Bandits rebound to beat Phantoms

St. Louis managed a series split with the 5-4 win Saturday.

By GREG GULAS

VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT

BOARDMAN — Architects of the best overall record in the North American Hockey League this season, the St. Louis Bandits also own the most prolific offense, having scored 186 goals in 43 games or an average of 4.6 per outing.

One night after dropping a 2-1 decision to the Mahoning Valley Phantoms, something had to give offensively for the Bandits and it was the Phantoms who paid for a stellar defensive effort the night before.

Five Bandits players scored a goal while Mike Merrifield and Mike Leone each added two assists as St. Louis topped Mahoning Valley, 5-4 in a North Division game Saturday at the Ice Zone.

“We had some unfortunate bounces tonight but that is no excuse. If we continue to play like we did this weekend and most especially tonight, then we’re going to be all right,” Phantoms coach Bob Mainhardt said.

“We had our opportunities yet either team could have won either of the two games that were played. We still have quite a bit of improving to do once we get healthy, but there aren’t too many teams in the league that can say right now that they have the type of power we do sitting in the stands waiting to return to the ice.

“We would have liked to make it a four-point weekend, but there are no excuses from us,” he added.

The Phantoms scored first when Scott Moser’s slap shot, his 13th goal of the season registered at 2:18 of the opening period.

Mahoning Valley’s lead was short-lived, however, as St. Louis knotted the score at a goal apiece on leading scorer Ben Warda’s tally just 29 seconds later.

When Kyle O’Kane notched his team best 33rd goal of the year at 19:32, St. Louis took a 2-1 advantage into the game’s first intermission.

The Bandits made it 3-1 when Andrew Hamburg’s wrister penetrated the Phantom crease at 15:04 of the second stanza, but Mahoning Valley cut the St. Louis lead to 3-2 when Chad Boeckman, with help from both Mick Kenney and Johnny Meo, connected on his 12th goal of the year at 16:37.

The score would stand heading to the final 20 minutes of play.

Mahoning Valley’s Brent Dexter knotted the game at 3-all just a minute and eight seconds into the final period when he slipped the puck past St. Louis goalie Mike Johnson.

The Bandits, however, regained the momentum they had seemingly lost by scoring twice during a 73 second stretch for a 5-3 margin and a lead they would not relinquish the rest of the way.

The first score, a power play opportunity, came off the stick of Ben Miller at 4:57 with Josh Rabbani adding the follow up tally at 5:44.

Meo, who had a three-point night, then finished off the scoring with his power play goal at 14:07.

Mahoning Valley outshot the Bandits, 30-25 including 16-8 in the final period as Johnson withstood the pressure the Phantoms applied all night to move to 16-3-1 on the season.

Garrett Bartus fell for just the sixth time in 26 outings (17-6-3) when in goal for Mahoning Valley.

The Bandits improved to 34-9-1 (69 points) overall and are now 8-2-0 in their last 10 outings.

Despite the loss, the Phantoms (25-12-4, 54 points) remained in sole possession of second-place in the North Division after Traverse City defeated the Alpena Ice Diggers for the second night in a row, 3-1.

The Phantoms are 2-2-2 in six outings against the Bandits this season.

Mahoning Valley returns to the ice Friday night for the first of a two-game weekend series with the Marquette Rangers.

Game time both nights at the Ice Zone is 7:15 p.m.