Preview: Phantoms at Hershey, Game 7
AHL Lehigh Valley Phantoms

Preview: Phantoms at Hershey, Game 7

Published on October 25, 2025 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Lehigh Valley Phantoms News Release


TONIGHT - The Lehigh Valley Phantoms (4-2-0) trek to Chocolatetown to rematch with the Hershey Bears (1-3-1) in the finale of this weekend's home-and-home rivalry series. The Phantoms snagged an exciting 5-4 win on Friday in the rivalry opener. This is Game 2 out of 10 in the season series and is also Game 7 of the 2025-26 regular season.

Tonight's contest is the first of five straight road games for the Phantoms and is in the middle of a stretch that has Lehigh Valley playing eight out of nine away from PPL Center.

Fans can browse rosters and Media Materials for tonight's game at www.phantomshockey.com/media/media-materials/

LAST TIME - The Wizard spooked away the creepy Bears as Zayde Wisdom scored the winning goal with just 43.6 seconds left as the Phantoms won 5-4 on Friday night in the first game of the rivalry series. Wisdom and two goals and one assist to lead the fourth-liners successful attack while Tucker Robertson scored his first goal as a Lehigh Valley Phantoms and captain Garrett Wilson contributed two strong helpers. Karsen Dorwart (3rd) and Jacob Gaucher (1st) also found the back of the net in Lehigh Valley's highest scoring game of the year. Hershey rallied from a 4-4 deficit to tie the score on goals by former Phantom Matt Strome and sharp-shooting Graeme Clarke who had a pair. But Aleksei Kolosov held down the fort to improve to 3-1.

THE WIZARD - Zayde Wisdom is now in his fifth season with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms but it is his first year playing center. Formerly a right wing, Wisdom has switched this year and is at the pivot position for the first time since he was 16 years old in Juniors. Wisdom was the youngest player in Lehigh Valley history when he debuted on February 6, 2021 at just 20 years and 6 months and 30 days old and he still holds that record by six days ahead of Jett Luchanko who debuted last season. Now 23 years old, Wisdom signed an AHL deal with the Phantoms following a career year in 2024-25 in which he racked up 13 goals and 32 points. One of the young leaders on the team, Wisdom scored two shorthanded goals in a single playoff game last year in Game 2 against the Hershey Bears and he also recorded is first career professional hat trick on January 29, 2025 at the Bridgeport Islanders. The Toronto native recently played in his 200th career pro game and also stands at 197 career games with the Phantoms. His brother, Zaccharya Wisdom, is a budding prospect as well. The younger Wisdom currently plays collegiate hockey at Western Micigan and was a Round 7 selection of the Seattle Kraken in the 2023 NHL Draft.

ROAD WARRIORS - The Phantoms will play five straight on the road beginning tonight as they had to Hershey, Laval, Hartford and Bridgeport. The Phantoms are in the early stages of a busy road-stretch that has the team playing eight out of nine away from PPL Center.

MILESTONES -

- Zayde Wisdom, 197 games with Phantoms

- Carl Grundstrom 397 pro games

- Garrett Wilson, 890 pro games

- Garrett Wilson, 292 games with Phantoms

- Emil Andrae, 100th game with Phantoms (Oct 22, 2025 LV at WBS)

- Dennis Gilbert, 300th pro game (Oct 17, 2025 LV at CLE)

- Zayde Wisdom, 200th pro game (Oct 22, 2025 LV at WBS)

FORMER PHANTOMS - 29-year-old Hershey Bears defenseman Louie Belpedio played 174 games for the Phantoms as an alternate captain over three seasons and also 12 games for the Philadelphia Flyers. Belpedio is officially returned to PPL Center last night and was welcomed with in an in-game announcement also congratulating him and wife Alyssa on their new baby!

Hershey Bears video coach Bill Downey was Lehigh Valley's Director of Hockey Operations for 10 seasons and also an assistant coach for the last four years.

HERE COMES HERSHEY - The Hershey Bears (1-3-1) are off to a bumpy start with several new players looking to find their way. Gone are several of the familiar names who paved the way for their success including Mike Vecchione, Mike Sgarbossa, Hunter Shepard and former head coach Todd Nelson. Ethen Frank came down to start but has since returned to Washington.

Henrik Rybinski (2-2-4) leads the team in scoring along with veteran defenseman Calle Rosen (0-4-4). 19-year-old third-rounder Ilya Protas (1-3-4) had 50 goals and 124 points with Windsor last year to finish second in the OHL. 21-year-old Patrick Thomas is a fourth-rounder who led last year's OHL with 77 assists with the Brantford Bulldogs. Defensemen Ryan Chesley (1-1-2), out of the University of Minnesota, is a second-round pick.

35-year-old veteran defenseman Aaron Ness is back as captain for new head coach Derek King who played 820 career NHL games mostly for the New York Islanders and Toronto.

The Phantoms went 5-4-1 against Hershey last season including 3-2-0 in Chocolatetown but the Bears prevailed in the second round of the playoffs going the distance in the Best of 5 series. Helge Grans scored 3-2-5 against Hershey last year and Jacob Gaucher had 3-1-4 in the season series. Hunter McDonald has scored two regular-season and two postseason goals against the Bears.

SCORING LEADERS

Lehigh Valley

Karsen Dorwart 3-2-5

Devin Kaplan 2-2-4

Anthony Richard 2-2-4

Alexis Gendron 1-3-4

Emil Andrae 0-4-4

Garrett Wilson 0-4-4

Hershey

Henrik Rybinski 2-2-4

Ilya Protas 1-3-4

Calle Rosen 0-4-4

Graeme Clarke 3-0-3

Bogdan Trineyev 1-2-3

SPECIAL TEAMS

LV PP 28.6% (6th) / PK 76.7%, (22nd)

HER PP 15.4%, 22nd / PK 72.7% (24th)

SEASON SERIES

Hershey Bears: (1-0-0)

10/24/25 Home W 5-4

10/25/25 Away

11/15/25 Home

11/16/25 Away

12/7/25 Away

12/31/25 Home

1/24/26 Home

2/20/26 Away

2/21/26 Away

3/28/26 Home

UP NEXT - The Phantoms Valley will be on the road for five straight beginning with tomorrow's game at Hershey followed by a Wednesday trek to Laval. Following that comes a pair of games at Hartford and a road-trip finale at Bridgeport. Lehigh Valley's next home game is Saturday, November 8 against the Toronto Marlies on Phantoms Ballcap Night presented by Service Electric Network and also including a Postgame Skate with the Phantoms players presented by NJM Insurance.

Check out the Lehigh Valley Phantoms Statistics

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American Hockey League Stories from October 25, 2025


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