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Game 4: Phantoms Win Longest Match in AHL History; CHL & Worlds Updates |
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PHANTOMS WIN LONGEST GAME IN AHL HISTORY, 2-1
Heading into Game 4 of their second-round Calder Cup playoff series with the Charlotte Checkers, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms had the opportunity to open a three games to one lead in the best-of-seven set. The Phantoms accomplished their mission but it took 94 saves from goaltender Alex Lyon and 146:48 of game play before Alex Krushelnyski's second goal of the playoffs made Lehigh Valley the 2-1 winner at 6:48 of quintuple overtime.
Wednesday's game set a new record as the longest played in American Hockey League history and Lyon set a new mark for the most saves by a winning goaltender in a game. However, the AHL record for most overall saves in a game remained intact.
On April 24, 2008, Michael Leighton, then with the Albany River Rats, made 98 saves in an ultimately losing cause in a five-OT game against the Philadelphia Phantoms. Ryan Potulny scored the game winning goal at 2:58 of the fifth overtime on the Phantoms' 100th shot of the night. Winning goaltender Scott Munroe stopped 65 of 67 shots in the 3-2 victory.
The game in Albany stood for a decade as the longest in league history. On Wednesday night into Thursday, Lyon was bombarded by shots as the Phantoms get outshot in every period of the game until Kryshelnyski's winning shot evened up the fifth OT (10-6, 14-5, 17-10, 11-10, 15-5, 12-1, 10-7, 6-6).
On the game winning goal, Phantoms captain Colin McDonald attempted a short-side shot from a sharp angle in the right circle on Charlotte goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic (51 saves on 53 shots). The puck went to Cole Bardreau, who circled behind the net and centered the puck to Krushelnyski between the left dot and hash marks. Krushelnyski ripped a shot that beat Nedeljkovic cleanly to finally end the game.
The Phantoms first goal came way back at 16:24 of the first period. Danick Martel (4th goal of the playoffs) tipped home a T.J. Brennan point shot for a 1-0 lead. Radel Fazleev got the secondary assist. The Checkers got the goal back at 6:52 of the second period. A Philip Samuelsson shot bounded off the end boards and was stashed home by Patrick Brown.
For much of the night, the Phantoms had to play with only five defensemen. Already missing Travis Sanheim (lost for the series due to an apparent left knee injury in Game 1), Samuel Morin went down in the first period of Game 4. Playing just his third game since Jan. 20, Morin appeared to seriously injury his right knee as he went into the boards awkwardly on an otherwise routine check on Brown along the left side boards. Morin crumpled to the ice and was in major distress.
The American Hockey League does not officially keep ice times for public release, although teams have the information. In the absences of Sanheim and Morin, rookie defenseman Philippe Myers logged massive ice time for the Phantoms in Game 4 that easily stretched well over 60 minutes of total TOI despite him taking two minor penalties during regulation. He also made a goal-saving play in the defensive zone at one juncture.
The Phantoms went 0-for-3 on the power play, which included back-to-back power plays in the third OT. Lehigh Valley was 3-for-3 on the penalty kill.
With the way the ice was tilted at times, it often seemed nearly inevitable that Charlotte would eventually win the game. Lyon, who made 40 saves in regulation and 54 over the five overtimes, simply wouldn't allow it to happen.
In real time, the game took six hours and six minutes to complete, officially ending at 1:09 a.m. EDT. Game 5 will be also be played at Charlotte's Bojangles Coliseum; a 6:00 p.m. start on Saturday night as the Phantoms attempt to close out the series. Otherwise, Game 6 will be back in Allentown on Monday with a potential Game 7 on Tuesday.
