting a polar bear through the Zoo's ADOPT (Animals Depend On People Too) program. The raffle winner will have the opportunity to join a Phantoms player at the Zoo to feed their female polar bears, Coldilocks and Klondike, and another animal. ... The Phantoms will hold their first of three bobblehead doll nights on Sunday, Feb. 27, when the team takes on the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins at the Wachovia Spectrum at 5:05 p.m. Antero Niittymaki bobblehead dolls will be given out to the first 4,000 kids (14 & under) in attendance.

PHANTOMS TRANSACTIONS
2/13 - Signed Riley Cote to a third PTO

PHANTOMS AMONG THE LEAGUE LEADERS (thru 2/20)
* Riley Cote is third among rookies in penalty minutes (176) and fourth in major penalties (18).
* Ben Eager is first among rookies in minor penalties (37).
* Antero Niittymaki is second in goals-against average (1.86), tied for seventh in save percentage (.929) and eighth in minutes (2287:15).
* Dennis Seidenberg is tied for first among defensemen in game-winning goals (4).
* R.J. Umberger is fifth among rookies in points (34), fifth in goals (14), tied for fifth in assists (20) and seventh in shots (131).
* Tony Voce is tied for fourth among rookies in power-play goals (6).
* The Phantoms are fifth in goals allowed per game (2.26), sixth in shots allowed per game (27.64), sixth in penalty killing (87.6 percent) and eighth in penalty minutes per game (28.34).

PHANTOMS NOTES
* Antero Niittymaki, Hartford's Jason LaBarbera and Rochester's Ryan Miller each recorded shutout periods at the 2005 AHL All-Star Game after there were only nine such efforts in the first 10 years of the modern event.
* Ben Stafford recorded his 100th assist as a pro on Feb. 18 at Cincinnati and his 100th AHL point on Feb. 20 at Grand Rapids.
* Patrick Sharp registered his 100th point as a Phantom on Feb. 20.
* Antero Niittymaki made 13 straight starts for Philadelphia from Jan. 16-Feb. 19. The team record of 19 consecutive starts by a goaltender was accomplished by Jean-Marc Pelletier in 1998-99.
* Philadelphia has killed 31 straight penalties.
* Sunday's 6-1 win in Grand Rapids was the Phantoms' most decisive road victory since a 7-2 triumph in Hartford on Jan. 18, 2002.
* Philadelphia won three road games in three days this weekend for the first time since Feb. 2-4, 1999, when the team accomplished the feat in St. John's (twice) and Fredericton.
* The Phantoms are one of only five AHL teams with winning records at home and on the road. Manchester, Rochester, Manitoba and Milwaukee are the others.
* Saturday's 2-0 win in Milwaukee completed Philadelphia's first-ever season sweep of a defending Calder Cup champion.
* The Phantoms have allowed just one first-period goal in their last seven games and only one second-period goal in their last six games.

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 Four Pack.

UPCOMING GAMES
Date Opponent Site Time (ET)
Wednesday, Feb. 23 Cincinnati Mighty Ducks Cincinnati Gardens 7:35 p.m.
Friday, Feb. 25 Hershey Bears Wachovia Spectrum 7:05 p.m. (CSN)
Sunday, Feb. 27 W-B/Scranton Penguins Wachovia Spectrum 5:05 p.m.

LAST WEEK'S RESULTS
Date Opponent Site W-L Score
Feb. 18 Cincinnati Mighty Ducks Cincinnati Gardens W 3-0
Feb. 19 Milwaukee Admirals Bradley Center W 2-0
Feb. 20 Grand Rapids Griffins Van Andel Arena W 6-1

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American Hockey League Stories from February 21, 2005


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