The Lehigh Valley Phantoms (7-11-4-2) got back on the winning track Tuesday night in a 2-1 win over the Hershey Bears (12-9-2-1) in front of 4,101 fans at the PPL Center. This game was a makeup game from December 4th.
This was the third meeting between these teams. The last time these two teams played each other was November 10th in a 4-1 Phantoms win.
Pat Nagle started in goal, and the scratches for the game were Cooper Zech, Mason Millman, Wade Allison, German Rubtsov, Brennan Saulnier, Sam Ersson, Tyson Foerster, and Kirill Ustimenko.
In the first period, the Phantoms were called offsides three times in the first six minutes. The Phantoms committed two penalties in three minutes, putting the Bears on the power play. Luckily, the Phantoms penalty-killing unit killed off both penalties.
Then, with 5:48 left, Cal O’Reilly (8) passed the puck to Maksim Sushko (3), who got hit while taking the shot, but Charlie Gerard (1) was right there to finish the play with an open net in front of him for the goal for a 1-0 lead. It was Gerard’s first goal of the year.
The Phantoms committed one more penalty in the first period. Once again, the penalty-killing unit did its job. Late in the first period, Drake Rymsha hit Pat Nagle, and Matt Strome defended his teammate as both men went to the penalty box. The Phantoms led 1-0 after one period with the shots 10-8 Phantoms.
Two minutes into the second period, Egor Zamula ended up sliding down on the ice to break up a two-on-one play, but he went headfirst into the wall. Zamula got up on his own power and did not head to the locker room. Instead, he went back to the bench. Meanwhile, Pat Nagle was stopping every shot that came his way. He robbed Joe Snively with a glove save. Earlier in the game, he made a diving save.
Then, with 12:47 left, Connor Bunnaman made a heck of a play. He rushed to get to the puck and send it around the boards. However, the puck hit the skate of Gerry Mayhew. Bunnaman (4) was able to recover the puck and skate between three Bears players, before shooting the puck that hit the pad of Pheonix Copley. He then rebounded the puck and scored the goal for a 2-0 lead.
Gerry Mayhew (7) and Egor Zamula (9) assisted Bunnaman’s goal, and Bunnaman is now on a three-game goal streak. The Phantoms nearly had another goal by Gerry Mayhew, but Pheonix Copley stopped it.
Late in the second period, the Bears were pressuring the Phantoms, and Pat Nagle was ready for the shots and saved them. The Phantoms led 2-0 after two periods with the shots 11-5 Bears.
In the third period, Pat Nagle continued to stop every shot that came his way. The Phantoms were attacking the Bears’ zone looking to put the game away. However, as the minutes were winding down, the Bears were aggressive and attacking. The Phantoms did not prepare themselves for the Bear’s attack. By that point, they were exhausted.
With 3:07 left, Ryan Dmowski (4) cut the Phantoms lead to one 2-1 on a backhand goal, ending Nagle’s shutout bid. With under a minute to go, Gerry Mayhew was called for tripping, sending the Bears on the power play.
Just as time expired, Garrett Pilon appeared to have tied the game as the horn sounded. However, after further review, he was a half-second late, and the Phantoms held on to a 2-1 win. The shots were 11-4 Bears.
The Phantoms finished the night with 19 shots, 0/3 on the power-play, and Pat Nagle played an outstanding game, making 29 of 30 saves.
The Phantoms will play the Bears again tonight at 7 pm from the Giant Center.