The Phantoms starting lineup for Game 4 was as follows:
28 Oskar Lindblom - 14 Corban Knight - 22 Chris Conner
10 Greg Carey - 21 Mike Vecchione - 9 Cole Bardreau
36 Alex Krushelnyski - 15 Mikhail Vorobyev - 13 Colin McDonald
18 Danick Martel - 11 Steve Swavely -19 Radel Fazleev
3 Samuel Morin - 5 Philippe Myers
43 T.J. Brennan - 37 Mark Friedman
44 Reece Willcox - 20 Maxim Lamarche
34 Alex Lyon
[35 Dustin Tokarski]
Scratches: 8 Will O'Neill (healthy), 6 Travis Sanheim (lower-body injury), 16 Nicolas Aube-Kubel (game 2 of three-game AHL suspension), 12 Tyrell Goulbourne (day-to-day injury), 26 Phil Varone (injury), 40 James de Haas (healthy), 1 John Muse (healthy), 41 Anthony Stolarz (lower-body injury).
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CHL AND IIHF WORLDS: FLYERS ROUNDUP
* OHL Finals: The Sault Ste, Marie Greyhounds knotted the Ontario Hockey League Finals at two games apiece with a 3-2 overtime road win over the Hamilton Bulldogs on Wednesday night. Every game of the hard-fought series has either been decided by one goal (two in overtime, one in regulation) or by one goal plus an empty netter.
Neither the Soo's Morgan Frost (one shot on goal, minus one (+1, -2), 15-for-29 on faceoffs, 1st period tripping penalty) nor Hamilton's Matthew Strome (minus two, six shots on goal, 7-for-10 on faceoffs) earned a point in Game 4 after the two opposing Flyers prospects had each recorded points in the first three games. Frost was involved in the play behind the net on the first Greyhounds goal but did not touch the bouncing puck before teammate Taylor Raddysh got it and fed to goal-scorer Boris Katchouk.
Game 5 is in Sault Ste. Marie on Friday. Game 6 will be in Hamilton on Sunday afternoon. If necessary, Game 7 will be back in the Soo on Monday.
* WHL Finals: The Swift Current Broncos took a three games to one lead over the Everett Silvertips in the Western Hockey League Finals with a 1-0 win on Wednesday night. Everett goaltender Carter Hart stopped 18 of 19 shots, taking third-star honors in a losing cause. The only goal he yielded was a latter second period power play goal by Colby Sissons on a 3-on-2 rush. From the high slot, Sissons used a defenseman as a screen and fired home a shot past Hart. Stuart Skinner recorded a 32-save shutout for the Broncos.
Game 5 is in Everett on Friday night. If the Silvertips force a Game 6, it will be in Swift Current on Sunday night. If the series goes to seven games, the deciding match will be on Monday in Swift Current.
* QMJHL Finals: The Blaineville-Boisbriand Armada tied the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League Finals at two games apiece with a 5-1 road win over the Acadie-Bathurst Titan in Game 4 on Wednesday night. German Rubtsov did not record a point and was minus-three. He had one shot on goal, four credited hits and took four faceoffs (winning three).
Game 5 is Boisbriand on Friday night. Game 6 is in Bathurst on Sunday afternoon. If a seventh game is necessary, it will be in Boisbriand on Tuesday.
* IIHF World Championships: Michael Raffl's Team Austria squad absorbed a 7-0 pasting by Team Sweden on Wednesday. The winless Austrians (0-3-1) play France on Friday. Raffl has one assist in two games played to date.
* IIHF World Championships: Coming off a 5-4 shootout win over Switzerland on Tuesday, Radko Gudas' undefeated Team Czech Republic squad (3-0-0, two OT/SO wins) play Russia on Thursday. In three games played to date, Gudas has an even plus-minus rating with 4 PIM.
* IIHF World Championships: A new head coach did not produce a different result for winless Belarus (0-4-0), who suffered a 5-2 loss to Switzerland on Wednesday. Nineteen-year-old Flyers prospect Maksim Sushko, the youngest player on the Belarusian squad, was scratched from the lineup against Switzerland. Belarus plays the Czech Republic on Friday.
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
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