Posts Tagged ‘Austin Cangelosi’

The Youngstown Phantoms stole home ice from Green Bay with their 5-3 win Sunday. Green Bay got to Youngstown and stole it back with a 6-3 win over the Phantoms. Green Bay’s equivalent to the NHL’s ‘playoff beard’, was every member of the team dying their hair blond (seriously).  The dye paid off, as Green Bay took 32 shots compared to Youngstown’s 20, and Alex Broadhurst scored a trio of shorthanded goals.

“We have been doing the bleach blond hair and dark facial hair for four years and it hasn’t hurt us”, said Broadhurst.  

Green Bay started the scoring when Broadhurst intercepted the puck while the Phantoms were on a powerplay.  Broadhurst burst into the Phantoms zone on what looked like a penalty shot and snuck the puck past Matt O’Connor just 2:41 into the contest.

The Phantoms tied the game when Todd Koritzinsky connected for his second goal of the playoffs.  Koritzinski’s goal came at even-strength with 3:22 left to play in the first. Pat Conte and Chris Bradley (below) picked up assists on the Phantoms goal.

With 25 seconds left in the opening period, Sheldon Dries gave Green Bay a 2-1 lead to take back to the locker room.  With 14:42 left in the second period, C. J. Eick increased the Gambler lead to 3-1 when he finished off a 3-on-2 breakaway chance.

The Gamblers offensive onslaught continued as they added another score.  Grant Arnold didn’t get all of the slapshot he took between the right faceoff circle and blue line, but O’Connor was screened and the puck bounced and rolled by him.  With 8:51 gone in the second, it was suddenly a 4-1 Gamblers lead.

A frustrated Phantoms team racked up ten second period penalty minutes.  The one time they had the numbers, Broadhurst again intercepted a puck and gathered his second shorthanded, unassisted goal of the game to make it 5-1.  Through two periods, the Phantoms were outshot 27-14.

“Bottom line is that we have no room left to lose”, said Anthony Noreen.  ”If we do lose, it’s all over and we are not ready for this to end.  We will be fighting for our lives tomorrow night.”

In the third period, with 13:39 left in the game, Ryan Belonger broke into the Green Bay Zone and fired a shot from inside the right faceoff circle that trickled through Ryan McKay‘s equipment.  Belonger’s goal was unassisted and made it a 5-2 game.

Green Bay is a very good hockey team that can score in waves.  But the disturbing thing that showed was how cocky they play.  They were chirping in the Phantoms ears every whistle of the game.

The cockiness caught up a bit when Youngstown scored on a powerplay chance.  J.T. Stenglein scored with 6:55 left in the game to make it 5-3.  Stenglein’s goal was a result of crisp passing and execution on the powerplay.  Austin Cangelosi and Mike Ambrosia picked up assists on the goal.

Broadhurst completed his rare shorthanded hat trick at the 13:44 mark of the third period.

“That was my first hat trick in the USHL”, said Broadhurst, a 2011 seventh round draft pick of the Chicago Blackhawks.  ”I played hard and felt like I deserved that, they are a good team, so I was happy to get those chances.”

With the win, the Gamblers took a 2-1 series lead and can eliminate the Phantoms with a win Wednesday night at the Covelli Centre.

The Youngstown Phantoms responded to a trouncing in their series-opener with three power play goals to help down the Green Bay Gamblers 5-3 Sunday at the Resch Center. The win evened the best-of-five Eastern Conference Semifinal series at 1-1 heading back to Youngstown for Games 3 and 4.

Soren Jonzzon netted a pair of power-play goals and Dylan Margonari bookended the scoring with first-and-third-period tallies. Austin Cangelosi also put one in on the man-advantage as the Phantoms went a perfect 3-for-3 on the power play.  Goaltender Matt O’Connor, who was pulled after the first-period of Game 1, was superb between the pipes, turning away 40 of 43 shots, including 24 in the third period.

“It was definitely a bit of an eye-opener last night,” O’Connor said. “Tonight was a must-win game for the team. We knew that going back home down two games would be a big hole to dig ourselves out of and it was a great way to carry some momentum heading back to the Covelli Centre.”

