The Lehigh Valley Phantoms (17-18-6-3) were back in action after some much-needed rest Saturday night against the first-place Utica Comets (30-9-5) at the PPL Center. This was the third meeting between these teams, with the season series tied 1-1.
Tanner Laczynski made his season debut after having double hip surgery, which kept him out of action for almost a year. Also returning to the Phantoms was Connor Bunnaman, who cleared waivers after spending time with the Flyers.
Felix Sandstrom started in goal, and the scratches were Cooper Zech, Linus Sandin, Brennan Saulnier, Nick Lappin, Sam Ersson, Ryan MacKinnon, Garrett Metcalf, Adam Johnson, and Tyson Foerster.
Early in the first period, the Comets were in the Phantoms’ zone. Felix Sandstrom made an excellent save after Chase De Leo tried to jab the puck into the net, but Sandstrom made a glove save.
With 16:22 left, Michael Vukojevic attempted to pass a loose puck to A.J Greer, but Charlie Gerard (4) took advantage of it using his speed for a breakaway opportunity and scored from the right side of the net past the left pad of Schmid that put the Phantoms up 1-0.
The Phantoms were playing good defense and were able to get the puck away from the Comets. However, with 11:05 left, Michael Vukojevic (8) made a long pass to Alexander Holtz (18), who scored from the left pad of Sandstrom just as he crashed in the net, dislodging it as the Comets tied the game 1-1. Chase De Leo (28) earned the secondary assists.
Meanwhile, Tanner Laczynski and Egor Zamula had chances to get the lead back, but both shots hit the pad of Akira Schmid. With 3:30 left, Felix Sandstrom left the game holding his left leg and did not return. Kirill Ustimenko replaced him. The game was tied 1-1 after one period with the shots 14-10 Comets.
In the second period, Kirill Ustimenko made a couple of nice saves, including robbing Brian Flynn’s shot. With 10:32 left, Alex Kile broke up a three-on-one play by diving to block the shot. Tanner Laczynski had two chances with 8:17 left before his shot banked off the post.
With 7:46 left, the Comets were on the attack. Brian Flynn (4) made a nice cross-ice pass to Nolan Foote (9) for a one-timer past the left pad of Kirill Ustimenko to take a 2-1 lead.
Late in the second period, penalties to Hayden Hodgson (slashing) and Garrett Wilson (high-sticking) put the Phantoms in a bad situation. The Comets had a 5-3 power-play with 1:19 left to begin the third period up 2-1. The shots were 19-17 Comets.
Kirill Ustimenko made another great save off his left pad sliding in front of Alexander Holtz in the third period. The Phantoms were hustling towards Utica’s zone.
With 13:37 left, Egor Zamula (15) took a shot from the left side that was tipped in by Hayden Hodgson (14), tying the game 2-2. Connor Bunnaman (4) earned the secondary assist.
Then with 8:36 left, the Comets were at the Phantoms’ zone when Nolan Foote caught Hayden Hodgson with a high stick, and no call was made.
Hodgson was down for a bit before heading to the locker room. The fans let the referees have it. Luckily, Hodgson returned minutes later.
As time was winding down, both teams attacked the net and looked for the game-winning goal, but to no prevail. With 1:37 left, Tanner Laczynski stole the puck and shot it, but Akira Schmid saved it. Sixty minutes was not enough, and the game went to overtime tied 2-2. The shots were 25-24 Comets.
In overtime, Utica was aggressive, but Ustimenko kept stopping the shots. The Phantoms, with 2:43 left, had a chance when Connor Bunnaman fired the puck, but Schmid saved it. With under a minute left, the Phantoms took their time getting to Utica’s zone, trying to find an opportunity to score.
However, the Phantoms need to do a better job showing urgency towards the opponent’s lines in overtime. They can’t settle for a shootout.
Had they shown urgency in that situation, the outcome might have been in their favor. Kirill Ustimenko made one more save as overtime expired.
Utica Comets forward A.J. Greer scored the game-winning goal in a shootout in the fourth round, giving the Comets a 3-2 win.
The Phantoms finished the night with 27 shots, 0/4 on the power-play, and Kirill Ustimenko made 20 of 21 saves. Felix Sandstrom made eight of nine saves before the injury.
Tanner Laczynski looked good for his first game back. He didn’t show any rust despite being out for almost a year.
The Phantoms’ power-play unit continues to shine this season. They killed off three Utica power-plays. In addition, the Phantoms are ranked sixth (83.8%) in the AHL in penalty kills.
Lehigh Valley finishes the six-game homestand today at 3:05 pm against the Springfield Thunderbirds. It’s the last home game for the month of February.
