Loney: Phantoms need to get back to winning

By TOM WILLIAMS

williams@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

The first thing you notice when you meet Phantoms forward Ty Loney is the smile.

Loney was not smiling after the Phantoms lost 6-3 to the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, a defeat that keeps the Waterloo Black Hawks within striking distance of the Phantoms in the race for the USHL’s Eastern Conference’s final playoff berth.With nine games remaining, the Phantoms have a four-point edge.

“We just have to forget about this one and move on to the next one,” Loney said. “Indiana is a good team so we will need to battle hard against them.”

Tonight, the Phantoms (21-25-5, 47 points) are in Indianapolis to play the Indiana Ice (31-16-4, 66 points).

St. Patrick’s Day was not a typical day for Loney, who said he’s 25 percent Irish.

Before the game at the Covelli Centre, Loney was interviewed by Fox Sports Pittsburgh’s Dan Potash for a feature that will air during an upcoming Pittsburgh Penguins telecast.

“It was good, it was fun,” Loney said of his brief moment in the NHL spotlight. “It was nice to talk with him. You see him on TV all the time on Pens games.”

Were you nervous?

“Yeah, a little.”

Loney’s father, Troy, was a Penguins forward when Pittsburgh won the Stanley Cup in 1991 and 1992.

The Loneys live in Valencia, Pa., and Penguins broadcasters Paul Steigerwald, Bob Errey, Mike Lange and Phil Bourque often talk about the top Pittsburgh-area junior hockey players during games.

Against Cedar Rapids, Loney scored his 21st and 22nd goals of the season, the team’s high.

Loney continues to consider college offers and has one more year of USHL eligibility. Phantoms coach Curtis Carr expects Loney to return to the Phantoms for 2011-12.

Ryan Belonger scored the Phantoms’ other goal on Thursday, his 17th.

“We’re all battling real hard,” said Belonger of the playoff chase. “We’ve been playing really well and we know what we have to do in this stretch of games to make the playoffs. Nothing really needs to change systematically, we just need to focus and be ready to play our game.”