Margonari scored the game’s first goal, and his first of the postseason, 4:49 into the first period.  Ryan Lowney led a 2-on-1 rush and picked out Margonari streaking toward the net. The Greensburg, Pa. native quickly corralled the puck and put it past Gamblers goaltender Ryan McKay to put the Phantoms ahead for the first time in the series.

“Hockey’s kind of a game of karma – when you do things the right way, it seems like you get the bounces,” Noreen said. “Last night, we didn’t do things right and honestly, we didn’t deserve any bounces… Tonight our guys had a better approach [to the game] and when you put that sort of effort in, you seem to get those bounces.”

“I sat down with Matt and 8 o’clock this morning and he flat-out said to me, ‘Coach, I’m going to steal one,’” Noreen said. “You just saw the confidence all day. He kind of had that swagger.”

The Phantoms return to the Mahoning Valley for Games 3 and 4 this Tuesday and Wednesday at the Covelli Centre. The puck drops at 7:15 p.m. EST both nights.

The Youngstown Phantoms closed out their best-of-three series against Cedar Rapids as they posted a 6-2 triumph.  Alex Gacek had a pair of second period goals and an empty-netter that vaulted the third-year franchise into the next round of the Clark Cup Playoffs.  Quite an accomplishment for a third-year franchise with a first-year coach.

Who the Phantoms play next, Indiana or Green Bay, will be decided by the outcome of the Team USA – Dubuque series.  Either way, the next round is a best-of-five series and the Phantoms will be the lower seed.  That means they will probably play games one and two of the new series on the road.  In all probability, the second round matchup will start on Friday at Green bay.

Todd Koritzinsky gave the Phantoms a lead when he scored the first goal of the game 12:11 into the first period.  Pat Conte and Ryan Lowney earned assists on Koritzinsky’s  goal.  Koritzinsky got the puck past Cedar Rapids goaltender Jake Hildebrand.

The lead was short-lived for the Phantoms.  Exactly 3:32 later, the Rough Riders were able to tie the contest.  Davey Middleton snuck the puck past Matt O’Connor on an even-strength rush.  Stu Wilson and Riley Bourbonnais were credited with assists on the play.

In the second period, Gacek got control of the puck just outside of the left face-off circle and burst toward the net.  As Gacek roared forward, Cedar Rapids goaltender Hildebrand unsuccessfully tried to play a puck that whistled past and through.  Gacek hit the puck so hard, that it stuck in the back of the net.  The goal came at the 4:55 mark and put the Phantoms ahead 2-1.  Gacek also earned a two-minute charging penalty as he collided with Hildebrand after the puck squirted through.

Gacek, sporting the Tom Selleck playoff moustache, would factor into the outcome to a larger degree.  With 9:21 left in the second, the Miami of Ohio-bound forward notched his second goal of the period, game, and series.  Gacek scooped up a puck that hit the side of the net to Hildebrand’s left, and rifled it past to make it a 3-1 game.

Meanwhile, O’Connor (above) and the defense kept the Rough Riders looking for clues.  When Cedar Rapids managed to get a good look, #1 was there to pour water on the fire and preserve the lead.  Through two periods, the Phantoms had 28 shots, the Rough Riders managed 19.

With 9:42 left in the game, Cedar Rapids cut the deficit to 3-2 capitalizing on a powerplay chance.  Gerald Mayhew took a nice feed from behind the net that O’Connor never really had a chance to make a play on.  It was one of the few times all night that Cedar Rapids made more than one pass before attempting a shot.

The Phantoms answered 1:28 later when Soren Jonzzon hung around the crease long enough to gather in a nice pass from Ryan Belonger and redirect the puck to the right side of the post.  Austin Cangelosi and Gacek added empty-netters to punctuate the win.

O’Connor stopped 32 shots in the win.

 

The Youngstown Phantoms and Cedar Rapids Rough Riders started their USHL Playoff series with a bang.  The Phantoms outshot the Rough Riders, 36-17 through regulation, but when the buzzer sounded, the game was tied at three goals apiece.  Austin Cangelosi continued to be a clutch player as he scored the game-winning goal, 6:18 into the extra session to put the Phantoms up 1-0 in the best-of-three series.

