HOCKEY Phantoms' multi-faceted offense keys 6-3 triumph over USA team

Rob Rassey, Anthony Canzoneri and Joe Federoff led the Phantoms' 13th win.
By GREG GULAS
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
BOARDMAN - Rob Rassey had two goals and an assist, Anthony Canzoneri added three assists and newly-acquired Joe Federoff scored for the second straight game, as the Youngstown Phantoms toppled the USA National/Under 17 squad, 6-3, in N.A.H.L. action last night at The Ice Zone.
"There's really a great chemistry with our line right now," Rassey said. "We're playing well together," he added. "I can't say enough about Anthony Canzoneri and Joe Federoff. Anthony is my good buddy and I love playing with him. Joe has picked up on our system and because of that we have jelled much faster than I thought."
The Phantoms (13-7-6) swept the USA Nationals this weekend, winning their third straight outing and their fourth contest in the last five tries. The Nationals (16-11-1) fell for the fifth straight time and with 33 points, stand just a point ahead of the Phantoms in the league standings.
Early lead
Rassey's first goal of the game and his fifth of the season at 9:35 of the opening period gave the Phantoms an early 1-0 lead. They would never trail in the game.
Kyle Richardson's goal at 14:55 made it 2-0 in favor of the Phantoms, but Mike Stuart, with an assist from both Chris Cahill and Zach Jones, scored with just 54 seconds remaining in the period to make it 2-1 after the first 20 minutes of play.
"We played better tonight than we did last night so I cannot fault our effort," USA coach David Quinn stated. "When things are going bad, they really go bad for you," he added. "We made some mental mistakes tonight and they were costly for us. We had seven or eight golden opportunities in the first period and could not capitalize. That really hurt us."
Three unanswered goals
Three unanswered goals by Ryan Kidd (his first of the season), Casey Russell and Rassey in the second period made it 5-1 in favor of the Phantoms heading into the final 20 minutes of play.
"For the second straight night, this was a total team effort," Phantoms coach Bob Mainhardt said. "I really feel we are where we should be at this point in the season," he added. "The addition of Joe Federoff to a line with Rassey and Canzoneri has already paid dividends for us in just three games."
A goal by Peter Mueller at 4:44 of the final period pulled Team USA to within 5-2, but Federoff scored his second goal in as many games for a 6-2 Phantom margin. Jack Skille's "5 on 3" power play goal rounded out the scoring for Team USA and the Phantoms' 6-3 final margin of victory.
The USA National squad held a 35-32 shots on goal advantage, but the Phantoms' John Murray rejected 32 shots while in goal to record his fifth win of the season.