Posts Tagged ‘Austin Cangelosi’

The Youngstown Phantoms were tricked a few times but ended up with a majority of the treats against the Indiana Ice.  Youngstown broke a seven-game losing streak and won their first contest since October 6 with a 6-5 triumph on a special Halloween game.

In the first period, Indiana jumped out to a 1-0 lead.  Drew Smolcyski converted a powerplay opportunity into a goal at the 4:51 mark.  Smolcynski’s fifth goal of the season was assisted by Tyler Pham and Robbie Baillargeon.  Phantoms goaltender, Sean Romeo, was beaten on a shot from about ten feet away with slight traffic impairing his vision.

The first period would end with the Phantoms outshooting the Ice, 8-7, but trailing on the scoreboard by a goal.

In the second period, Sam Anas scored his third goal of the season to tie the game.  The game-tying goal was scored 3:15 into the second period.  Anas was assisted by Austin Cangelosi and James Mazza on the goal, the third of the season for Anas.

The Phantoms would grab the lead later in the second period.  Tommy Davis scored his first goal as a Youngstown Phantom.  Eric Sweetman made a nice pass through traffic and Davis was able to redirect the puck enough to beat Dalton Izyk on his stick side to give the Phantoms a 2-1 edge.

The Ice would rally to tie the game on a Woody Hudson goal, but the Phantoms headed into the locker room ahead 3-2 thanks to a JT Stenglein score with just under 30 seconds remaining in the period.  Stenglein notched his sixth goal of the year and was assisted by Luke Stork to vault the Phantoms back into the lead.

In the third, the Ice retaliated quickly.  With 17:33 left in the game, Smolcynski and Baillargeon ran a beautiful give and go with Smolcynski scoring the goal.

The Phantoms, doing all they could to break a seven-game losing streak, scored 1:02 later to reclaim the lead at 4-3.  Stork was the recipient of a gorgeous pass right in front of the goal crease and was able to beat Izyk for a goal.  JJ Piccinich garnered an assist.

The Phantoms then quickly made it a 5-3 lead.  On a powerplay, John Padulo recorded his first goal at the 5:25 mark of the third.  Padulo took a pass from Stenglein  to beat Izyk.  Cangelosi received an assist on the Padulo score.

Indiana would continue the offensive war with 12:13 left in the game when they made it 5-4 in favor of the Phantoms.  Rinat Valiev scored for the Ice to keep the fans on edge as the lead shrunk back to a single goal.

Romeo (above) got beat with 10:23 left on another numbers disadvantage.  The Ice tied the game, 5-5, as the new pest in town, Smolcynski scored again.

The Phantoms went back in front with 9;46 remaining.  Todd Koritzinsky got in on the offensive fireworks,  Koritzinsky took a feed from Stenglein in beating Izyk for his first goal of the season, a recurring theme in the game.

With the Youngstown Phantoms off to a 4-2-0 start, a crucial three-game road trip this weekend can help this team form an identity.  Oozing with potential, these Phantoms are digging in at the most crucial times of the game to record wins.

Coach Anthony Noreen would surely rather be in front from wire-to-wire, but the come from behind wins have been exciting to watch.  If you want some inexpensive fun on a weekend, do yourself the favor of checking out one of these games, you will not leave disappointed.

Some fresh news from the ice:

• Brian Wojtowicz has been named to the position of Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, team owner Bruce J. Zoldan announced today. Wojtowicz, a Canfield native, has been with the Phantoms hockeyfranchise since the Phantoms joined the United States Hockey League in 2009-10 and previously held the title of director of corporate sales.

“I’m very thankful to the Zoldan family for giving me the opportunity to serve as vice president of the Youngstown Phantoms,” Wojtowicz said. “It’s a wonderful organization from the top down, and I am committed to continuing the team’s success both on and off the ice.”

As vice president and COO, Wojtowicz will be responsible for directing the day-to-day business operations of the Phantoms organization and managing the front office. He will also continue to work with the team’s corporate sponsors.

• Center Austin Cangelosi and left wing JT Stenglein will exchange the Phantoms’ black, orange and purple for the Red, White and Blue in early November. The pair has been chosen to represent Team USA at the 2012 World Junior A Challenge, which will run from Nov. 2-11 in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia, USA Hockey announced today.

