Phantoms fall to North Iowa, 6-2

BLAINE, Minn. -- Patrick Dynan scored his league-leading 11th and 12th goals of the season and the North Iowa Outlaws collected four power play goals to beat the Mahoning Valley Phantoms 6-2 at the North American Hockey League Showcase Friday.
The Outlaws added a fifth goal with an extra attacker, as they improved to 6-8-0. The Phantoms have now dropped three straight and fall to 4-6-0.
In the first period, North Iowa's Kyle Bushee took a cross-ice pass from Mike Bernardy and ripped a one-timer past the stick side of Phantoms goaltender Ryan Zapolski to give the Outlaws a 1-0 lead at the 8:02 mark.
The Phantoms tied it just 40 seconds later. Chris Fairbanks took a pass on the left wing goal line and found defenseman Bret Larson on the right wing with a backhand. Larson then fed Brad O'Shell, who was trailing on the play, scoring his first goal of the season.
The Outlaws (6-8-0) struck again on the power play to retake the lead. Cody Mosbeck's shot from the right point was redirected in front by Dynan for a 2-1 lead with 4:04 remaining.
Tied the score
The Phantoms (4-6-0) again tied the score after killing a power play. Mike Maltese's shot was blocked by Outlaws goaltender Eric Largen, but the rebound was pounced on by Owen Meyer just as the penalty expired, and Meyer deposited the puck past Largen for his fourth goal of the season at 18:45.
The Outlaws regained the lead just before the period ended. On a delayed penalty against the Phantoms, the Outlaws' Alex McRae took the puck from behind the left of the goal and brought it out in front of the net, scoring with 11.7 seconds to go.
"Both teams had a lot of chances, and we established a little momentum early. But when you commit penalties, it's tough to get it back," said Phantoms assistant coach Ian Fredricks.
In three Showcase games, opponents are 8-for-27 on the power play while the Phantoms are 1-for-23.
In the second period, the Phantoms had three power plays, but couldn't tie the score. Later, on another man advantage, Mosbeck's shot made its way into the upper right corner of the net for a 4-2 Outlaws lead. Dynan scored again on the power play at 7:53 and Brad Kreuger added an even-strength goal at 12:46 of the third period to put the game out of reach.
"It was a strange game. We're not playing terrible and we're not playing up to our potential," said Fredericks. "Usually, it's a minor adjustment, though I don't think any of our last three opponents, here, could skate with us at even strength."
The Phantoms play the Minnesota Blizzard tonight at 8:05 in their final Showcase game. The Phantoms play host the Traverse City North Stars Oct. 29-30 at The Ice Zone.