By Michael Heilman

After losing to the Charlotte Checkers 4-3 in a shootout Friday night, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms were looking to split the weekend series against the Charlotte Checkers Saturday night from the Bojangles’ Coliseum.

Ten minutes and forty-seven seconds into the first period, the Charlotte Checkers jumped to a 1-0 lead as David Gust missed the shot, but Janne Kuokkanen (2) rebounded the puck and scored. David Gust (2) and Eetu Luostarinen (2) assisted on Kuokkanen’s goal. Kuokkanen’s goal was the only goal in the first period as the Checkers headed to the locker room with a 1-0 lead.

Eight minutes and four-seconds into the second period, the Phantoms would tie the game up at 1-1 when German Rubtsov (2) slid the puck on the lower right side of the goal net and scored. Andy Welinski (1) and Kyle Criscuolo (3) assisted in Rubtsov’s goal. Late in the third period, the Phantoms Carsen Twarynski was called for a bench minor, putting the Checkers on the power play. The Checkers capitalize on the power play as Jake Bean (1) shot the puck past Phantoms goalie Jean-Francois Berube with thirty-eight seconds left in the second period to put the Checkers up 2-1. The Checkers headed to the locker room with a 2-1 lead at the end of the second period.

Five minutes and thirty seconds into the third period, the Phantoms Nicolas Aube-Kubel passed the puck to Maksim Sushko, who then fired the puck to the right side of the goal net to tie the game up 2-2. Nicolas Aube-Kubel (1) and Tyler Wotherspoon (2) assisted in Sushko’s goal.

Two minutes and seven seconds later, the Phantoms would take their first lead of the night when Morgan Frost passed the puck to Andy Andreoff, who then passed the puck to Greg Carey, who shot the puck under the goalie and scored to give Lehigh Valley a 3-2 lead. Andy Andreoff (2) and Morgan Frost (4) assisted in Carey’s goal. Carey’s goal lifted the Lehigh Valley Phantoms to defeat the Charlotte Checkers 3-2.

Phantoms goalie Jean-Francois Berube made twenty-two saves out of twenty-four giving up two goals while Checkers goalie Alex Nedeljkovic made thirty-four saves out of thirty-seven allowing three goals.

The three stars of the game were Phantoms left winger Greg Carey, who had one goal, Phantoms forward Maksim Sushko, who scored one goal and Checkers defensemen Jake Bean, who also scored one goal.

The Phantoms return home Friday night as they welcome the Wilkes Barre/Scranton Penguins to the PPL Center at 7 pm then back on the road against the Bridgeport Sound Tigers Saturday, November 2nd at 7 pm and Sunday, November 3rd at 3 pm.