“In my opinion, there’s no greater honor in all of sports than to wear your home country’s flag on your chest,” head coach Anthony Noreen said. “I couldn’t be happier for Austin and JT. It’s a great opportunity for both of them and it speaks volumes for our program.”

It is the second season in a row that Cangelosi, 18, has been named to the U.S. roster. Stenglein, 19, will be representing his country for the first time.

• The Phantoms will take on the Fargo Force Thursday night and Sioux City Musketeers Friday night before wrapping up Saturday night against the Sioux Falls Stampede.  Both Fargo (3-2-1, 7 points) and Sioux Falls (4-2-0, 8 points) are near the top of the Western Conference standings and undefeated at home this season. The Force have three players in the top 10 in scoring in the league, including Toronto Maple Leafs draft pick Dominic Toninato. The Stampede have a pair among the top 10 scorers as well, led by second-year forward Sam Rothstein, and are the only team that the Phantoms have yet to defeat since joining the USHL in 2009-10.

The Youngstown Phantoms kicked off their 2012-13 season Friday night against the Omaha Lancers.  Coming off of their first playoff appearance in franchise history, the Phantoms looked flat to start the game.  However, by the time the third period ended, they seemed unstoppable in posting a dramatic 5-3 come-from-behind win.  Daniel Renouf scored the game-winning goal with 2:21 left to boost the Phantoms into the win column.

“The puck just came loose and I just found a way to put it in”, said Renouf.  “I kind of really fanned on it, I just got lucky.  Being tied for the lead in goals for the team will probably be the first time I will have bragging rights over those guys”

The outpouring of goals by defensemen in this game (three) is almost half of last years season total.

“The number one emphasis we made in the offseason was to get our defensemen involved more offensively”, said Phantoms Coach Anthony Noreen.  “Last year, we may have had better defensive guys, but this year, our defensemen have have been scoring goals in the preseason and tonight.”

Omaha took an early 1-0 lead when Drew Melanson beat Phantoms goaltender Sean Romeo from close range.  The goal came 6:02 into the first period and Jake Randolph was credited with an assist.

In the second period, the Phantoms would tie the game.  With 10:57 left in the stanza, Luke Stork sucked the defense into the goal crease and flipped the puck back to Alfred Larsson who hit the twine for his first goal.  Lancer goalee Alex Lyon was too far out of the way to make the stop as a result of Stork’s charge.

The Lancers would reclaim the lead later in the second frame.  With 5:18 left in the period, Tyler Hynes charged in with the puck from the left wing toward the crease.  Romeo could not see Hynes clearly because a defenseman was skating backwards, obstructing his line of sight.  When Hynes released the shot, it was too late for Romeo to react as he was beaten on the stick side.  Connor Chatham earned an assist on the goal that would give Omaha a 2-1 lead.

Through two periods, the Phantoms seemed to be getting stronger.  The big difference between the first and second periods seemed to be speed and spacing.  Too many times in the first period when the Phantoms had the puck in the Lancers zone, they seemed to be clustered up and in each others way.  After two periods, the Phantoms held a 26-21 advantage for shots on goal, but the Lancers held a 2-1 lead on the ones that went in.

“We had 20 shots in the second period”, noted Noreen.  “It was more our style.  We thrive off of our physical play.  We were standing around a lot in the first period and with any home opener, you get nervous.  Even our older guys are young this year.”

In the third period, the Phantoms wasted little time scoring a game-tying goal.  Austin Cangelosi, who was recently named a team co-captain, scored his first goal of the season.  The goal came just 17 seconds into the final period.  Cangelosi had a strong inaugural campaign for the Phantoms last season as he finished with 59 points (29 goals and 30 assists).  Todd Koritzinsky set Cangelosi up with a nice pass on Lyons glove side before Cangelosi unloaded.

“In the first half of the game, we came out flat”, expressed Cangelosi.  “Our energy was  low.  We had energy in the second half of the game.  On the goal I scored, Todd [Kortizinsky] made a nice backhanded pass.  I think it went between two defenders legs and I was just sitting in front with nobody on me and I just whacked it home.”

With 7:45 left in the game, Phantoms defenseman Eric Sweetman made a pretty move to give the Phantoms the lead.  Sweetman had the puck on the right side at the blue line.  He proceeded to skate around a Lancer defender and beelined toward Lyons.  He unloaded a nice shot that got by Lyons and gave the Phantoms their first lead of the season.  Renouf and Cangelosi got assists on the goal.

