“Part of our game with the back-to-backs and the three-in-threes is simplifying what we do," - Phantoms head coach John Snowden
It’s the home stretch in the American Hockey League (AHL) season, where the three-in-three is a staple every weekend. Teams are powering through them and hoping to make a push for the playoffs. The Lehigh Valley Phantoms are a different team as they battle through them, a team that was prospect-heavy a few months back and is now leaning on veterans to win games.
This team has played poorly in the past, struggling in the second game of a back-to-back or coming out of a three-in-three with two losses. The Phantoms started their latest three-in-three with consecutive wins over the Syracuse Crunch and the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins, two of the best teams in the AHL.
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So, what’s working for the Phantoms, and is it sustainable as they prepare for the playoffs? The team is in an odd spot since their previous wave of prospects (Alex Bump, Denver Barkey, and Emil Andrea) is now in the NHL, and their next wave (Porter Martone, Jett Luchanko, and Jack Nesbitt) is coming in next month or when the playoffs begin. Yet, they’ve stepped up lately with this current group.
Desperation Hockey From The Phantoms
The Phantoms have 58 points, a two-point cushion on the sixth-place Bridgeport Islanders, and only eight points ahead of the last-place Hartford Wolf Pack. Needless to say, they are in a fight at the bottom of the division for a playoff spot. The Phantoms were bailed out by skill when the season began, and they’ve learned that won’t be the case moving forward.
“During the early parts of the season, it doesn’t have meaning to it but now every single point matters for us right now, so desperation is super high,” Phantoms head coach John Snowden mentioned in a conversation with The Hockey News.
The Phantoms must work with what they have to win games, and every game will be a fight. It was certainly the case against the Penguins, when they trailed 3-1 entering the third period and won 4-3 in overtime. “To me, we just had to stick with it. There were a couple of moments when they controlled play, and at the end of the day, we have to do whatever it takes to win the game, and we found our way back into it,” Snowden noted after the win.
Snowden Has Adjusted With a Simple Approach
When Snowden was hired in the offseason, everyone was impressed by his knowledge of the game. He could talk about the X’s and O’s or strategy for days, and his postgame pressers at times prove that. Throughout the season, he would reference the data or the analytics to suggest that the Phantoms were a better team than their record indicated.
This is where the Vince Lombardi quote comes in handy. “The plays work on the chalkboard but the men make it work on the field.” Every play or design works in the film room or in practice. At the end of the day, the players must execute.
The Phantoms needed to get back to playing simple hockey. They needed to play a basic and smart brand after overthinking things all season. “Part of our game with the back-to-backs and the three-in-threes is simplifying what we do,” Snowden added, and it’s worked out for them.
Phantoms Getting Boost From Blue Line
The trade deadline saw the Phantoms land David Jiříček in the Bobby Brink trade. Jiříček is a promising prospect who has a high upside, which explains why he was taken with the sixth pick in the 2022 NHL draft by the Columbus Blue Jackets. The problem is that it has yet to translate, and he’s on his third team in his fourth NHL season. The talent makes him a worthwhile add, so the Philadelphia Flyers took a chance on him and sent him to their AHL team.
With Jiříček, the Phantoms have three puck-moving defensemen, all of whom are Flyers prospects and have their pros and cons. When the Phantoms play him, Christian Kyrou, and Oliver Bonk, they struggle on the defensive end, unless they play with an extra defenseman. “When you have seven defensemen that can play important minutes, it’s hard to find ways to put them in, so you have to go 11 and 7 some nights,” Snowden noted, and it’s what they did in the recent game, and it paid off.
The defensemen suddenly are the strength of the Phantoms, or at least add a spark to the offense. Against the Penguins, Jiříček had three assists, and Bonk scored a power play goal in the third period to fuel the comeback. This trio is one that Snowden is leaning on, and it’s made a difference, especially when play stalls in the offensive zone.
Snowden Likes Where The Phantoms Are Post Trade Deadline
This is a new-look Phantoms team, and they have their issues. They give up scoring chances, and their goaltending is a question mark. That said, with the new additions, they’ve looked good lately. “We’ve made some great additions. We have a lot of guys we can plug and play in different areas,” Snowden stated, referencing the Brett Harrison and Boris Katchouk trades that added two veteran forwards to the roster.
It’s the time of the season when teams want to play their best hockey. They want to enter the Calder Cup Playoffs with momentum and not limp in. The Phantoms are building up that momentum, and it’s a promising sign as the season enters the home stretch.