Cangelosi commented on his game-winner: “It’s not something I tried a lot in practice, maybe on NHL 2012, but not in live competition.  It was a shot in the dark and I did it on instinct.  I saw the puck rolling down his [Hildebrand's] back and into the net, and I was ecstatic”

Playing in the postseason for the first time in their three-year franchise history, the Phantoms looked like seasoned veterans for the most part.  Youngstown hit the scoreboard with 9:24 in the books when Mike Ambrosia beat Jake Hildebrand (above).  The first-ever Phantoms postseason goal came at even strength and Ambrosia was assisted by Sam Anas and Cangelosi.

About five minutes into the second period, the Phantoms drew a couple of quick penalties to give Cedar Rapids a two-man advantage.  Down two men, the Phantoms managed more shots than the team with the advantage, and the special teams looked fine tuned.

Cedar Rapids tied the game 9:42 into the second period.  Dylan Gareau took a nice feed from Landon Smith to beat Matt O’Connor.  Smith was among a group of players jostling for the puck behind the net.  Smith gained control, skated along the boards, halfway to the corner, and found Gareau waiting unattended, ten feet, front and center, from the net.

Ryan McGrath gave the Rough Riders a 2-1 lead with 6:21 to play in the second.  McGrath’s even-strength goal was unassisted.  The Cedar Rapids forward gathered a loose puck to the left of O’Connor and skated around the front crease line before he flicked the puck past the outstretched body of O’Connor.

Through two periods, the Phantoms held a 24-15 advantage in shots on goal, yet trailed the game 2-1.

With 9:55 left in the game, however, the Phantoms tied things up.  Alex Gacek fought for the puck around the Rough Rider blue line and poked it past a defender.  Gacek then found  J. T. Stenglein cutting toward the goal and hit him in stride with a centering pass.  Stenglein went high on Hildebrand’s stick side to find the twine.

What should have been good fortune, then turned into tragedy.  With 6:36 left in the game and the Phantoms on a powerplay, Nick Saracino picked off a loose puck at center ice and flew toward O’Connor.  As Saracino got between the circles he fired one through the legs of O’Connor that found its way in.

The Phantoms retaliated quickly.  With 4:05 left in the game, Jonathan Liau got a pass from Ambrosia that he whistled in to tie the game back up.

With 1:11 left in the game, Jordan Young was whistled for high-sticking to allow Cedar Rapids a chance to finish regulation with a man advantage.  The Rough Riders could not seal the deal and regulation expired.  The remainder of the penalty, 49 seconds, would factor into the overtime.

It should be noted that overtime in the playoffs is different than the regular season format.  Instead of a two-minute intermission that leads into a five-minute overtime period, there is a 20-minute session following a 15-minute break.

In the overtime, the Phantoms got a powerplay chance of their own and took six quality shots, none of which got past Hildebrand.

Cangelosi than played hero as he carried the puck over center ice with a teammate and a defender on each side.  Cangelosi then flipped the puck over a defenseman’s head, raced around him, and fired it in from close range for the winner.

“Austin showed again tonight just how special he is”, said Anthony Noreen.  ”What he just did to win that game provided the biggest goal in the history of this franchise, and he really deserved it.”

“It’s a great win for us”, said a jubilant Noreen.  ”We want to play every game as though it is a must-win.  It will be nice to end the series tomorrow night, not only because we can pick up the extra day of rest, but also because we just want to win this now.”

The Youngstown Phantoms, in front of one of the biggest crowds of the year, fell prey to the Indiana Ice, 5-2.  The start of the game was pushed back almost an hour because the bus carrying the Indiana team broke down somewhere en route to the Covelli Centre.  The way this game went, the Phantoms would have hoped that the spare would have been flat too.

In the first period, no one could get the puck into the net.  Solid goaltending by Matt O’Connor for the Phantoms and Jon Gillies for the Ice saw a couple of zeroes at the end of the first twenty minutes.  The two netminders combined to stop 26 shots.

