GAMEDAY: Game 5 - Lehigh Valley (2-2-0) at W-B/Scranton (4-1-0) 7:05 p.m. ET
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WILKES-BARRE - The Lehigh Valley Phantoms (2-2-0) look to exact revenge on the road as they face the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (4-1-0) Saturday at 7:05 p.m. ET in a rematch of Friday night's tilt at the PPL Center, which saw the Penguins score a late goal with 1:03 left in regulation to steal a 5-4 win out from under Lehigh Valley in front of their home fans.
Full recap + latest news/notes from last night's game -> http://insideahlhockey.com/article/gameday-game-4-w-bscranton-3-1-0-at-lehigh-valley-2-1-0-715-pm-et
Our Phantoms Post-Game EXTRA! with five takeaways and video interviews with T.J. Brennan and Mike Vecchione as well as reaction from head coach Scott Gordon -> http://insideahlhockey.com/article/phantoms-post-game-extra-greater-game-4-w-bscranton-5-at-lehigh-valley-4
Lehigh Valley Phantoms Roster Notes
Alex Lyon made his regular season debut tonight, with Anthony Stolarz serving as tonight's backup. Carter Hart was scratched as the team's third goalie.
James de Haas, Radel Fazleev and Connor Bunnaman returned to the Phantoms' lineup after sitting out last night as a healthy scratch. Reece Willcox, Colin McDonald and David Kase sat out to make room.
Lehigh Valley Lines (Starters in Bold/Italics)
Greg Carey - Phil Varone - Nicolas Aube-Kubel Carsen Twarynski - Mike Vecchione - Chris Conner (A) Taylor Leier - German Rubtsov - Connor Bunnaman Tyrell Goulbourne - Cole Bardreau - Radel Fazleev
T.J. Brennan (A) - Philip Samuelsson Zach Palmquist - Phil MyersJames de Haas - Mark Friedman
Alex Lyon - Anthony Stolarz
Phantoms Scratches: Carter Hart (healthy), David Drake (healthy), Colin McDonald (healthy), David Kase (healthy) and Reece Willcox (healthy).
GAME STORY
FIRST PERIOD
The Penguins had the early jump to start the contest, seemingly one step ahead of Lehigh Valley in the opening half of the period - racking up 20 first period shots and a pair of goals from Sam Miletic that we'll file under the 'not your ordinary goal' category.
Miletic's first of the night was the result of a multiple re-direction of a Will O'Neill shot that changed directions several times on its way past Phantoms' goaltender Alex Lyon - the last of which was Miletic himself getting a piece of O'Neill's shot. That game-opening goal at 7:27 of the 1st frame had the Pens off and running.
Miletic added to his team's lead about four minutes later on a shot in tight from a bad angle down low that somehow hopped up and over Lyon's right leg pad and was inadvertently bumped into the net.
Lehigh Valley responded on the following shift, as Taylor Leier's shot on the left-wing missed the mark before heading Mark Friedman's way for a snipe from the right-wing face-off dot to cut the Phantoms' deficit in half, at a 2-1 Pens lead with 7:30 left before the first intermission.
It really turned out to be a game-changer for the Phantoms. After losing to the Penguins Friday night and starting off Saturday in an 0-2 hole Friedman's goal may very well have saved the weekend for the orange and black.
SECOND PERIOD
From there, the Phantoms took control - outscoring the Penguins 5-1 in the final 40 minutes.
The third line of Taylor Leier, German Rubtsov and Connor Bunnaman had a strong night, figuring in on three of the team's first four goals on the night - including two in the middle frame.
Rubtsov played the role of the finisher.
Brennan sent a stretch pass up ice for Taylor Leier about six and a half minutes into the period, and Leier left a between the legs pass back toward center ice for a trailing Rubtsov who picked up the puck in stride, entered the offensive zone and lasered a shot past Penguins' goalie Anthony Peters to tie the game at 2-2.
Later in the period, the Phantoms were awarded the game's first power play and made quick work of it with Phil Varone tallying on the man advantage six seconds into the power play to give Lehigh Valley a 3-2 lead with 8:16 left before the second intermission.
The Penguins tied it back up at 3-3 moments later when an Ethan Prow shot from the point eluded Lyon, but Rubtsov and the Phantoms answered back in the final minute of the period to take a one-goal lead into the third.
Friedman sent a long breakout pass up the right wing for Connor Bunnaman, who entered the offensive zone with speed and took the puck to the net. Bunnaman's centering feed for Leier missed the mark, but the puck dribbled into the slot where Rubtsov was in position to snipe one to the top corner on Peters for his second of the game with 51.4 seconds left before the second intermission.
*THIRD PERIOD
Holding a one-goal lead entering the third, the Phantoms took it to the Penguins in the final frame - out-shooting the Pens 15-7 and adding to their lead in route to the 6-3 win.
Phil Myers made it a 5-3 game when his shot from the center point bounced in past Peters after hitting off a Penguins' forward in front of the net. Chris Conner added an easy back-door tap in goal on a brief power play chance to cap the scoring at 6-3.
Interesting sequence in the final minute as former Phantoms defender Will O'Neill was at the center of controversy. After Leier was whistled offside, O'Neill jumped an unsuspecting Leier with a sucker punch that started a fight - Leier's 3rd career AHL fight in his 196-game tenure with the Phantoms.
Leier was visibly upset as the two were separated, and was seen yelling at O'Neill as the two were escorted off the ice.
O'Neill was assessed a game misconduct under the league's rule for instigating a fight in the final five minutes of regulation along with a total of 27 PIM on the play.
GAME SUMMARY
1st Period
7:27: WBS - Miletic (2) - O'Neill, Lafferty 11:19: WBS - Miletic (3) - Summers, Elliott 12:30: LV - Friedman (1) - Leier
2nd Period
6:40: LV - Rubtsov (2) - Leier, Brennan 11:38: WBS - (PP) Blueger, minor (slashing) 11:44: LV - PPG Varone (2) - Carey, Brennan 14:38: WBS - Prow (2) - Abt, Josephs 19:08: LV - Rubtsov (3) - Bunnaman, Friedman
3rd Period
8:49: LV - Myers (2) - Vecchione, Palmquist 12:28: WBS - (PP) Lafferty, minor (tripping) 12:36: LV - PPG Conner (1) - Brennan, Varone 19:26: LV - Leier, major (fighting) 19:26: WBS - (PP) O'Neill, minor (instigating) 19:26: WBS - O'Neill, major (fighting) 19:26: WBS - O'Neill, ten-minute misconduct - instigating 19:26: WBS - O'Neill, game misconduct - (instigator last 5:00)
BOXSCORE
Lehigh Valley 1 - 3 - 2 = 6 W-B/Scranton 2 - 1 - 0 = 3
Shots
Lehigh Valley 13 - 9 - 15 = 37 W-B/Scranton 20 - 18 - 7 = 45
Goalies
WBS - Anthony Peters (31 saves - 37 shots) LV - Alex Lyon (42 saves - 45 shots)
Power Play
LV: 2-for-3 WBS: 0-for-0
Penalty Kill
LV: 0-for-0 WBS: 1-for-3
Attendance: 4,837
