PHN photo essay: P-Bruins fall to Phantoms

PROVIDENCE, RI – The Providence Bruins fell to the Adirondack Phantoms 3-1 this evening at the Dunkin’ Donuts Center . Calle Ridderwall scored the lone goal for Providence. Battling an injury shortened roster, the P-Bruins came into the first period looking for their first win in two games and to halt a two-game Adirondack win streak. Immediately after the opening face off, both teams played a physical game, throwing big checks. Despite the physical play, the P-Bruins largely controlled the tempo of the game, beating the Phantoms to the puck in all zones. However, the Phantoms got on the board first at 15:40. Just inside the P-Bruins’ blue line, Mike Testwuide threw a soft shot from the sideboards that blanked Adam Courchaine , who is in Providence on a call up from the Alaska Aces (ECHL). The P-Bruins continued to crash Leighton with shots, but Mike Leighton was solid between the pipes and Providence went into the first intermission trailing 1-0. The P-Bruins took control of play right off the opening face off in the second period, forechecking hard and causing turnovers. Their hard forecheck paid off at 4:05 when persistent play from Carter Camper caused a turnover behind the Phantoms’ net. The defenseman coughed up the puck right into the slot where Ridderwall, unguarded, beat Leighton with a quick one-timer to tie the game 1-1. Zach Hamill also assisted on the tying goal. The teams exchanged pleasantries, shoves and some punches throughout the remainder of the frame. Despite the man-advantage opportunities, neither team could find the back of the net. Providence’s luck turned for the worse in the third. In an effort to stop an Adirondack breakaway, a P-Bruins defenseman pulled down a Phantoms forward, resulting in a penalty shot. Andrew Rowe deeked and beat Courchaine on the backhand, giving the Phantoms at 2-1 lead at 8:55 of the third period. The P-Bruins fought to overcome the deficit, but simply couldn’t connect on passes and control bouncing pucks. The Phantoms sealed the win at 18:34 when Erik Gustafsson found the back of the net for the first time this season, propelling Adirondack to a 3-1 win. Courchaine suffered the loss, blocking 20 Adirondack attempts, while Leighton’s 30 saves earned him the win.