Indiana broke the “Ice” on the scoreless game when Danill Tarasov recorded his 38th goal of the season beating O’Connor glove side.  Tarasov’s goal was unassisted and came with 17:39 to go in the second period.

The Phantoms were able to tie the game at a goal apiece briefly.  Austin Cangelosi (above) recorded his 26th goal of the season with 15:59 remaining in the second.  Cangelosi gathered a Mike Ambrosia shot that bounced off of Gillies and stuffed it back into the net.  Ambrosia was given an assist on Cangelosi’s even-strength goal.

The Ice (32-14-7) would then explode for a couple of quick goals to take a 3-1 lead.  Ryan Obuchowski scored the first with 14:58 to play in the second period.  A few minutes later, Tarasov connected again, sneaking the puck past O’Connor with both teams playing a man down.  The Ice took a commanding three goal lead with 2:30 remaining in the second period when Emil Romig connected in a high-traffic situation in front of a crowded goal crease.

In the third period, the Ice tacked on another goal to make it 5-1 when Robert Polesello took a pass from behind the net and drilled it past O’Connor.  Obuchowski and Nieves were credited assists on the goal.

The Phantoms (30-17-7) had a few chances to tighten the game in the third period, but failed to make it happen until Eric Sweetman connected with 4:29 left to play to make it 5-2.  Sweetman went high on the glove side for his fourth goal of the season.

The Ice took 55 shots compared to the Phantoms 37.

Trailing 5-4 with under three minutes left in regulation, Ryan Belonger gave the Phantoms a chance to win with a game-tying goal. Ian McCoshen snuck a long one past Matt O’Connor in overtime to erase the heroics of Belonger and send the Youngstown Phantoms to their second straight overtime loss, 6-5, in a wild one.

Waterloo scored first as Vince Hinostroza scored just 2:54 into the contest.   By the end of the first period, however, it wa the Phantoms who took a 2-1 lead into the intermission.  Goals by Dylan Margonari, who was assisted by J. T. Stenglein, and Chris Bradley‘s unassisted gem temporarily vaulted the Phantoms into the lead.

A wild second period saw five total goals scored, unfortunately for the purple Youngstown skaters, three of them were by Waterloo.  Austin Cangelosi pulled out a shorthanded goal, unassisted, 6:12 into the second to increase Youngstown’s lead to 3-1.  After Tony Cameranesi cut the lead to 3-2 with a Waterloo goal, Mike Ambrosia scored to give the Phantoms back the two-goal lead with three-and-a-half minutes to play in the period.

Goals for Waterloo from Scott MacDonald and a Taylor Cammarata powerplay goal with just three seconds remaining in the period tied the game at four goals apiece.

In the final period, Waterloo jumped out to a 5-4 lead when Mark Naclerio scored with 6:57 elapsed in the final stanza.  Neither team would muster much offense until the final horn was ready to sound.  Belonger then took an unassisted chance and put the puck into the net, beating Stephon Williams with 2:35 left in the game.

In the overtime, McCoshen scored with 3:36 gone in the extra session to lift Waterloo to the victory.

Matt O’Connor faced 41 shots and stopped 35 of them in a gallant effort between the pipes.

With the loss, the Phantoms fell to 51-29-15 and trail Indiana by one point for second place in the Eastern Conference playoff race.  Dubuque is only one point behind the Phantoms and this race for second, third, and fourth places looks to be heading down to the wire.

The Phantoms will now travel to Chicago to face an Ice team that has been pretty well removed from the playoffs and has nothing to lose.  On the other hand, Youngstown needs the points and will have to put their best skate forward.

Since 2009, the Phantoms have been playing hockey without having much postseason experience.  Finding themselves in an unfamiliar position, contending for a playoff spot, the Phantoms outshot, outhit, and looked sharper a majority of the game, but lost 4-2 to the Chicago Steel.  Unlucky would be a soft adjective.  Cursed would be closer to the truth.

