Phantoms sweep series against Ice Diggers at Chevy Center, 4-1
By Greg Gulas
Cole Schneider scored two goals for the second straight night to lead way.
YOUNGSTOWN — Looking to open a five-point lead in the North American Hockey League’s North Division and in the process, sweep their two-game series with the Alpena Ice Diggers, the Mahoning Valley Phantoms called upon a familiar face.
Cole Schneider scored two goals for the second straight night to help lead the Phantoms to a 4-1, come-from-behind victory over the Ice Diggers Monday at the Chevy Centre.
“A few weeks ago this team would have pushed the panic button after allowing our opponent to strike first,” said Phantoms coach Bob Mainhardt. “Such was not the case tonight and I could not have been more proud of our overall effort, from goaltender on out.
“It’s a sign that we are maturing as a team, something we have been waiting to see for the past few weeks.
“When you stick to the game plan, execute and do not panic, then good things tend to happen. Alpena is an excellent team and you could already sense that this series had a playoff-type atmosphere,” he added.
Unlike Sunday’s game when Mahoning Valley registered six goals and seemed to score at will in both the first and third periods, the Phantoms looked sluggish offensively at the outset, falling behind 1-0 when Alpena’s Jerrod Hartman connected on his second goal of the year at 16:25 of the opening period.
It was the only score of the frame and as it turned out, the only time the Ice Diggers would slip a shot past Mahoning Valley goaltender Garrett Bartus.
“We just kept our composure and didn’t push the panic button after their first score,” said Bartus. “We knew that by sticking to our game plan we would be all right and all would work out.
“Alpena is one of our biggest division rivals. It’s always a battle when we get together and tonight was no different. We just outworked them today,” he added.
Mahoning Valley knotted the game at 1-all when Brad Smith registered his first goal of the season at 15:25 of the second period.
That would be the only score of the second frame.
When Schneider scored just 23 seconds into the final period, the Phantoms took a 2-1 lead; a lead they would not relinquish the rest of the way.
Schneider then added his ninth goal of the year (and his fourth of the series) at 16:49 for a 3-1 Mahoning Valley lead and when Nick Shkreli added an unassisted, empty-netter with 1:11 remaining, that would close out the scoring on the night.
For Schneider, scoring four goals in two games after registering just five goals in the Phantoms’ first 26 contests was very humbling.
“It’s a great feeling to be able to contribute to our success, but it is important to note that everyone tonight went tough and aggressive to the net,” he said. “Garrett kept us in the game and we in turn helped him out when we needed to.
“Everyone contributed to this win tonight,” Schneider said.
Mahoning Valley (19-7-2) held a 40-29 shot advantage, winning their third straight outing while opening a five-point lead on the Traverse City North Stars (15-6-5, 35 points), who were idle.
They also won for the eighth time in nine outings at the Chevy Centre.
Alpena (16-11-2) fell for the second time in as many outings but remains 14-5 in its last 19 contests after a 2-6-2 start.
The Phantoms will return to action this Friday when they travel to Traverse City for the first of a three-game series with the North Stars at Centre Ice Arena.
Game time is 7:05 p.m.