Saad Notches Two as Phantoms Win Robertson Cup Opener
April 28, 2009 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Mahoning Valley Phantoms News Release
MASON CITY, IA (Tuesday, April 28th, 2009) - The North Division champion Mahoning Valley Phantoms opened the 2009 Robertson Cup Tournament with a 4-2 win over the Central Division champion Bismarck Bobcats at the North Iowa Ice Arena on Tuesday.
Brandon Saad notched a pair of power play goals while Stefan Salituro recorded a goal and two assists in the tournament lid-lifter to give the Phantoms a 1-0 record in the round-robin preliminary round.
"Game One was a really important one to win," said Salituro, whose three points tied him for the team playoff lead with Cole Schneider at nine, "it gets our momentum going in the right direction and really gets the load off our back."
The Bobcats came out firing against the Phantoms, outshooting Mahoning Valley 7-2 in the first seven minutes of the first period before the Phantoms were able to turn the tide back at Bismarck, outshooting the Bobcats 9-4 over the remainder of the opening frame.
"Bismarck came out with a great start," said Mahoning Valley goalie Jordan Tibbett, "and our emotions were pretty high. Once we were able to get those in check we started our run against them."
That run began when Saad opened the scoring on the Phantoms' first power play of the game, snapping a low liner through the legs of Bismarck goalie David Bosner to put Mahoning Valley up 1-0 with 4:57 remaining in the first period.
The Phantoms would strike again just 31 seconds later when Nick Kenney grabbed a Michael Pateras rebound and stuffed it past Bosner for a 2-0 edge.
Bismarck head coach Byron Pool lifted Bosner after Kenney's tally, replacing the All-Central Division goalie with backup Matt Grogan.
Mahoning Valley wasted no time testing Grogan when Salituro raced into the Bobcats' zone on a rink-wide feed from David Chaney and lifted a wrist shot over the blocker of Grogan for a 3-0 Phantoms lead with 3:01 left in the opening frame.
The Bobcats would cut into the Phantoms lead over halfway through the second when Derek Kimbro notched a power play goal, rocketing a transition wrist shot over Tibbett's glove to bring Bismarck to within 3-1 with 7:49 remaining in the middle frame.
Saad put the Mahoning Valley advantage back to three goals with his second power play tally 4:09 into the third, taking a feed from Chaney and ripping a wrister past Grogan, off the post and in.
Chaney finished with three assists for Mahoning Valley.
Bismarck cut the Phantoms' lead back to two when Isaiah Bennis rolled a shot past a screened-out Tibbett with 13:57 left in the third period for a 4-2 Mahoning Valley edge.
The Bobcats, however, were unable to draw any closer as the Phantoms closed the game by creating good offensive pressure in the Bismarck zone.
Phantoms Head Coach and General Manager Bob Mainhardt said the team's success stemmed from a pair of postseason essentials.
"Two big things you need in the playoffs are goaltending and special teams," said Mainhardt, "and I thought we did a good job on both. Our power play was very strong and Jordan's goaltending when Bismarck took it to us early set the tone for the whole game."
Tibbett finished with 25 saves, improving his postseason record to 6-3; Grogan was saddled with the loss, dropping him to 1-3 in the playoffs, making 11 saves for Bismarck.
The Phantoms continue round robin play on Wednesday with an 8:30 PM contest against the host North Iowa Outlaws. In their only meeting of the season, Mahoning Valley topped North Iowa in each team's second game of the season by a 4-1 final on September 18th.
"I don't think that win means much at all," said Mainhardt of the early-season triumph, "I don't even think our guys really remember that game. It was a long time ago and both teams have gotten a lot better since then.
"North Iowa is a heck of a hockey team, so we're going to have that game early in the year out of our minds and focus on [Wednesday]."
The game will be broadcast live from North Iowa Ice Arena on ESPN Raido 1240, WBBW-AM, locally and worldwide at MVPPhantoms.com via B2 Networks. The pregame show will begin at 8:15 PM.
The two teams with the best record after the preliminary round robin will advance to the Robertson Cup Finals, representing USA Hockey's Tier II Junior A National Championship game.
All Phantoms merchandise is on sale for 40% off at the Phantoms Team Shop at both the Chevrolet Centre and the Ice Zone while the Phantoms are in the playoffs. Call (330) 965-7500 for more information.
The Mahoning Valley Phantoms are owned by the B.J. Alan Company - Phantom Fireworks, located in Youngstown, Ohio.
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North American Hockey League Stories from April 28, 2009
- Saad Notches Two as Phantoms Win Robertson Cup Opener - Mahoning Valley Phantoms
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