The Steel put the first goal of the game up in less than a minute.  At the 26 second mark of the game, Phillip Marinaccio snuck the puck past Phantoms goaltender, Matt O’Connor.  The goal was the second of the season for Chicago’s best kept offensive secret. Andrew Miller was credited with an assist on the initial goal.  Before the smoke even cleared from the pregame fireworks, the Phantoms trailed.

After the early goal, O’Connor buckled down and made some good saves.  After two periods, the Phantoms still trailed 1-0.  In the second period, at least 70% of the action took place in the Chicago zone, but the Phantoms could not capitalize on the good looks they were getting.  The Steel had three less shots, 16,  than the Phantoms, who let it fly 19 times.  Steel goalie Alex Sakellaropoulos either must have felt like he hit the lottery, or he should go buy a few tickets after the game because the Phantoms had chances in the second period but were their own worst enemies with the puck.

In the third and final period, the Phantoms let a couple more chances get away.  Sam Anas was turned away right at the doorstep early in the period.  Chicago made the Phantoms pay when they scored a goal shortly after to take a 2-0 lead.  Canon Pieper recorded his goal of the season at even-strength.  Pieper was hanging out by the net when Jaccob Slavin rocketed a nice pass in front of O’Connor from the top of the right faceoff circle. Just outside of the goal crease on O’Connor’s glove side sat Pieper who tapped in the puck from short range for the goal with just over 16 minutes left in the game.

Chicago would strike again with 10:36 remaining in the game.  The Steel had just killed a penalty and the puck was still in their zone when Marinaccio and Ali Thomas broke out with the puck forming a timely two-on-one break.  Marinaccio carried the puck across the line and headed toward O’Connor before giving it up at the last second where Thomas was able to push it into the net for a 3-0 lead.

With 4:04 left in the game, the Phantoms ruined Sakellaropoulos’ perfect night.  Alex Gacek beat the Steel netminder glove side to make it a 4-1 game.  Austin Cangelosi and Dylan Margonari picked up assists on the even-strength chance.

With 59 seconds to go in the contest, the Phantoms again scored.  This time, Anas was able to light the lamp for the 12th time this season.  Cangelosi and Mike Ambrosia recorded assists.  However, too little too late was a proper adage on thos night for the Phantoms.

The Phantoms (24-14-3) took 31 shots and the Steel (14-27-1) got off 23 shots.

This kid is a player.  Having covered the Phantoms for every season they have played, I have not seen a burst, a nose for the puck, or a natural ability to make something happen in any situation like I have from Austin Cangelosi.  The youngster who wears #9 for the Phantoms has a bright future in the sport of hockey and will, without a doubt, be wearing an NHL uniform.  He is a huge Devils fan, but the average hockey fan would see more Sidney Crosby in him than any Devil.

Paneech: You are an elite goal scorer at this level, what do you attribute your success to?

Cangelosi: I would say that the success comes from my speed.  I carry the puck into the zone and keep my feet moving and also going hard to the net.  My linemates finding my stick which helps me find the back of the net.

Paneech: Speaking of the line you are on, how would it aid or hurt you to be switched to a less productive line to help boost the teams chances to win?

Cangelosi: I definitely feel as though I am blessed to be on a great line.  I’m very comfortable with the guys and without even looking, I just know where they are going to be and they can find me.  Mike Ambrosia and Ryan Belonger have been great to play with.

Paneech: When you first got into playing hockey, was it something that was forced on you by your father, or did you pester your parents to let you try to play?

Cangelosi: I moved to Florida when I was seven years old and thought maybe I was going to play golf or tennis.  It just so happened that there was a rink five minutes from my house.  I went and checked it out and one of the coaches asked me if I would like to play, so I said ‘sure, why not‘.  From there, it just kicked off.  After my eighth grade year, we moved to Massachusetts and played at a prep school called Northfield Mount Herman.  I went there my freshman and sophomore years, and now I am here.

Paneech: Florida and Youngstown are very different.  Besides the obvious things like climate, you had Disney and came to an economically pressed valley struggling to breathe at times, what is the biggest difference to you?

