Schneider's Late Goal Gives Pack Slump-busting Win
Oct 28, 2017(Photo courtesy of Lehigh Valley Phantoms)
Cole Schneider’s game-winning goal with 1:43 left capped a wild third period Saturday night at the PPL Center in Allentown, PA, as the Hartford Wolf Pack snapped a four-game losing streak with a 5-4 win over the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
After the Wolf Pack took a 2-1 lead into the third, the two clubs combined for six goals in the final frame, and Hartford came back from 3-2 and 4-3 deficits. Schneider had two assists on the night in addition to his winning goal, and Filip Chytil also had a goal and two helpers for the Wolf Pack. Oskar Lindblom and Philippe Myers had a goal and an assist apiece for the Phantoms, who had won six straight coming into the game.
“I liked the style of game we played a lot more,” Wolf Pack head coach Keith McCambridge said, in reference to the Wolf Pack rebounding from an 0-3-0-1 drought. “I thought we had more structure in all three zones, we got some timely goals at key moments of the game. We’ve obviously got to make sure we’re playing the right way with the lead, not letting it be as close as that game was. But I really enjoyed the response from where we were yesterday at this time (after a 5-1 home loss to the Bridgeport Sound Tigers) to where we are today.”
Schneider scored the winner from below the goal line, after a shot from the blue line by Alexei Bereglazov went wide. Schneider collected the puck to Lehigh Valley goaltender Alex Lyon’s right and found a way to get it past him.
The Phantoms had scored twice in the first 1:40 of the third, to turn their 2-1 deficit into a 3-2 lead. Lindblom deflected a long heave from the blue line by Myers into the net at the 17-second mark, and then AHL leading goal-scorer Danick Martel scored his tenth of the season on a power-play at 1:40.
The Wolf Pack answered back at 4:26, with Adam Tambellini upping his team-leading goal total to five with a power-play goal, after the Phantoms had been called for a bench minor. Tambellini ripped in the rebound, on his forehand, of a Dan Catenacci shot.
Lehigh Valley countered that almost immediately, though, as defenseman Mark Alt put the Phantoms back in front only 53 seconds later, at 5:19. Alt followed his own shot and put the rebound high into the net past Wolf Pack goaltender Alexandar Georgiev, who got his first North American pro win with 27 saves.
Hartford drew even again at 10:15, on Chytil’s third goal in six games since joining the Wolf Pack. The 18-year-old center had a shot blocked in the slot, but picked up the carom and lifted it high into the net behind Lyon, setting up Schneider’s late heroics.
The two teams traded goals in the first period, with Bereglazov giving the Wolf Pack the game’s first lead at 9:51, with his first North American pro goal. The Russian defenseman fired the puck in from the left side, after a strong rush by Schneider.
The Phantoms got back-to-back power plays, though, on a slashing call on Gabriel Fontaine at 10:09 and a high-sticking infraction against Steven Fogarty at 12:37, and Lehigh Valley would cash in on the second opportunity.
The Phantoms won a faceoff in the Hartford end, and a drive from the top of the left circle by Myers hit Wolf Pack defenseman Neal Pionk’s stick and deflected Georgiev at 13:11.
The Wolf Pack regained the lead on a power play at 13:47 of the second period, just six seconds after Cole Bardreau was whistled for holding. Chytil won the faceoff, and Lettieri snapped a shot from the left circle that got by Lyon (26 saves), who had Schneider parked next to him.
The Wolf Pack now move on to Hershey, PA, where they will take on the Hershey Bears on Sunday. Faceoff is 5:00 PM, and all of the action can be heard live on News Radio 1410 WPOP, and on-line at www.newsradio1410.com and iHeartRadio. Video streaming is available at www.ahllive.com.
The next Wolf Pack home game is next Saturday night, November 4, when the Providence Bruins make their first visit of the year to the XL Center. That game is a 7:30 PM faceoff, and tickets for all Wolf Pack 2017-18 home games are on sale now at the Agera Energy Ticket Office at the XL Center, on-line at www.hartfordwolfpack.com and by phone at (877) 522-8499.
Season ticket information for the Wolf Pack’s 2017-18 AHL season can be found on-line at www.hartfordwolfpack.com. To speak with a representative about all of the Wolf Pack’s many attractive ticketing options, call (855) 762-6451.
Hartford Wolf Pack 5 at Lehigh Valley Phantoms 4
Saturday, October 28, 2017 - PPL Center
Hartford 1 1 3 - 5
Lehigh Valley 1 0 3 - 4
1st Period-1, Hartford, Bereglazov 1 (Schneider, Chytil), 9:51. 2, Lehigh Valley, Myers 2 (O'Neill, Carey), 13:11 (PP). Penalties-Lindblom Lv (tripping), 4:29; Fontaine Hfd (slashing), 10:09; Fogarty Hfd (high-sticking), 12:37; Graves Hfd (cross-checking), 19:35.
2nd Period-3, Hartford, Lettieri 3 (Chytil, Schneider), 13:47 (PP). Penalties-Bardreau Lv (holding), 13:41.
3rd Period-4, Lehigh Valley, Lindblom 2 (Myers), 0:17. 5, Lehigh Valley, Martel 10 (Lindblom, Vecchione), 1:40 (PP). 6, Hartford, Tambellini 5 (Catenacci, Kosmachuk), 4:26 (PP). 7, Lehigh Valley, Alt 2 (O'Neill, Varone), 5:19. 8, Hartford, Chytil 3 (Pionk), 10:15. 9, Hartford, Schneider 4 (Bereglazov), 18:17. Penalties-Lettieri Hfd (slashing), 0:52; Martel Lv (bench minor - objects on ice), 2:39; Crawley Hfd (high-sticking), 13:00.
Shots on Goal-Hartford 9-7-15-31. Lehigh Valley 14-8-9-31.
Power Play Opportunities-Hartford 2 / 3; Lehigh Valley 2 / 5.
Goalies-Hartford, Georgiev 1-2-1 (31 shots-27 saves). Lehigh Valley, Lyon 5-2-1 (31 shots-26 saves).
A-7,726
Referees-Corey Syvret (42), Furman South (44).
Linesmen-Libor Suchanek (60), Tom George (61).