Omaha swung back with 6:21 left to tie the game at three goals apiece.  Alex Rauter snuck one by Romeo to deflate the momentum of the Youngstown Phantoms.

With time running out, the Phantoms took the lead, 4-3, for good with 2:21 left in the game.  Renouf hit the post on the side that would let it deflect into the net.  Renouf took a pass from Cangelosi to beat Lyons from 15 feet.  Sam Anas also picked up an assist on the play.

The Phantoms would add an empty net goal.  Cangelosi took a lead pass toward an empty net and unselfishly fed Phantom teammate Ryan Lowney to close the scoring out.

Two days after being included among the “Players to Watch” for the 2013 NHL Draft, Sean Romeo made a statement to all the scouts in attendance at IBP Ice Arena – and more importantly to, his coaches and teammates on the bench.

The Cary, N.C., goaltender was stellar between the pipes, turning away 31 shots to back-stop the Youngstown Phantoms to a 3-2 win over the Dubuque Fighting Saints in their second game of the USHL Fall Classic.

The Phantoms got goals from Austin Cangelosi, Luke Stork, and JT Stenglein, who scored for the second straight night.

“It was the best hockey game we’ve been a part of so far,” head coach Anthony Noreen said. “The physicality and pace of the game was great and Sean was very good tonight. He made some big saves when we needed him.”

The Phantoms will close out things at the Fall Classic Saturday morning against the Green Bay Gamblers. The puck drops at 11 a.m. EST.

The Youngstown Phantoms stole home ice from Green Bay with their 5-3 win Sunday. Green Bay got to Youngstown and stole it back with a 6-3 win over the Phantoms. Green Bay’s equivalent to the NHL’s ‘playoff beard’, was every member of the team dying their hair blond (seriously).  The dye paid off, as Green Bay took 32 shots compared to Youngstown’s 20, and Alex Broadhurst scored a trio of shorthanded goals.

“We have been doing the bleach blond hair and dark facial hair for four years and it hasn’t hurt us”, said Broadhurst.  

Green Bay started the scoring when Broadhurst intercepted the puck while the Phantoms were on a powerplay.  Broadhurst burst into the Phantoms zone on what looked like a penalty shot and snuck the puck past Matt O’Connor just 2:41 into the contest.

The Phantoms tied the game when Todd Koritzinsky connected for his second goal of the playoffs.  Koritzinski’s goal came at even-strength with 3:22 left to play in the first. Pat Conte and Chris Bradley (below) picked up assists on the Phantoms goal.

With 25 seconds left in the opening period, Sheldon Dries gave Green Bay a 2-1 lead to take back to the locker room.  With 14:42 left in the second period, C. J. Eick increased the Gambler lead to 3-1 when he finished off a 3-on-2 breakaway chance.

The Gamblers offensive onslaught continued as they added another score.  Grant Arnold didn’t get all of the slapshot he took between the right faceoff circle and blue line, but O’Connor was screened and the puck bounced and rolled by him.  With 8:51 gone in the second, it was suddenly a 4-1 Gamblers lead.

A frustrated Phantoms team racked up ten second period penalty minutes.  The one time they had the numbers, Broadhurst again intercepted a puck and gathered his second shorthanded, unassisted goal of the game to make it 5-1.  Through two periods, the Phantoms were outshot 27-14.

“Bottom line is that we have no room left to lose”, said Anthony Noreen.  “If we do lose, it’s all over and we are not ready for this to end.  We will be fighting for our lives tomorrow night.”

In the third period, with 13:39 left in the game, Ryan Belonger broke into the Green Bay Zone and fired a shot from inside the right faceoff circle that trickled through Ryan McKay‘s equipment.  Belonger’s goal was unassisted and made it a 5-2 game.

Green Bay is a very good hockey team that can score in waves.  But the disturbing thing that showed was how cocky they play.  They were chirping in the Phantoms ears every whistle of the game.

The cockiness caught up a bit when Youngstown scored on a powerplay chance.  J.T. Stenglein scored with 6:55 left in the game to make it 5-3.  Stenglein’s goal was a result of crisp passing and execution on the powerplay.  Austin Cangelosi and Mike Ambrosia picked up assists on the goal.

Broadhurst completed his rare shorthanded hat trick at the 13:44 mark of the third period.