Cangelosi: The people here are really friendly, the people are very positive.  At school and around the town, everybody has been great and there is a positive energy. It’s hard to keep on top of the schoolwork moving around so much, but I am doing the best that I can to stay on top of it.  I’m struggling with Algebra II, I have terrible math skills and I’m struggling with history.  I’m doing ok in Spanish and I really like my English class at Ursuline.  I like reading and analyzing stories.

Paneech: If you do not make it in hockey, what will you do?

Cangelosi: I haven’t got a clue.  Maybe if I don’t make it in hockey as a professional, I can run camps or something.  I do not want to be behind a desk in the future, I want to be moving.

Paneech: What kind of upbringing did you have?

Cangelosi: My dad was in business and was in sales.  My mother never really worked a job at all.  I have one brother, he is 21, and is playing Division III hockey in Connecticut.  My parents have been to a game, and I keep in touch.  I call my brother too.  I went home over Christmas break and won’t get back until the end of the season.

Paneech: Your name, for some reason unknown to me, did not appear on the NHL’s Top Prospects sheet.  Does that omission bum you out or force you to work harder?

Cangelosi: That sheet is just people’s opinions.  I can’t look at that as something I should take personally.  People pick who they think are the best, and if my name did not appear on their list, so be it.  I will continue to play hard and have fun out there, regardless of what other people think of my play.

Paneech: During a game, what situation do you excel in?

Cangelosi: I think I do good shorthanded because of my speed.  I get a lot of my chances by pressuring the puck when the opponent is on the powerplay.  They want us to be aggressive on the penalty kill.  We don’t want to sit back and let them control the tempo of the game.

Paneech:  Coach Noreen takes great pride in saying that he wants to outhit everybody.  How much pressure is there on you and someone like Sam Anas, two smaller guys, to live up to that expectation?

Cangelosi: We want to contribute to the hits to keep the identity of this team as a blue collar team.  We try to get at least three good hits a game.

Paneech: Favorite NHL team and player, and why?

Cangelosi: My favorite team is the New Jersey Devils and my favorite players are Zach Parise and Nathan Gerbe.  Gerbe plays for the Sabres and is 5’5″ and is one of the smallest guys in the league.  He plays with a chip on his shoulder and goes into the corner, bangs bodies, and scores goals.  I don’t like the Rangers because they always beat the Devils.  I’ve always been a Devils fan.

Paneech: How has it been playing for Coach Noreen?

Cangelosi: We go out there and execute what he tells us to do.  We have a lot of respect for him and for all of our coaches.  Our whole staff is pretty down to earth and they are easy to relate to because they are younger, but also because they have good heads on their shoulders and are always looking out for our best interests.

Paneech: There are a lot of Italians on the team.  Did you guys form a brotherhood or anything?

Cangelosi: (laughs) Uh, no.  We eat pasta every day on the road.  Not because of the Italians on the team, but because it has the most carbs and they feel it is the best thing to eat.

Paneech: If God got a hold of you and said, “Austin, I have bad news, there will be no more hockey.  You can participate in boxing, MMA, or golf.”  Which would you choose?

Cangelosi: I would pick golf.  My mother helps out at a golf shop, so we get all of the free golf we want.  Usually, my brother and I go play golf.  I shoot about a 90 for eighteen holes.

One Word Answers With Austin Cangelosi

Favorite Breakfast: Frosted Flakes And Bananas.

Favorite Drink: Ginger Ale.

Favorite Movie: Mystery Alaska.

Video Games: Call of Duty on the XBox, but mostly NHL Live 2012.

Music Preference: Big Taylor Swift fan.

Favorite Color:  Red.

Favorite Fast Food Order: Wendy’s.  I get Junior Bacon Cheeseburgers, a Chicken Sandwich, Fries, and a Frosty.  I dip the fries and the burger into the Frosty.

Favorite Olympic Sport Other Than Hockey: Soccer.

Favorite Teams: Dallas Cowboys, New York Yankees, and Rafael Nadal.

Cartoon: Tom And Jerry.

Pets: We have four cats.  Panda and Bear are twins, and Chloe and White Socks.  I am allergic to cats, so when I am home, I get all clogged up and my eyes get all red and itchy.

