Phantoms fall, 4-3, to St. Louis in OT
The Phantoms rallied from a 2-0 deficit in the first period.
CHESTERFIELD, Mo. — In a showdown between the NAHL North’s top two teams, the Mahoning Valley Phantoms overcame a two goal deficit to tie the game late in the third period, only to end up on the short end of a 4-3 overtime decision Friday night against the St. Louis Bandits.
Right off the faceoff, and just 2:21 into the extra period, John Ramage’s slap shot from 50 feet found the back of the net, sealing the deal for the Bandits, and sending the Summit Center into a frenzy.
St. Louis (32-7-1) came out of the gates firing, outshooting the Phantoms 19-7 in the first period. Bandits forward Ben Miller opened the scoring 7:18 into the game, putting home the rebound of a Mike Hull shot from the left circle.
With just 2:03 left in the opening frame, Jeff Ceccacci wristed a shot through traffic and behind Phantoms goaltender Garrett Bartus to make it 2-0 heading into the first intermission.
With just over five minutes left in the second, Johnny Meo picked up a loose puck at his own blue line and finished off a 2-on-1 with Scott Moser, lifting a shot over the right shoulder of Bandits goalie Cal Heeter. The score was 2-1 after two.
After Ben Warda’s shorthanded breakaway goal midway through the third period put the Bandits up 3-1, the Phantoms started to storm back. Meo’s second goal of the night and Snead’s game-tying goal with just 1:49 left in regulation sent the contest into overtime.
Bartus (16-4-3) made 38 saves on the 42 shots he faced. Scott Moser collected two assists to help the Phantoms (24-10-4) earn a point in the standings. Mahoning Valley retained sole possession of second place in the North Division.
The teams play again tonight at 8:15.