The Providence Bruins have the best record in the American Hockey League, and the Lehigh Valley Phantoms controlled the play against them on Wednesday night in a 6-3 win. The Phantoms aren’t a better team but they controlled the pace of the play and pulled off the upset. “With the group of guys we have here, we have a chance to compete every night,” Brett Harrison, who was traded from the Bruins two weeks ago, noted after the recent win.
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It speaks to how well the Phantoms were prepared for the midweek game. It is also another prime example of how head coach John Snowden has adjusted to not only win games but get the most out of a Phantoms group that is noticeably less talented than they were early on in the season.
Snowden’s Optimizing A New Defense Group
In the Saturday night game against the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins, Snowden went with a seven-defenseman and 11-forwards lineup. With Christian Kyrou, Oliver Bonk, and the newly acquired David Jiříček, the Phantoms head coach wants to play all three but runs into problems with the defense.
The three pairs have skilled offensive-minded defensemen but suddenly lack the shutdown stay-at-home options to balance out the unit. It’s one of the reasons Snowden moved Kyrou to the forward position.
The common critique for scoring defensemen is that they are forwards and shouldn’t be playing on the defense (see Evan Bouchard). Snowden, however, wants to get the most out of Kyrou and moved him to the forward lines. “He’s got an incredibly offensive brain, he sees plays, makes plays, he scored a big goal for us,” Snowden added after the game. The move ironically gets the most out of the group as the defense still has two puck handlers on it while Kyrou is suddenly creating opportunities on the wing.
The Adjustments to the Opponents
The Bruins play a heavy game where they like to wear teams down. The Phantoms responded by speeding things up and trying to win the game on the rush. It resulted in a few goals the other way but for the most part, they controlled play and found most of their scoring chances from the speed-based game.
The Phantoms also adjusted to beat Michael DiPietro, the 2024-25 AHL goaltender of the year, who is on track to win the award again. “The way they play in front of him really helps him but he’s an elite goalie,” Snowden noted after the game, and it’s why they worked around the defense and found open looks off of centering and cross-ice passes. “He’s not the biggest goalie, so you have to take advantage of those spots,” Snowden added, referencing the puck movement and the top-shelf shots that found the back of the net against DiPietro.
Snowden’s adjustments aren’t exclusive to the Bruins either. The Phantoms adjusted to the Syracuse Crunch and the Penguins to take two of the three games over the weekend. In the big picture, it’s how the Phantoms will win games, especially in the playoffs. The Hershey Bears had Todd Nelson behind their bench for the 2023 and 2024 Calder Cup titles, and the head coach would always pull the right strings. The Phantoms might have a coach in Snowden who can do the same.
Phantoms Still Have Work to Do in a Playoff Push
The Phantoms have played better lately, and the recent game showed they can beat anyone. The key for them is proving they can do so consistently. The three-in-three this weekend saw them win the first two, only to fall flat on their home ice in the finale.
There are still question marks for the Phantoms that Snowden is masking with adjustments. The forwards aren’t finding offense, so the production is coming from the blue line. Ironically, the defense struggles on their end, so the forwards are asked to step up and get the forecheck going.
The good news is that the Phantoms have a coach willing to make the needed adjustments. Some coaches are stuck in their ways, and others won't change because they want to align with the NHL team. The Phantoms want to win and in the homestretch, they are putting themselves in position to do so.