Adirondack Phantoms Knock Off Toronto Marlies 3-1 at Ricoh

This article was last updated on April 16, 2022

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Phantoms goalie Michael Leighton makes
a save on Marlies’ Mike Zigomanis
Michael Leighton Backstops Phantoms to Win with 38 save Performance
With only eight games remaining in the season and amidst a race for a playoff spot in a very tight North Division, the Toronto Marlies have put together a losing streak at the worst possible time.
On Saturday afternoon, the Marlies (34-28-10) fell 3-1 at Ricoh Coliseum to the lowly Adirondack Phantoms (24-33-10) who sit second-last in the AHL, losing their fourth straight game overall. The previous night Toronto was blanked 1-0 on the road by Syracuse Crunch.
The Marlies peppered Phantoms goalie Michael Leighton with 39 shots but were only able to beat him once. Leighton showed some of the form he had last season when he led the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers to the Stanley Cup finals. Ben Scrivens made his tenth consecutive start in goal for the Marlies and made 21 saves in the loss.
“It’s very frustrating,” said Marlies coach Dallas Eakins. “They’re doing everything we’re asking them offensively. They’re putting pucks at the net, going to the net, fighting for position.

We’ve got the chances tonight, they had 11 and we’re down for 26. I’m not sure what else we can ask our players to do. We’ve run into on both nights now, goalies that are playing really well. And that’s how it goes sometimes.”

The lone Marlies goal-scorer, defenceman Korbinian Holzer, echoed the sentiments of his coach.

Phantoms’ Harry Zolnierczyk celebrates his
goal while Marlies’ goalie Ben Scrivens
hangs his head 

“The bounces are not going our way but we’re competing hard,” said Holzer who potted just his second goal of the year. “We’re getting chances. I think we had 40 shots today. The goalie (Leighton) played pretty well.”

The Phantoms opened the scoring very early, as left-winger Rob Bordson gave his team a 1-0 lead at 2:42. Although Scrivens played well at times, he did give up a weak goal in the second period.  Forward Harry Zolnierczyk snapped a shot that squeezed through the pads of Scrivens to put Phantoms up 2-0.
The Marlies got on the board at 9:09 of the third period when Holzer fired a quick wrist shot over Leighton’s glove to make it 2-1. The Marlies made a late charge in the third period and had sustained pressure in the Phantoms’ zone in the final five minutes, but Leighton shut the door the rest of the way.
With less than a minute remaining, Phantoms’ Eric Wellwood fought off a check for the loose puck along the boards and slid the puck into an empty net to make it 3-1, clinching the game for Adirondack.
The inept Marlies offence the past two games may have to do with two key players being called up to the Toronto Maple Leafs earlier in the week – forward Nazem Kadri and defencemen Matt Lashoff.
“Say what you want about Nazem Kadri, but we miss him right now," said Eakins.
"He is the one guy in our lineup that when we need a goal, every time he steps out over the boards he’s a very real threat to score. Especially on our power play, he opens up things that other guys just can’t do…You take him out of our lineup and then take our top offensive defenceman, Matt Lashoff out, and suddenly our production has fallen off."

Marlies storm the Phantoms net in the third
period but Leighton is able to smother the puck

After making his debut with the Marlies on Friday night, defenceman Jake Gardiner played in his first home game on Saturday. Gardiner was acquired in the February 9 trade that sent defenceman Francois Beauchemin from the Maple Leafs to the Anaheim Ducks. Gardiner was the 17th overall pick in the 2008 NHL entry draft.

“It’s fun playing in this building and it’s a good atmosphere for a hockey game,” said Gardiner of the 6,832 fans in attendance.

Playoff Race
With the playoffs looming in early April, every remaining game for the Marlies will be important as the team battles for a postseason berth in the North Division. Just five points separate teams one through six, led by Manitoba Moose who sit atop of the division with 82 points, followed by Lake Erie Monsters who sit two points back. Hamilton Bulldogs are in third with 79 points, just above the Marlies and Grand Rapids who are tied for fourth place with 78 points, but the Griffins have two games in hand. Abbotsford Heat are in sixth place with 77 points.
 “We’re battling for a playoff spot,” said Gardiner. “We got to play hard the last eight or nine games here and hopefully we make it.”
Toronto will now hit the road to take on the Griffins in Grand Rapids on Wednesday night.

South Asian Day

Dhol Circle entertain the crowd
at Ricoh Coliseum

The Marlies celebrated South Asian Day on Saturday afternoon and featured a performance by Toronto’s percussion group Dhol Circle (dholcircle.com). The group entertained fans during the first intermission with a lively jam session delighting the crowd with their infectious drum beats.

“I think it’s excellent that an organization like Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, despite being successful, they reach out to the community and have multicultural days to support all the ethnicities and community groups,” said Dhol Circle member Tanveer Ubhi.
“We’re thankful that they called us out last year and brought us out this year again. Even though there is not many South Asians in the stands, it’s in a way giving back to the community and showing that they support and are trying to build that awareness.”

Three Stars
1st Star: Harry Zolnierczyk – Adirondack
2nd Star – Michael Leighton – Adirondack
3rd star – Korbinian Holzer – Toronto

Dhol Circle – Tanveer Ubhi (left), Sukha Bhamra (centre)
and Saranpal Panesar (right)

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Photos courtesy of Annandi Merhai of Devi Designs

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