Saad Notches Hat Trick as Phantoms Roll 6-1
Published on February 14, 2009 under North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Mahoning Valley Phantoms News Release
MARQUETTE, MI - Brandon Saad picked up his second hat trick in the last three weeks as the Mahoning Valley Phantoms bounced back to rout the Marquette Rangers 6-1 Saturday night.
Saad scored three straight goals to cap a four-goal third period, for the natural hat trick. No stranger to spectacular accomplishments, Saad was still pumped up about the straight-shot hat trick after the game.
"I'm pretty excited about it," said Saad, "it was actually my first natural hat trick ever. I didn't even know it was a natural until after the game, which was pretty cool to hear."
The first-team all-tournament World Under-17 Challenge honoree's hat trick broke open what was once a close game at 3-1.
The Phantoms opened the scoring with 3:35 left in the first on George Saad's eighth goal of the season, swatting home an Erik Higby centering feed on a 2-on-1.
Higby made it 2-0 in the second period, squeezing a wrist shot past Marquette netminder Kevin Kissaw 2:41 into the middle frame.
After the game, Higby stressed the importance of Mahoning Valley rebounding from their 5-1 defeat on Friday.
"We knew we had to get the âW' after a bad loss," said the San Antonio, TX, native, "so we got our act together [on Saturday] and took it to them."
Dustin Partacz scored the lone Rangers goal with 42 seconds remaining in the second, pulling Marquette to within 2-1 after two periods.
Jordy Trottier tacked on an insurance tally, one-timing a Rangers giveaway past Kissaw for his 15th goal of the season, before Saad's outburst ended the Rangers' hopes for a comeback.
Jordan Tibbett made 29 saves for the Phantoms, improving his record to 21-5-1 on the season.
Kissaw finished with 30 saves in the loss, falling to 12-10-3 on the season and 3-2-1 against the Phantoms.
The win closes the book on the Phantoms' season series with the Rangers, in which they went 3-3-0 against Marquette.
Mahoning Valley (30-11-4, 64 pts) pulled eight points ahead of Traverse City (25-12-6, 56 pts) for first place in the NAHL's North Division; the North Stars lost 2-1 at Motor City on Saturday.
The Phantoms return to action on Thursday when they host the Motor City Machine at the Chevrolet Centre at 7:15 PM. The game is part of the Phantoms' pre-fight series with the Machine, leading up to Kelly Pavlik's World Middleweight Title fight with Marco Antonio Rubio.
The following night's game will be preceded by Pavlik's hydration weigh-in and a pre-fight rally for the Youngstown native's title fight at the Centre.
Thursday's game will be broadcast locally on ESPN Radio 1240, WBBW-AM, and worldwide at MVPPhantoms.com via B2 Networks. The pregame show will begin at 7:00 PM.
Special group rate tickets are available for groups of 20 or more for $6 per ticket. The Phantoms are also offering a special Knockout Package for the Pavlik fight including the last remaining ringside seats for $550.
Call (330) 746-1064 ext. 228 for more details on the Knockout Package.
The Mahoning Valley Phantoms are owned by the B.J. Alan Company - Phantom Fireworks, located in Youngstown, Ohio.
North American Hockey League Stories from February 14, 2009
- Stars swept in Motown - Traverse City North Stars
- Saad Notches Hat Trick as Phantoms Roll 6-1 - Mahoning Valley Phantoms
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