Three Unanswered Goals & Three Straight Road Wins For Lehigh Valley

The Phantoms make it a perfect 3-0 on the five-game road trip after a come-from-behind win in Bridgeport Saturday night.

(BREAKING: The Philadelphia Flyers recalled forward Nick Cousins from Lehigh Valley after tonight's game. Head coach Terry Murray brought Cousins to the side after the game to tell him he had been called up - the 1st NHL call up of Cousins' pro career.)

Coming into the five-game road swing this week, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms knew that if they were to have any hopes of making a playoff push that it needed to happen on this trip. After falling behind 2-0 in the first period, the Phantoms decided in the first intermission - according to defenseman Adam Comrie - that they needed to be harder on the puck.

"After the first period we were kind of down," Comrie said of the team's play, adding, "Just didn't really feel the game, kind of let them take it to us."

The Phantoms stormed back, getting within a goal before taking the game over in third starting with Comrie's game-tying goal early in the final frame.

"We decided in the first intermission that we were going to take it to them," Comrie said. "I think that we made a decision and we kept to the game plan. Instead of letting them hit us, we hit back."

Nick Cousins got the Phantoms on the board in the middle frame, and led a 2-on-1 with Akeson on what turned out to be the game-winning goal on Akeson's 20th of the season.

"I think the boys like playing on the road," Cousins said, adding, "We just like to play a greasy-style hockey and it's paying off. It definitely helps our team-bonding and I think it's paying off on the ice. It's been fun."

Anthony Stolarz drew the start in net and after a bit of a slow start by the team in front of him, he settled in and ended up with 38 saves on 40 shots in the win, which moves the Phantoms to within six points of the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with 16 games left on their regular season schedule.

The Phantoms have a scheduled day off on Sunday and then it's back to work with a week of practice leading up to next weekend's road trip to Hartford and Worcester on Friday and Saturday night.

The Phantoms had much better jump at the start of tonight's contest as compared to last night in Providence.

After an altercation between Harry Zolnierczyk and Zack Stortini before the opening face-off and a fight between Dyson Stevenson and Derek Mathers, the Phantoms seemed to let up and that's when Bridgeport took advantage.

Anthony Stolarz stopped Scott Mayfield's shot from the point, but Adam Pelech fed Alan Quine for an easy tap-in goal on the rebound on a 2-on-1 play down low below the face-off circles to put the Sound Tigers ahead 1-0 5:51 into the contest.

The Phantoms continued to force the issue, nearly tying it with about six and a half minutes left before the first intermission, but Jason Akeson hit the right post and Carson McMillan sprung Zolnierczyk and Quine up ice the other way.

Quine's 16th of the season and second of the night made it a 2-0 deficit for Lehigh Valley just moments after Akeson nearly tied it at 1-1. Those are the bounces that occur in hockey sometimes.

The Phantoms were on their heels to start the middle frame and if not for some sharp saves from Stolarz in the opening three minutes of the period, perhaps the rest of the game would have been played much differently.

Lehigh Valley got things going from there, bringing the score within a goal at 2-1 after a laser of a wrist shot from Nick Cousins 7:32 into the middle period. Andrew Gordon got the puck to Cousins and he did the rest on his team-leading 21st goal of the season.

The Phantoms had a chance with 2:33 left in the 2nd and on a power play but were unable to even the score before the second intermission, heading to the third trailing 2-1.

In the third, the Phantoms took over. Comrie tied it early in the third before Akeson finished off a 2-on-1 to put the Phantoms in front for good. Oliver Lauridsen tacked on an empty netter to complete the final score.

ROSTER NOTES

Anthony Stolarz (38 saves - 40 shots) drew the start in net for the Phantoms tonight against Bridgeport with Rob Zepp backing him up after getting the win last night in Providence.

No lineup changes for the Phantoms again tonight, though the forward line combos were changed a bit from Friday's game in Providence.

Steven Delisle remains a healthy scratch as he missed his third straight game. Petr Straka (upper body) missed his third straight game while head coach Terry Murray said Blair Jones (lower body since mid-January) still isn't ready to return to the lineup.

Scratches: Steven Delisle (healthy), Shayne Gostisbehere (ACL injury), Blair Jones (lower body since 1/16) and Petr Straka (upper body since 3/7).

Lines

Taylor Leier - Scott Laughton - Zack Stortini
Jason Akeson - Nick Cousins - Andrew Gordon
Jay Rosehill - Austin Fyten - Brett Hextall
Darroll Powe - Kevin Goumas - Derek Mathers

Adam Comrie - Mark Alt
Robert Hagg - Jesper Pettersson
Oliver Lauridsen - Maxim Lamarche

Rob Zepp - Anthony Stolarz

GAME SUMMARY

1st Period

2:05: LV - Mathers, major (fighting)
2:05: BST - Stevenson, major (fighting)
5:51: BST - Quine (15) - Pelech, Mayfield
9:52: LV - (PP) Lauridsen, minor (slashing)
9:52: LV - Lamarche, minor (unsportsmanlike)
9:52: LV - Stortini, ten-minute misconduct
9:52: BST - Halmo, minor (unsportsmanlike)
9:52: BST - Mayfield, ten-minute misconduct
13:32: BST - Quine (16) - Zolnierczyk, McMillan
15:26: LV - (PP) Cousins, minor (slashing)

2nd Period

7:32: LV - Cousins (21) - Gordon
10:01: LV - Lauridsen, ten-minute misconduct
10:01: BST - Mayfield, ten-minute misconduct
10:01: LV - (PP) Pettersson, minor (boarding)
14:17: LV - Cousins, minor (unsportsmanlike)
14:17: BST - Reinhart, minor (cross-checking)
17:27: BST - (PP) Sutter, minor (unsportsmanlike)

3rd Period

2:21: LV - Comrie (5) - Akeson, Alt
6:25: LV - Akeson (20) - Cousins
19:01: LV - (PP) Cousins, minor (delay of game)
19:05: LV - ENG Lauridsen (3) - Powe