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“Put the kids in with a few old pappy guys who still like to win and the combination is unbeatable.”

~Conn Smythe

It’s everything you need to know to get ready for tonight’s Phantoms game. It’s a Hockey Night in Allentown!

Looking Back

After a rousing come-from-behind win last Saturday at the PPL Center, which saw the team complete a 3-0 week, they headed up to Utica to face the struggling Comets at the Aud last night. They came away with a 4-1 win behind a solid game in goal by rookie Alex Lyon, and goals by Knight, Willcox, McDonald and Aube-Kubel. The Phantoms are now on a streak of four straight regulation wins, and will welcome the top two teams in the entire AHL to Allentown within the next three games.

Team Report

TEAM GP W L OTL SOL PTS PCT 1 WBS 11 8 2 1 0 17 0.773 2 LV 10 6 3 1 0 13 0.650 3 HER 11 6 3 2 0 14 0.636 4 BRI 11 7 4 0 0 14 0.636 5 SPR 11 6 4 1 0 13 0.591 6 PRO 12 4 5 2 1 11 0.458 7 HFD 11 3 7 1 0 7 0.318

Power Play: 7th (Toronto 5th)

Penalty Kill: 17th (Toronto 24th)

Attendance: 5th (San Diego, Providence, Cleveland, Hershey)

Player Report

Miele missed last night’s game with what’s been described as a “fluke” injury, which surfaced the morning after last Saturday’s game in Allentown. He’s thought to be ‘day-to-day’ but has been declared out for the weekend.

Hagg took a puck up under the mask last Saturday, to rather gory results. He’s stitched up OK, but has reportedly been having headaches. He’s also out for the weekend.

Laughton practiced with the Flyers this week, then was activated and loaned to the Phantoms officially. The process of the move also required the Flyers clear a little cap space (my assumption), which created some other exciting roster manipulations.

Lines From Last Night:

23 Leier – 49 Laughton -13 McDonald

10 Carey – 40 Weal – 22 Conner

18 Martel – 9 Bardreau – 7 Zengerle

19 Fazleev – 14 Knight – 16 Aube-Kubel

43 Brennan – 44 Willcox

3 Morin – 6 Sanheim

8 O’Neill – 20 Lamarche

34 Lyon

Scratches: Hagg (injury), Miele (injury), Goulbourne (healthy), Straka (healthy). Stolarz was the backup goalie.

Reading Report

The Royals return from a daunting 8-game swing through several time zones and have a 4-3-0-1 road trip record to show for it after losing to the Pittsburgh affiliate in Wheeling last night. They’ll face Manchester tonight at the Santander for Veterans Recognition Night. The competitive ECHL North has the Royals in third on points, and fifth by percentage.

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GAME DAY!

Now it gets tougher. The Mighty Marlies arrive in Allentown for their annual visit. The AHL affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs is once again a force to be reckoned with in this league. They come in having soundly beaten the Baby Penguins in Wilkes-Barre last night, 3-0, and are second-ranked in the Power Rankings behind those very Penguins.

Puck Drop: 7:05PM

Doors: 5:30PM (Saturday Time)

Tickets and Parking: Limited seats remain for this game, as it has gone ‘SRO’ officially. Seats are also available on the secondary market. VIP packages are available for upcoming games–check out the PPL Center web portal for details. Parking may not be fully functional with credit card readers at some locations; remember to bring cash for parking, $6. The Government deck at 4th/Hamilton is now standard ticket parking and not event parking on hockey nights. Two shows at Symphony Hall today, so expect traffic in the area of 6th/Linden.

Media Kit: marlies-11122016

Broadcast Information: Live on Service Electric TV-2, as well as AHL-Live. This Saturday game is also simulcast on WFMZ-69 where available. On the radio tune 790-AM or in the arena on 89.9-FM. Online use the IHeartRadio app or phantomshockey.com, as well as the Phantoms 365 app.

Promotions: Boy Scout Night

PreGame/PostGame: Pregame on the radio at 6:20; TV at 6:30 Live from Chickie’s and Pete’s on TV-2.

Last week I tested out the new and improved “Crust” now operating under the “99 Bottles” moniker. I never thought the pizza was anything to write home about in Crust, and they always seemed kind of crowded on event nights, the menu kind of limited, and the ambiance kind of “cold.” 99 Bottles warms things up a bit, with a more diverse menu (although it gets dumb-ed down a bit on event nights), and a craft beer and gastropub kind of niche. They still have the coal-fired oven, and they’re not afraid to use it. I got excellent service on both visits last weekend, and my food was good. The beer list is largely bottles and cans with only a few selections on tap. Some of the bottles are whiskey, but they didn’t have a menu written up for them yet–didn’t stop me from ordering one, though. It’s a nice alternative to Chickie’s if you want to dine as close to the arena as possible. They promise that beer list will continue to evolve, so I’ll check them out again soon. Tonight I’ll be a little late getting downtown–if I get there at all–so I don’t have a pre-game plan myself.

Today’s the last day of “restaurant week” downtown, so you might find some special menus and events at the local establishments. “Straight No Chaser” has two shows today at Miller Symphony Hall, so expect plenty of traffic and congestion at 6th/Linden.

What To Watch

Watch to see if our blue line can keep the Marlies scoring in check. Reports from Wilkes-Barre last night suggest that this is a big, fast team with skill. This is going to be a tough game.

Their size might be difficult to match up with for the Hamilton Street Heroes. Can we grab a lead? We had difficulty with the Bridgeport size.

Watch to see if Stolie (or Lyon) can bail out the defense when needed. Lyon’s good game last night is fortunate: If Stolie does poorly tonight then go back to Lyon tomorrow in Hershey. If Stolie stays hot, ride him.

Last Saturday they “emptied the tanks” because they didn’t have a Sunday game. Will they be willing to do the same tonight if necessary, with Hershey looming tomorrow afternoon?

Expect observation for veterans tonight in proximity to Veteran’s Day yesterday. Please stand for both anthems and the Hometown Heroes as well. Thanks.

Penny, Swavely, and Knight are the jerseys at the auction table tonight.

Get the Phantoms-365 app for your smartphone! It’s really good; I’m impressed.

Up Next

The Phantoms head West to Hershey to complete the 3-in-2 1/2 tomorrow at 5PM. Hershey’s a tough place to play, and stacking them at the end of these long weekends doesn’t help.

Then, Wednesday we get our first look at the mighty Penguins at the PPL Center for a mid-week tilt. That’s one HOCKEY NIGHT I’m really looking forward to!

See you at the arena, maybe,

@Kram209

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Categories: Kram's Korner - From the Club Level, Phantoms Hockey