LEHIGH VALLEY, Pa – The Phantoms started fast as typically has been customary this season. Zack Stortini was at the edge of the crease when Senators’ goalie Scott Greenham gave up the rebound of a Nick Cousins shot, and Stortini banged it home just 1:29 into the game. The secondary assist on the goal went to Jason Akeson. Binghamton had much of the puck possession after that, but could not solve Lehigh Valley netminder Anthony Stolarz, despite leading the period in shots 15-10.
The Phantoms made it 2-0 about minutes later when Peter Straka deflected a Brandon Manning shot from inside the blue line past Greenham. Binghamton protested the goal, saying it may have been deflected with a high stick, but referee Ryan Hersey opted not to review it.
The middle frame saw complete domination by the visitors, and it paid off on the scoreboard. Binghamton pulled within one when Garrett Thompson deflected a Chris Wideman shot from the far side Faceoff circle at 2:36. Wideman unloaded a slapper and Thompson got enough of it that it dribbled past a screened Stolarz.
The highlight of the period came about 7 minutes in, when Brandon Manning almost made it 3-1. He came streaking down the far side wing, and cut to the net, but Greenham made a great save, going into the splits to keep the puck out of the net. The Phantoms had 1 power play in the frame, but could not convert. Binghamton lead in shots 29-18.
The final period was the definition of crazy, both teams went end to end multiple times and appeared that the Phantoms’ would escape with the the 2 points, and then Things got weird. Anthony Stolarz went to stop the puck in the trapezoid. But Chris Wideman beat him to it. Wideman then slipped the puck to Darren Kramer, who put it into the empty net for his fourth of the season. The Phantoms would then take the lead again just 59 seconds later as Jason Akeson tipped a Nick Cousins shot past Greenham. The other assist went to Mark Alt, who recently returned from a broken hand.
With 43 seconds left in the third, the Senators would force OT as Colin Greening would deflect a shot from the near point past Stolarz. It was Greening’s 10th tally of the season. The overtime session started three on three as Lehigh Valley’s Zack Stortini and Binghamton’s Brad Mills went off with coincidental unsportsmanlike conduct calls at 19:47 of the third.
In the overtime, both teams traded spectacular chances and it appeared we were headed for a shootout when the Senators’ Aaron Johnson blasted a slapshot from just inside the zone to the glove side of Stolarz to seal the extra point. There was just ten seconds’ left before the end of the extra frame when the puck crossed the line.
Notes: Attendance was 6,856. Phantoms’ defenseman Brandon Manning on urgency to get points: “This is our playoffs right now, if we don’t start picking up two points every night, we aren’t going to make it. When you blow a one-goal lead to the last place team in the conference…it becomes a problem. Head Coach Terry Murray on if the team was playing too loose: “I thought they were loose right from the very beginning, I did an interview at the end of the first that said we had to be better and to push a lot better than what we were. We weren’t bad in the offensive zone, in the D zone, we had to be spaced better than what we were, Murray said. “We have to be better. To have a two nothing lead and to let it get away from us like that is not what you wanna do.” On the turnover by Anthony Stolarz that led to the Kramer goal: “You can’t turn the puck over like that. It doesn’t matter if it’s your first game back (from recall) or your 30th game of the year…turnovers killed us.” 3 Stars: 3) BNG-Garrett Thompson (Goal and an assist, +2) 2) LV-Jason Akeson (Goal and an assist) 1) BNG-Aaron Johnson (Game winning overtime goal)
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