Phantoms win 11th in a row
Published on February 20, 2007 under North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Mahoning Valley Phantoms News Release
ANN ARBOR, Mich. - Chris Fairbanks scored two goals and Ryan Zapolski made 32 saves to lead the Mahoning Valley Phantoms to a 5-3 win over the U.S. National Team at the Ice Cube.
The Phantoms, 39-10-1 and winners of 11 straight games, scored on the first shift of the game. From the left point, Adam Snead passed ahead to Derek Graham near the goal line. As Graham charged, he flipped the puck between his legs and behind to Fairbanks, who was trailing on the play.
Fairbanks threw a low wrist shot between the legs of U.S. goaltender Nick Maricic at the 37 second mark.
Team USA, 16-24-4, bounced back. Kevin McCarey's centering pass was redirected by Vinny Saponari, but stopped by Zapolski. The rebound was gathered by David Wohlberg, who roofed the loose puck over Zapolski's left shoulder at 7:09 to tie the game.
Fairbanks and the Phantoms regained the lead.
Doug Leaverton took a pass from Graham on the left point and threw a shot that Maricic blocked. But Fairbanks was on the doorstep to poke the rebound home, his 22nd tally of the season, at the 12:20 mark.
Dustin Cloutier extended the Phantoms lead to 3-1 as well as his point scoring streak to 11 games. He steered a faceoff win in the left circle back to Trent Bonnett on the point.
Bonnett tossed a dipping puck that Maricic deflected to Cloutier in the left circle. Cloutier skated around two players to the right side before firing into an open net with 5:12 left in the period. The goal was Cloutier's team-leading 32nd on the season.
However, Team USA showed resiliency again. Ryan Schnell peeled along the right wing boards at the goal line and threw the puck towards the goal.
Zapolski, anticipating a centering pass, began to move laterally when the puck bounced off his left skate and into the net. The Phantoms led 3-2 after 20 minutes.
In the second period, the Phantoms continued their charge and padded their advantage.
Johnny Meo out-skated a U.S. player behind their net to negate an icing call. Meo found Mark Bores on the left point, whose shot was stopped by Maricic but gathered by Alden Hirschfeld.
Hirschfeld tapped in his 17th goal of the season at the 2:25 mark.
It became 5-2 when the Phantoms cashed in on their first power play of the evening. Snead took a pass from Miles Winter on the left point before finding Nathan Longpre alone in front.
Snead threw the puck ahead and Longpre redirected it past Maricic for his 23rd goal of the season with 8:19 left in the period.
Both teams tightened defensively in the third period, as the red, white, and blue out-shot the Phantoms 7-4 in the final 20 minutes.
On a U.S. power play, Sam Lofquist used a screen in front of Zapolski to score from the left point to pull within two with 2:49 left in the game.
But the Phantoms finished strong, using their forecheck in the final two minutes to keep the puck deep in the U.S. zone for the remainder of the game.
For the game, Team USA out-shot the Phantoms 35-30. On the power play, the Phantoms finished 1 for 5 while the U.S. was 1 for 6.
The Phantoms are off for nine days before returning home for their stretch run in March. They host 10 of their final 12 regular season games at the Ice Zone, beginning with a three-game series against the Marquette Rangers on Mar. 2-4. Face-off Friday and Saturday night is at 7 p.m. while Sunday's matinee is scheduled for 1 p.m.
The Mahoning Valley Phantoms are owned by the B.J. Alan Company- Phantom Fireworks, which is headquartered in Youngstown, Ohio.
North American Hockey League Stories from February 20, 2007
- U.S. Nat'l Under-17 Team Falls to NAHL's Best, 5-3 - U.S. National Team
- Phantoms win 11th in a row - Mahoning Valley Phantoms
- U.S. National Under-17 Team Hosts Mahoning Valley, Travels to Traverse City - U.S. National Team
- Phantoms extend streak - NAHL
- FM Jets Close in on Playoff Spot with Dramatic Wins - Fargo-Moorhead Jets
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