Things are looking quite comfortable for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
They are now in complete control of the Atlantic with two wins this week and eight wins in their last 10 games. They have 77 points while the second place Penguins and Bruins each have 69 points with games in hand.
Phil Varone scored a hat trick in Wednesday’s win over the Utica Comets, and John Muse has been strong enough for the Phantoms and the Reading Royals this season to earn himself an NHL contract with the Philadelphia Flyers.
Wednesday, Feb. 21st at Utica Comets (6-4 win)
The Phantoms and Comets played their only game in Utica of the season on Wednesday, and it was the Phantoms who left the ice the happier of the two teams.
Phil Varone scored first for the Phantoms early in the first period, as a shot by James De Haas from the point was deflected by T.J. Brennan before hitting Utica goaltender Thatcher Demko’s pad. The puck rebounded straight to Phil Varone in the slot, and he swiped the puck into the net.
David Dziurynski tied the game up with a goal eight minutes later. Patrick Wiercioch’s shot from the point was deflected by Dziurynski before hitting the back of the net.
In the second period, Varone scored his second goal of the game off a great stretch pass from Will O’Neill. Varone received the puck as he was coming down the left wing, and his shot rocketed off the post and in to give the Phantoms a 2-1 lead.
The Comets got to work almost immediately after Varone’s goal and scored just a minute later. Michael Carcone found a hole between Brennan and Nicolas Aube-Kubel – who just came off the bench – and forced his way to the net before backhanding the puck by John Muse.
Carcone struck again a few minutes later to give the Comets the lead. This time, he was forechecking behind the Phantoms net and had an open lane to walk into the slot for a shot that eventually found its way over the goal line. The Comets took their 3-2 lead into the locker room after two periods of play.
The Phantoms took over in the third period. Greg Carey tied the game with a sharp-angle snipe that went over Demko’s shoulder, and Brennan pushed the Phantoms ahead on the power play. Wiercioch, finding himself all alone on the left wing after an offensive zone faceoff win, tied the game with a shot that beat Muse on his short side with seven minutes left. With time winding down, it was four-all.
With five minutes left, Varone completed his hat trick with style. He sped into the middle of the offensive zone while unbalancing the Utica defense before unwinding the shot.
Cole Bardreau added an empty-netter from center ice to seal a 6-4 win.
Varone finished the night with four points. Brennan, Philippe Myers, and Travis Sanheimscored two points of their own. Muse made 36 saves on 40 shots.
Friday, Feb. 23rd at Syracuse Crunch (2-1 loss)
In Syracuse, the night was not quite as alright as it was in Utica, as the Phantoms lost 2-1.
There was no scoring until the third period of the game, meaning that we pick up our regularly scheduled programming there. The Syracuse Crunch took the lead midway through the last period courtesy of Michael Bournival. Erik Condra skated with the puck down the left wing into the Phantoms’ zone and Bournival crossed behind him for the drop pass before ripping the shot by Dustin Tokarski.
Matt Read tied the game with a fantastic individual effort, intercepting a cross-point pass while shorthanded and beating Eddie Pasquale with a backhand shot on the breakaway.
Unfortunately for the Phantoms, Bournival scored a sharp-angle shot that slid under Tokarski’s pad with two minutes remaining to put the Crunch back up, 2-1. With two minutes of having an extra man on the ice, the Phantoms couldn’t tie it, and the Crunch won.
Tokarski was strong with 29 saves on 31 shots. Read was the only player to record a point for the Phantoms in this game.
Saturday, Feb. 24th at Binghamton Devils (2-1 win)
On Saturday, the Phantoms returned to their winning ways with a 2-1 win over the Binghamton Devils.
Nick Lappin got the Devils on the board first in the first period after James De Haas turned the puck over in the Phantoms’ defensive zone. Lappin was alone on the right circle, and John Muse couldn’t do anything to stop it. The Phantoms finally scored in the second period via Greg Carey. Phil Varone tapped a pass to Carey after the Devils couldn’t swat it out of the zone, and Carey made no mistake of it for the goal.
The Phantoms took the lead at the beginning of the third period and never looked back. Tyrell Goulbourne skated from his own defensive zone all the way to the Devils’ goal line, chipping the puck off the boards so he could skate onto it. Below the goal line, he threw the puck back out in front to Chris Conner who slapped the puck into the net.
That gave the Phantoms their 2-1 lead that they would never relinquish. The Devils had 11 shots to the Phantoms’ four in the period, but they were unable to put one past Muse. With 10 seconds remaining in the game, the Devils had two chances right in front of the net to tie the game, but Muse stood tall and saved the win for the Phantoms.
John Muse saved 26 of 27 shots and five Phantoms put their name on the scoresheet in the game.
Stars of the Week
If any game had a player’s name plastered on it, Wednesday’s game would have Phil Varone splattered all over it. Recording a hat trick wasn’t enough, as he recorded an assist as well. The 27-year old leads the AHL with 56 points in 56 games and is only six points away from eclipsing his highest point total in a season; he scored 61 points in 69 games with the Rochester Americans in 2013-14. He was obviously the First Star on Wednesday.
John Muse also deserves some recognition for his performances as of late. With 26 saves on 27 shots Sunday, he’s kept the Phantoms strong defensively. He’s been bouncing around the Reading Royals and Phantoms this season and is 17-5-2-0 with a .930 save percentage with the Royals and is 7-1-0-0 with a .934 save percentage with the Phantoms. There’s no wonder why he received a contract from the Flyers yesterday (more on that in a minute).
Rinkside Notes
Oskar Lindblom was called up by the Philadelphia Flyers last week due to Wayne Simmonds’ two-to-three week absence due to injury. This is Lindblom’s first NHL call-up. In response to Lindblom’s call-up, the Phantoms recalled Alex Krushelnyski from Reading for the umpteenth time this season. Anthony Stolarz was also sent down to Lehigh Valley (he was technically with the Flyers on the IR), indicating that he is closer to good health than he has been in a while.
John Muse was signed by the Flyers as well. His contract was a two-way AHL contract with the Phantoms, but since those kinds of contracts do not allow players to go up to the NHL, the Flyers signed him to give them some breathing room in case any more goaltender injuries occur. Muse will still be able to move from the Royals and Phantoms pretty seamlessly.
Mark Alt was claimed on waivers by the Colorado Avalanche today, ending a six-year career in the Flyers’ organization. He had appeared in 23 games with the Phantoms in 2017-18, scoring 10 points. In 260 AHL games with the Phantoms, he has scored 78 points.
Upcoming Games
- Friday, 3/2 vs. Hershey Bears
- Saturday, 3/3 vs. Binghamton Devils
- Sunday, 3/4 at Hershey Bears
Originally published on SonsOfPenn.com