Youngstown Phantoms center Austin Cangelosi has been named the USHL’s co-CCM Offensive Player of the Week, the league announced Monday.  Cangelosi, 17, scored three goals and added two assists last week as the Phantoms (23-13-3, T-third East) went 2-1-0, including a pair of road wins over the Dubuque Fighting Saints and the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders.

This is the first time that Cangelosi, who is committed to Boston College, has captured the USHL’s weekly award. He is the seventh different Phantoms player to do so this season.

“I was actually a bit surprised it hadn’t happened yet,” Head Coach Anthony Noreen said of the announcement. “It’s something that’s definitely been a long time coming and something that is well-deserved. I couldn’t be happier for him.”

Cangelosi, an Estero, Fla., native, netted the lone goal for the Phantoms in a 3-1 loss to the Chicago Steel Wednesday morning. On Friday, he scored the game-winning goal and added a pair of assists as the Phantoms downed the defending Clark Cup champion Fighting Saints 5-3. Then on Saturday, he got the scoring started off as the Phantoms captured the franchise’s first victory at the Stable in Cedar Rapids with a 4-3 win.

“His motor never stops. His speed, quickness and ability to create separation allow him to create chances just about every time he’s on the ice. He’s also very mature for his age and has probably handled the jump to junior hockey as well as anyone has, especially considering he’s the youngest guy on our team.”

Having recently interviewed Cangelosi, I will be putting up an extensive piece on him this weekend.

The Youngstown Phantoms have been pining for an audience to support them for three seasons now.  Friday night, thanks to ‘YSU night’, a winning record, and some good promotions, the Zoldan family got a taste of what the potential can be.  Matt O’Connor turned away 40 shots and the Youngstown Phantoms dazzled a crowd of well over 3,500 with a 3-2 win.  The crowd was loud for most of the game and made a big adrenaline push for the home team.

“Having the big crowd was awesome”, commented Phantoms coach Anthony Noreen.  ”We fed off of them and they fed off of us and it is the kind of crowd we would like to duplicate.  I always tell people that watching a game on TV does the sport of hockey no justice and to see a game live.”

In the first period, Dubuque (20-11-3) scored 7:42 into the game.  Jono Davis beat O’Connor to put the Fighting Saints ahead 1-0.  Davis gathered the puck in front of the crease and basically danced around O’Connor beating him glove side with a nifty move.

The Phantoms retaliated when Austin Cangelosi found the back of the net for his 16th goal of the season.  Michael Gunn and Mike Ambrosia picked up assists.  Cangelosi received a real nice feed as they broke into the Dubuque zone and made Fighting Saints goaltender, Matt Morris, pay by beating him.  The game-tying goal came with 4:58 left in the first period.

In the second period, the Phantoms offense came to life.  Todd Koritzinsky broke out of the Phantoms zone and fired about ten feet beyond the blue line to beat Morris and give the Phantoms a 2-1 lead.  Koritzinsky’s goal was unassisted and was his fourth of the season.

The Phantoms increased their lead to 3-1 when Ryan Belonger scored at close range with exactly three minutes left to play in the third period.  Koritzinsky, having a very productive night, notched his second point of the game with an assist on the even-strength goal.

The stat that no one would believe was that after two periods, the Phantoms had three goals on just 12 shots.  The Fighting Saints had 33 shots and only one goal.  O’ Connor really made some tremendous saves for the Phantoms during the second period.

In the third period, the Phantoms (21-12-3) killed a couple of penalties.  In fact, Dubuque only had one shot on goal through both man advantages, the defense and special teams really stepped it up.  The Phantoms seemed content to work the clock as they were offensively dumping and chasing in the Dubuque zone.  The Fighting Saints were scurrying around and taking urgent chances and cut the deficit to 3-2, but got no closer.  Dubuque outshot Youngstown, 42-21.

“This probably wouldn’t even be in the top half of the games we have played this season”, said Noreen.  ”Matt [O'Connor] was unbelievable and on a night that we didn’t give him a ton of offensive support, he was able to put this team on his back and won the game.”