GAME STORY: Lehigh Valley - 4 at W-B/Scranton - 3 (OT) 3/8/21

WILKES-BARRE, Pa. - The Lehigh Valley Phantoms (6-2-2) needed overtime for the sixth time in 10 games this season to decide a winner, and it was Ryan Fitzgerald providing his fourth of the season - and second game-winning OT goal - to lift the Phantoms past the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (5-2-3) on Monday evening at the Mohegan Sun Arena.

Brennan Saulnier opened the scoring with his first career AHL goal to get the Phantoms ahead 1-0 in the first period. Garrett Wilson tallied his first as a Phantom in the middle frame, and Pascal Laberge added a goal in his first game back in the third in the Phantoms' win.

Lehigh Valley Phantoms Roster Notes

Zane McIntyre got the start in net for Lehigh Valley Monday, Felix Sandstrom got the start in the Phantoms' previous three games - and was pulled 22:52 into his last start Sunday in Hershey, allowing three goals on eight shots in what was a largely poor performance team-wide.

Three lineup changes up front for Lehigh Valley Monday after two games with the same lineup. Forwards Tanner MacMaster, Max Willman and Linus Sandin were out of action while Pascal Laberge, Ralph Cuddemi and Brennan Saulnier returned to the lineup.

The injuries are starting to pile up for the Phantoms, with at least six guys on the injured list.

Lines/Pairings:

Ryan Fitzgerald - Cal O'Reilly - Zayde Wisdom Isaac Ratcliffe - Chris Mueller - Tyson Foerster Garrett Wilson - Tanner Laczynski - Pascal Laberge Brennan Saulnier - David Kase - Ralph Cuddemi

Egor Zamula - Linus Hogberg Sam Morin - Wyatte Wylie Mason Millman - Derrick Pouliot

Zane McIntyre - Felix Sandstrom

Scratches: Eamon McAdam, Tyler Wotherspoon (injured), Tanner MacMaster, Maksim Sushko (injured), Matthew Strome, Max Willman (injured), Linus Sandin (injured), Logan Day (injured) and Chris Bigras (lower body

W-B/Scranton Penguins Roster Notes

Lines/Pairings:

Tim Schaller - Josh Currie - Drew O'Connor Felix Robert - Radim Zohorna - Jan Drozg Sam Miletic - Jordy Bellerive - Nick Schilkey Jon Gruden - Chase Berger - Zach Nastasiuk

P-O Joseph - Jon Lizotte Kevin Czuczman - Will Reilly Cam Lee - Billy Sweezey

Shane Starrett - Brett Brochu

GAME RECAP

1st Period

There wasn't a whistle in the opening 4:21 of play, and there was great pace to both teams' play with the Phantoms and Penguins meeting on a Monday evening in Wilkes-Barre.

The Phantoms had the early jump, generating some early chances but were unable to connect. The Penguins responded, and had an early 3-1 edge in shots but the game played on scoreless.

From there, it got pretty choppy. Four icing calls in a row, starting with back-to-back Phantoms' icings followed by two Penguins' icing calls really slowed things up after such a flying start out of the gates for both teams.

It wasn't until a Penguins' turnover at their offensive blue line with under eight minutes left in the period that the game's opening goal was scored. Kevin Czuczman sent a pass ahead to the far blue line for his D-partner Will Reilly, and headed to the bench for a change. Meanwhile, David Kase forced a turnover and sent his linemates Ralph Cuddemi and Brennan Saulnier off to the races.

Penguins' defenseman Jon Lizotte hopped over the boards and was able to defend the rush, but the trailing Kase picked up a pass in the middle from Cuddemi on the left wing and teed up a one-timer for Saulnier in the right-wing circle for a blast past Penguins' goalie Shane Starrett to put Lehigh Valley ahead 1-0 with 7:33 left in the 1st period. The tally marked Saulnier's first career AHL goal.

Zane McIntyre made some timely saves later in the period when Lehigh Valley had a chance to extend their lead on a power play chance.

In the final seconds of the period, Isaac Ratcliffe collided in the neutral zone by the penalty boxes with teammate Chris Mueller - leaving Ratcliffe coming up hunched over and heading to the bench and exiting down the tunnel to the locker room as the final seconds ticked off the clock on the opening period.

2nd Period

Good news to begin the middle frame, as Isaac Ratcliffe started the period on the ice at his normal left wing position with Mueller and Tyson Foerster.

The Phantoms jumped out to a brief 2-0 lead less than three minutes into the middle period after a great effort from Sam Morin leading a rush into the offensive zone.

