NAHL PREVIEW Phantoms vs. Team USA

Game times: Friday, 7:15 p.m. at the Chevrolet Centre; Saturday, 3 p.m. in Ann Arbor, Mich. Friday’s promotions: Puck Night, sponsored by the Better Business Bureau, and $1 Beer Night. Radio: 1240-AM WBBW Internet: mvpphantoms.com Records: Phantoms 11-4-2, second place in the North Division; Team USA, 10-6-1, third place in the North Division. Scouting the Phantoms: Brandon Saad leads Mahoning Valley with seven goals and is tied for the team lead with 11 points. Stefan Salituro, Doug Clifford and Jordy Trottier each have six goals, while Salituro also has five assists. Cullen Lundholm leads the team with nine assists. Goalie Jordan Tibbett is 8-2 with a 1.78 goals-against average. Garrett Bartus is 3-2 in goal with a 3.37 goals-against average. The Phantoms entered last weekend trailing the first-place Traverse City North Stars by six points in the North Division, but the Phantoms’ sweep combined with two North Stars overtime losses at Marquette have pulled Mahoning Valley to within four points of the division lead. With Traverse City idle this weekend, two wins for the Phantoms would vault them into a first place tie with the North Stars. On the other side of the coin, the Nationals could pass the Phantoms in the standings with two wins. Scouting Team USA: Austin Czarnik has a team-high seven goals and is tied for the team lead with nine points. Jason Zucker and Michael Mersch each have six goals. Jacob Fallon leads the team with seven assists. Team USA has used four goalies, with Will Yanakeff (4-3, 1.72 GAA) and Jack Campbell (4-2, 2.80) seeing the most action. Tickets: (330) 965-7500.

Staff report