“That was my first hat trick in the USHL”, said Broadhurst, a 2011 seventh round draft pick of the Chicago Blackhawks.  “I played hard and felt like I deserved that, they are a good team, so I was happy to get those chances.”

With the win, the Gamblers took a 2-1 series lead and can eliminate the Phantoms with a win Wednesday night at the Covelli Centre.

The Youngstown Phantoms responded to a trouncing in their series-opener with three power play goals to help down the Green Bay Gamblers 5-3 Sunday at the Resch Center. The win evened the best-of-five Eastern Conference Semifinal series at 1-1 heading back to Youngstown for Games 3 and 4.

Soren Jonzzon netted a pair of power-play goals and Dylan Margonari bookended the scoring with first-and-third-period tallies. Austin Cangelosi also put one in on the man-advantage as the Phantoms went a perfect 3-for-3 on the power play.  Goaltender Matt O’Connor, who was pulled after the first-period of Game 1, was superb between the pipes, turning away 40 of 43 shots, including 24 in the third period.

“It was definitely a bit of an eye-opener last night,” O’Connor said. “Tonight was a must-win game for the team. We knew that going back home down two games would be a big hole to dig ourselves out of and it was a great way to carry some momentum heading back to the Covelli Centre.”

Margonari scored the game’s first goal, and his first of the postseason, 4:49 into the first period.  Ryan Lowney led a 2-on-1 rush and picked out Margonari streaking toward the net. The Greensburg, Pa. native quickly corralled the puck and put it past Gamblers goaltender Ryan McKay to put the Phantoms ahead for the first time in the series.

“Hockey’s kind of a game of karma – when you do things the right way, it seems like you get the bounces,” Noreen said. “Last night, we didn’t do things right and honestly, we didn’t deserve any bounces… Tonight our guys had a better approach [to the game] and when you put that sort of effort in, you seem to get those bounces.”

“I sat down with Matt and 8 o’clock this morning and he flat-out said to me, ‘Coach, I’m going to steal one,’” Noreen said. “You just saw the confidence all day. He kind of had that swagger.”

The Phantoms return to the Mahoning Valley for Games 3 and 4 this Tuesday and Wednesday at the Covelli Centre. The puck drops at 7:15 p.m. EST both nights.

The Youngstown Phantoms closed out their best-of-three series against Cedar Rapids as they posted a 6-2 triumph.  Alex Gacek had a pair of second period goals and an empty-netter that vaulted the third-year franchise into the next round of the Clark Cup Playoffs.  Quite an accomplishment for a third-year franchise with a first-year coach.

Who the Phantoms play next, Indiana or Green Bay, will be decided by the outcome of the Team USA – Dubuque series.  Either way, the next round is a best-of-five series and the Phantoms will be the lower seed.  That means they will probably play games one and two of the new series on the road.  In all probability, the second round matchup will start on Friday at Green bay.

Todd Koritzinsky gave the Phantoms a lead when he scored the first goal of the game 12:11 into the first period.  Pat Conte and Ryan Lowney earned assists on Koritzinsky’s  goal.  Koritzinsky got the puck past Cedar Rapids goaltender Jake Hildebrand.

The lead was short-lived for the Phantoms.  Exactly 3:32 later, the Rough Riders were able to tie the contest.  Davey Middleton snuck the puck past Matt O’Connor on an even-strength rush.  Stu Wilson and Riley Bourbonnais were credited with assists on the play.

In the second period, Gacek got control of the puck just outside of the left face-off circle and burst toward the net.  As Gacek roared forward, Cedar Rapids goaltender Hildebrand unsuccessfully tried to play a puck that whistled past and through.  Gacek hit the puck so hard, that it stuck in the back of the net.  The goal came at the 4:55 mark and put the Phantoms ahead 2-1.  Gacek also earned a two-minute charging penalty as he collided with Hildebrand after the puck squirted through.

Gacek, sporting the Tom Selleck playoff moustache, would factor into the outcome to a larger degree.  With 9:21 left in the second, the Miami of Ohio-bound forward notched his second goal of the period, game, and series.  Gacek scooped up a puck that hit the side of the net to Hildebrand’s left, and rifled it past to make it a 3-1 game.