Morin chopped a puck ahead into the zone, and decided to go and get it himself - making a nice move down the right wing and making some Penguins' defenders miss before backhanding a pass across to Garrett Wilson for Wilson's first as a Phantoms forward at the 2:46 mark of the middle frame.

The Penguins responded on the next shift, drawing back within one after hacking and whacking away at Zane McIntyre in a net-front pile-up. McIntyre appeared to have the puck covered under his glove, but a whistle never came. Instead the Penguins muscled the puck out from under the Phantoms' goalie's glove and Tim Schaller eventually pushed it across the line to make it a 2-1 game. Drew O'Connor added the lone assist.

McIntyre was irate after the goal, and for good reason. Nonetheless, the goal counted and it was quickly a one-goal game again 3:48 into the stanza.

The back-and-forth play continued, and it was the Penguins tying the game up at 2-2 just past the midway mark of regulation - with Josh Currie wristing one from just inside the right-wing circle on a delayed penalty call to even things up. The Pens' top line of Schaller-Currie-O'Connor figured in on both of the home team's tallies in the period.

Tanner Laczynski and David Kase really stood out in the middle frame, with both players consistently making plays and generating chances whenever they were on the ice.

Similar to the first frame, the Phantoms had a power play chance in the waning moments of the second period with a chance to break the 2-2 tie before the second intermission. Also similar to the tail end of the first period, the Phantoms were unable to tally a go-ahead goal on the power play before heading to the third period in a 2-2 deadlock.

3rd Period

The Penguins had a strong start to the third, keeping the Phantoms hemmed in their own zone and registering the first three shots on goal in the opening three minutes of the period.

The teams later traded power play chances in the opening half the period, but neither team's power play was able to provide a go-ahead goal.

Lehigh Valley, despite being out-shot by a 7-2 margin through the first half of the period, was able to get a go-ahead goal with 6:53 left in regulation after great vision by Egor Zamula spotted Wilson open across the way on the right-wing. Zamula got it to Wilson, whose shot was stopped by Starrett, but Laczynski and Laberge crashed the net with the latter stuffing one home to give the Phantoms a 3-2 lead.

The lead was again short-lived, however, as a Derrick Pouliot high-sticking minor with 5:03 left gave the Penguins a late power play chance. McIntyre made a ridiculous stick save to rob Radim Zohorna of an easy empty net tap in, but the Pens continued to pressure and Schaller picked up his second of the contest on a rebound put-back of a Currie shot to tie the game at 3-3 with 4:13 left to play, later forcing overtime.

The power play tally marked just the second PPG the Phantoms' PK has allowed this season through 10 games (1st in the AHL at 92.6%).

Overtime

A bit of a sluggish start for both teams in the 3-on-3.

The Phantoms possessed the puck from the opening face-off, and held the puck the opening 90 seconds, but were unable to muster much in the way of offensive chances while they had it in the zone.

Phantoms' head coach Scott Gordon was heard loud and clear in an empty Mohegan Sun Arena.

"Let's go, let's go, let's go, get moving!"

Ryan Fitzgerald heeded the coach's message, taking a puck in the defensive zone from Ratcliffe and turning on the jets - flying down the right wing and scoring off the far side post and in to give Lehigh Valley a 4-3 OT win 3:18 into the OT.

GAME SUMMARY

1st Period

12:27: LV - Saulnier (1) - Kase, Cuddemi 16:33: WBS - (PP) Currie, minor (tripping)

2nd Period

2:46: LV - Wilson (1) - Morin, Wylie 3:48: WBS - Schaller (2) - O'Connor 10:48: WBS - Currie (3) - Schaller, O'Connor 17:55: WBS - (PP) Olsen, minor (slashing)

3rd Period

4:01: WBS - (PP) Reilly, minor (hooking) 6:00: LV - (PP) Foerster, minor (tripping) 13:07: LV - Laberge (2) - Laczynski, Wilson 14:57: LV - (PP) Pouliot, minor (high-sticking) 15:47: WBS - PPG Schaller (3) - Currie, Zohorna

Overtime

3:18: LV - Fitzgerald (4) - Ratcliffe

BOXSCORE

Lehigh Valley   1 - 1 - 1 - 1 = 4 W-B/Scranton  0 - 2 - 1 - 0 = 3

Shots

Lehigh Valley   10 - 13 - 6 - 3 = 32 W-B/Scranton  8 - 13 - 13 - 1 = 35

Goalies

LV: Zane McIntyre (32 saves - 35 shots) WBS: Shane Starrett (28 saves - 32 shots)

Power Play

LV: 0-for-3 WBS: 1-for-2

Penalty Kill

LV: 1-for-2 WBS: 3-for-3