Wednesday, October 5, 2011

More players assigned to Phantoms

Defenseman Erik Gustafsson along with forwards Brayden Schenn and Harry Zolnierczyk have been assigned to the Phantoms.

The Flyers also placed Blair Betts, Oskars Bartulis, and Matt Walker on waivers yesterday. Betts was claimed by Montreal; Bartulis cleared and was assigned to the Phantoms. I can't find any information on Walker so I'm presuming, until/unless I see otherwise, that he was neither claimed nor sent down.

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Final score: Penguins 3, Phantoms 1

Oliver Lauridsen makes it 3-1, very late in the third period. Good job! Assist: Holmstrom.

With 14.7 seconds remaining in the third period, the Phantoms go on the PP.

But the Phantoms are unable to score with a 5 on 3 advantage in the final seconds of the period. Final score: Penguins 3, Phantoms 1.

Click here for the Phantoms' official game recap.

Third period (in progress)

Another 5-on-3 disadvantage translates into another Penguins goal in the third period. 3-0 Penguins. But as one of the Phantoms had a double minor, rather than just two minutes, we're still down two players even after being scored on. Holmstrom and Marshall are in the box.

Back to 5 on 5. 8:28 left in the third period. Still 3-0 in favor of the bad guys. SOG favor the Penguins 26-13. The Phantoms have only had one shot on goal so far in this period.

End of Second Period

At the end of the second period, the Penguins lead the Phantoms 2-0.

From Twitter:

@PhantomsHockey shots on goal: ADK 12 - WBS 20.Bacashihua playing well for ADK. Phantoms have been getting to Brad Thiessen but haven't broken him yet.

I was surprised to hear that we will only play in Wilkes-Barre one time this season. That's a major departure from our past history. Then again, we are in a different division from the PA teams this year, after a realignment of the AHL during the offseason.

I'm Not Amused, however, as I would rather see the Phantoms play semi-close to Philly more often than that. W-B is only SEMI-close, to be sure, but it's a darn sight nearer to Philadelphia than Glens Falls is. The distance from the former Spectrum site to the Glens Falls Civic Center is 288 miles. Wilkes-Barre and Hershey offer the opportunity to see the Phantoms live, at a distance that won't require an overnight stay in a hotel. So I'd rather have seen us continue to make numerous appearances in PA during the course of the season.

Phantoms @ Penguins, second period (in progress)

The Penguins drew first blood during this period, and lead 1-0. The Pens also spent some time in this period with 6 skaters on the ice, completely missed by the referees. I guess it's preseason for the officials as well.

With 21 seconds remaining in the Phantoms' 2-man disadvantage, both of which penalties were assessed to our top penalty killers, the Penguins scored again to make it 2-0. So now we'll be at 5 on 4 briefly before returning to full strength.

Even strength now. 8:48 left in the second period.

Michael Leighton loaned to Phantoms; Phantoms preseason results so far

On Wednesday, September 28, the Phantoms opened their preseason in Saratoga vs. the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins with a 3-1 win. Last night, October 1, they dropped a 3-1 decision to the Albany Devils.

They are currently in a game at Wilkes-Barre vs. the Penguins. The score is 0-0 in the first period.

Today, the Flyers announced that they have loaned Michael Leighton to the Phantoms.