Meanwhile, O’Connor (above) and the defense kept the Rough Riders looking for clues.  When Cedar Rapids managed to get a good look, #1 was there to pour water on the fire and preserve the lead.  Through two periods, the Phantoms had 28 shots, the Rough Riders managed 19.

With 9:42 left in the game, Cedar Rapids cut the deficit to 3-2 capitalizing on a powerplay chance.  Gerald Mayhew took a nice feed from behind the net that O’Connor never really had a chance to make a play on.  It was one of the few times all night that Cedar Rapids made more than one pass before attempting a shot.

The Phantoms answered 1:28 later when Soren Jonzzon hung around the crease long enough to gather in a nice pass from Ryan Belonger and redirect the puck to the right side of the post.  Austin Cangelosi and Gacek added empty-netters to punctuate the win.

O’Connor stopped 32 shots in the win.

The Youngstown Phantoms and Cedar Rapids Rough Riders started their USHL Playoff series with a bang.  The Phantoms outshot the Rough Riders, 36-17 through regulation, but when the buzzer sounded, the game was tied at three goals apiece.  Austin Cangelosi continued to be a clutch player as he scored the game-winning goal, 6:18 into the extra session to put the Phantoms up 1-0 in the best-of-three series.

Cangelosi commented on his game-winner: “It’s not something I tried a lot in practice, maybe on NHL 2012, but not in live competition.  It was a shot in the dark and I did it on instinct.  I saw the puck rolling down his [Hildebrand’s] back and into the net, and I was ecstatic”

Playing in the postseason for the first time in their three-year franchise history, the Phantoms looked like seasoned veterans for the most part.  Youngstown hit the scoreboard with 9:24 in the books when Mike Ambrosia beat Jake Hildebrand (above).  The first-ever Phantoms postseason goal came at even strength and Ambrosia was assisted by Sam Anas and Cangelosi.

About five minutes into the second period, the Phantoms drew a couple of quick penalties to give Cedar Rapids a two-man advantage.  Down two men, the Phantoms managed more shots than the team with the advantage, and the special teams looked fine tuned.

Cedar Rapids tied the game 9:42 into the second period.  Dylan Gareau took a nice feed from Landon Smith to beat Matt O’Connor.  Smith was among a group of players jostling for the puck behind the net.  Smith gained control, skated along the boards, halfway to the corner, and found Gareau waiting unattended, ten feet, front and center, from the net.

Ryan McGrath gave the Rough Riders a 2-1 lead with 6:21 to play in the second.  McGrath’s even-strength goal was unassisted.  The Cedar Rapids forward gathered a loose puck to the left of O’Connor and skated around the front crease line before he flicked the puck past the outstretched body of O’Connor.

Through two periods, the Phantoms held a 24-15 advantage in shots on goal, yet trailed the game 2-1.

With 9:55 left in the game, however, the Phantoms tied things up.  Alex Gacek fought for the puck around the Rough Rider blue line and poked it past a defender.  Gacek then found  J. T. Stenglein cutting toward the goal and hit him in stride with a centering pass.  Stenglein went high on Hildebrand’s stick side to find the twine.

What should have been good fortune, then turned into tragedy.  With 6:36 left in the game and the Phantoms on a powerplay, Nick Saracino picked off a loose puck at center ice and flew toward O’Connor.  As Saracino got between the circles he fired one through the legs of O’Connor that found its way in.

The Phantoms retaliated quickly.  With 4:05 left in the game, Jonathan Liau got a pass from Ambrosia that he whistled in to tie the game back up.

With 1:11 left in the game, Jordan Young was whistled for high-sticking to allow Cedar Rapids a chance to finish regulation with a man advantage.  The Rough Riders could not seal the deal and regulation expired.  The remainder of the penalty, 49 seconds, would factor into the overtime.

It should be noted that overtime in the playoffs is different than the regular season format.  Instead of a two-minute intermission that leads into a five-minute overtime period, there is a 20-minute session following a 15-minute break.

In the overtime, the Phantoms got a powerplay chance of their own and took six quality shots, none of which got past Hildebrand.

Cangelosi than played hero as he carried the puck over center ice with a teammate and a defender on each side.  Cangelosi then flipped the puck over a defenseman’s head, raced around him, and fired it in from close range for the winner.

“Austin showed again tonight just how special he is”, said Anthony Noreen.  “What he just did to win that game provided the biggest goal in the history of this franchise, and he really deserved it.”

