Tl;Dr Recap for those who just want the stats:

4/20/18 Providence (4th Seed) vs. Lehigh Valley (1st Seed) 7:05 PM

Goalies: Zane McIntyre, 21 of 24 shots, 0. SV%; Alex Lyon, 39 of 41 shots, 0.951 SV%

Box Score W/ Scoring Summary:

PVD 3-2 Regulation L, Lehigh Valley leads series 1-0.

Game Summary:

The Providence Bruins opened up the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal matchup against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms with a disappointing 3-2 loss against the visiting team. The Phantoms elected to play the first two games of the playoff series on the road in Providence at the Dunkin Donuts Center. Providence skated hard in the first period, scoring first on a powerplay. Ryan Fitzgerald beat Alex Lyon up over the glove side with helpers going to Providence captain Tommy Cross and AHL 3rd leading point-scorer Austin Czarnik. Unfortunately, the lead would be short lived, as Providence netminder Zane McIntyre was beat over his shoulder 16 seconds later and the first period ended tied 1-1. Early in the second, Ryan Fitzgerald notched his second of the night, with a knuckling shot that rose and then sank under the Phantoms goaltender’s five-hole with helpers going to Cross, and linemate Jordan Szwarz. As was the theme of the night, the Phantoms struck back before the 2nd period ended, moreover with two goals, giving the Phantoms a lead they held until the final horn. Despite Providence’s strong 2-3 forecheck early in the game, the Phantoms weathered the storm and held most of Providence’s 41 shots to low percentage, low danger chances that Alex Lyon easily turned away.

Plus / Minus

Plus: + Ryan Fitzgerald scored his first two professional playoff goals, and was a huge factr in generating Bruins chances all night long. Austin Czarnik had a scoring chance of his own during a penalty kill, but rang the puck off the post. He did pick up 2 assists regardless.

+ Providence did connect once on the powerplay, and lead in shots from start to finish. Their forecheck was relentless through the first 40 minutes.

+ Even though he was a -1 on the score sheet, Zach Senyshyn was using his speed to generate chances and hound the puck from the Lehigh Valley. At one point, he stole the puck from the Lehigh defenseman and raced up-ice to generate a centering feed from behind the net to a trailing teammate.

Minus: – Providence’s penalty kill was beat twice including the game winning goal for Lehigh Valley.

– Providence’s forecheck wilted a bit during the third period, and they failed to generate quality scoring chances when down a goal.

– Though the Bruins lead in shots, most were low-danger, low-risk shots that the Phantoms goaltender steered away easily.

– Zane McIntyre looked bewildered on two of the three Phantoms goals, as if he didn’t know where the puck truly was.