Traverse City whipped by Mahoning Valley, 5-0

Saturday night's win the Phantoms' fourth straight.
By GREG GULAS
Vindicator Correspondent
BOARDMAN -- Matt Atsoff and Anthony Ciraulo each scored two goals, and goalie Bryce Merriam was flawless in goal as the Mahoning Valley Phantoms defeated the Traverse City North Stars, 5-0 in a North American Hockey League game Saturday night at The Ice Zone.
"We played stellar defense the first two periods and I saw all of the North Star shots really clear," Merriam said. "However, [Traverse City] did turn it up a notch offensively in the final period, especially on their power play opportunities.
Survived
"Late in the game we survived a 5-on-3 charge and while you don't like those numbers when you are going for the [shutout], that made us all appreciate [it] even more when the final horn sounded."
The Phantoms improved to 16-9-2 overall with their fourth straight win. They are 8-0-1 at the Ice Zone.
The North Stars (9-14-4) are winless in nine straight games (0-7-2) and have been swept twice in weekend series by Mahoning Valley.
"I was really disappointed in our effort. We didn't penetrate the red zone much and lacked quality shots when we did," North Star coach Scott Gardner said.
"We always seem to have to play catch-up against the Phantoms, spotting them two or three goals right at the outset of the game. That's not good for a team trying to find its identity, especially on the road.
Atsoff's power play goal just 1 minute, 54 seconds into the game gave the Phantoms an early lead and when he added his second score of the game at 7:20 of the period, Mahoning Valley increased the margin to 2-0.
Jake Roadhouse added his third goal of the season 18 seconds later to make it 3-0.
"On the first goal the rebound came right back to me on the power play and I just slapped it in. On the second, the puck just happened to bounce my way and I was lucky to get enough on the shot in order to get it past their goalie," Atsoff said.
Ciraulo's two goals (one in each of the of the final two periods), both coming on power plays, gave him 14 goals and 32 points this season. He leads the club in goals and is tied with Marc Menzione in points.
"Give credit to our defense tonight as they really played an excellent overall game. I need to credit my line mates, [Drew] Satterley and [Marc] Menzione, as well," said Ciraulo. "Bryce [Merriam] was superb in goal and our lines just clicked for the second night in a row."
The Phantoms held a 45-28 shots on goal advantage and connected on 3-of-5 power plays, holding the North Stars to 0-for-5.
The Phantoms play host to the U.S. National Under-18 squad Friday and Saturday at The Ice Zone. Both games are scheduled at 7 p.m.