“It’s a great win for us”, said a jubilant Noreen.  “We want to play every game as though it is a must-win.  It will be nice to end the series tomorrow night, not only because we can pick up the extra day of rest, but also because we just want to win this now.”

The Youngstown Phantoms, in front of one of the biggest crowds of the year, fell prey to the Indiana Ice, 5-2.  The start of the game was pushed back almost an hour because the bus carrying the Indiana team broke down somewhere en route to the Covelli Centre.  The way this game went, the Phantoms would have hoped that the spare would have been flat too.

In the first period, no one could get the puck into the net.  Solid goaltending by Matt O’Connor for the Phantoms and Jon Gillies for the Ice saw a couple of zeroes at the end of the first twenty minutes.  The two netminders combined to stop 26 shots.

Indiana broke the “Ice” on the scoreless game when Danill Tarasov recorded his 38th goal of the season beating O’Connor glove side.  Tarasov’s goal was unassisted and came with 17:39 to go in the second period.

The Phantoms were able to tie the game at a goal apiece briefly.  Austin Cangelosi (above) recorded his 26th goal of the season with 15:59 remaining in the second.  Cangelosi gathered a Mike Ambrosia shot that bounced off of Gillies and stuffed it back into the net.  Ambrosia was given an assist on Cangelosi’s even-strength goal.

The Ice (32-14-7) would then explode for a couple of quick goals to take a 3-1 lead.  Ryan Obuchowski scored the first with 14:58 to play in the second period.  A few minutes later, Tarasov connected again, sneaking the puck past O’Connor with both teams playing a man down.  The Ice took a commanding three goal lead with 2:30 remaining in the second period when Emil Romig connected in a high-traffic situation in front of a crowded goal crease.

In the third period, the Ice tacked on another goal to make it 5-1 when Robert Polesello took a pass from behind the net and drilled it past O’Connor.  Obuchowski and Nieves were credited assists on the goal.

The Phantoms (30-17-7) had a few chances to tighten the game in the third period, but failed to make it happen until Eric Sweetman connected with 4:29 left to play to make it 5-2.  Sweetman went high on the glove side for his fourth goal of the season.

The Ice took 55 shots compared to the Phantoms 37.

Trailing 5-4 with under three minutes left in regulation, Ryan Belonger gave the Phantoms a chance to win with a game-tying goal. Ian McCoshen snuck a long one past Matt O’Connor in overtime to erase the heroics of Belonger and send the Youngstown Phantoms to their second straight overtime loss, 6-5, in a wild one.

Waterloo scored first as Vince Hinostroza scored just 2:54 into the contest.   By the end of the first period, however, it wa the Phantoms who took a 2-1 lead into the intermission.  Goals by Dylan Margonari, who was assisted by J. T. Stenglein, and Chris Bradley‘s unassisted gem temporarily vaulted the Phantoms into the lead.

A wild second period saw five total goals scored, unfortunately for the purple Youngstown skaters, three of them were by Waterloo.  Austin Cangelosi pulled out a shorthanded goal, unassisted, 6:12 into the second to increase Youngstown’s lead to 3-1.  After Tony Cameranesi cut the lead to 3-2 with a Waterloo goal, Mike Ambrosia scored to give the Phantoms back the two-goal lead with three-and-a-half minutes to play in the period.

Goals for Waterloo from Scott MacDonald and a Taylor Cammarata powerplay goal with just three seconds remaining in the period tied the game at four goals apiece.

In the final period, Waterloo jumped out to a 5-4 lead when Mark Naclerio scored with 6:57 elapsed in the final stanza.  Neither team would muster much offense until the final horn was ready to sound.  Belonger then took an unassisted chance and put the puck into the net, beating Stephon Williams with 2:35 left in the game.

In the overtime, McCoshen scored with 3:36 gone in the extra session to lift Waterloo to the victory.

Matt O’Connor faced 41 shots and stopped 35 of them in a gallant effort between the pipes.

With the loss, the Phantoms fell to 51-29-15 and trail Indiana by one point for second place in the Eastern Conference playoff race.  Dubuque is only one point behind the Phantoms and this race for second, third, and fourth places looks to be heading down to the wire.

The Phantoms will now travel to Chicago to face an Ice team that has been pretty well removed from the playoffs and has nothing to lose.  On the other hand, Youngstown needs the points and will have to put their best skate forward.