The Lehigh Valley Phantoms, certainly from the eye-test, are better than their record indicates. They scored four goals against the Providence Bruins, who have the best record in the Atlantic Division and second-best record in the American Hockey League (AHL). They battled back against a team that puts opponents away easily.
Yet, there’s a tier separating them from the best teams in the league. “I think it’s our willingness to be hard and compete,” Phantoms head coach John Snowden stated on Wednesday when talking about the difference between them and the Bruins. The game on Wednesday, a 6-4 defeat, showed it. There’s a gap between the Phantoms and the Bruins, and it’s the gap between good and great in the AHL.
Burying Interior Chances
Something Snowden has discussed all season is the ability to get ot the interior of the offensive zone and make the most of those scoring chances. Good teams set up open looks on the net, great teams bury them. “Getting to the inside is important. Karsen put it to the net on mine, I was able to just push it in there,” Cooper Marody, who scored one of the Phantoms four goals, noted on Wednesday night.
The game against the Bruins was a promising sign for a team that’s otherwise struggled to score. The Phantoms average only 2.85 goals per game, and they found the back of the net four times against a team that allows only 2.04 goals per game. “That’s a hard team to get interior against, and we scored four goals against them,” Snowden added after the game. The four-goal game is building off an impressive weekend where they scored 10 goals in two games, so for the first time in a while, the offense looks like it’s turning a corner.
Now, the problems are on the other end. The Phantoms are allowing teams to get to the high-danger areas of their zone and overwhelm their goaltenders. Some of that comes from defensive breakdowns, while other times, it’s the inability to win puck battles or establish a physical presence. “Blocking a shot is a hard thing, winning a wall battle is a hard thing,” Snowden noted, and the Phantoms did neither of those things against a Bruins team that scored six goals.
Veterans Make The Difference
A few weeks back, a scout in the AHL mentioned that the Phantoms aren’t getting enough from their veterans. They bet on Anthony Richard, Lane Pederson, Garrett Wilson, and Zayde Wisdom to be key parts of the forward unit in all three zones. They started out the season hot but haven’t delivered since then.
In the AHL, a team can only go as far as the veterans take them. Their ability to make an impact on and off the ice helps establish a winning culture and, in the process, helps the prospects take a step forward in their development. It’s not a coincidence that the best teams in the league have the best veterans.
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The case in point is the Bruins. They’ve gotten the most out of Matej Blumel, Patrick Brown, Riley Tufte, and a handful of skaters who are in their late 20s or early 30s. Those three forwards lead the top line and have scored 50 goals and 71 assists this season while adding three goals and four assists in the six-goal performance. “They’re amazing for me. They know my personality well, they’re an extension of us,” Bruins head coach Ryan Mougenel mentioned in a conversation with Hockey Hot Stove earlier in the season.
Most hockey fans would assume that the Philadelphia Flyers have a better prospect pool than the Boston Bruins, and it’s probably correct. What most fans overlook is the development of those prospects, especially in the AHL. The Bruins have a culture and leadership in a group that gets the most out of their young skaters. The Phantoms don’t, and it’s showing down the stretch.
Puck Movement
The Bruins don’t exit the zone like most teams. When they carry the puck out and into the offensive zone, it is usually with the forwards leading the way while the defensemen trail the play. It’s partially because of the puckhandlers, who, in their case, are in the forward unit and not on defense, and it’s also by design, as it helps with recovery and allows them to generate pressure on the other end.
The Phantoms have struggled to move the puck out of the zone and often allow breakdowns in transitions that result in goals the other way. “We have two guys leave the zone when we’re under pressure, turn the puck over, and it ends up in our net against their best line,” Snowden stated after the latest game, citing one of the many examples of defensive breakdowns while trying to start up the offense.
This team should be great in transition, especially when Christian Kyrou and Oliver Bonk are on the ice. Both defensemen are great skaters and can handle the puck well. When they get going, the team follows suit. It’s why the Phantoms won two games in a row on the road against the Hershey Bears, with both defensemen stepping up in those games (it also helps when Alex Bump scored three goals).
Other Areas The Phantoms Are Short In Comparison
The physicality is a big difference. The Phantoms aren’t a heavy team, and it shows against the Bruins or other teams that can forecheck. They lose puck battles and are overwhelmed on the ice.
Goaltending is another difference between the two teams. The Phantoms had strong play in the net to start the season but Aleksei Kolosov and Carson Bjarnason have tailed off since then. Conversely, Michael DiPietro leads the league in save percentage and goals-against average, while the Bruins have gotten strong starts out of Simon Zajicek and Luke Cavallin as well.
The gap between the two teams shows the fine line in the AHL. For these teams, it’s the gap between being at the top of the league and fighting for a playoff spot. “If you look at the standings, we’re right in the mix there,” Marody added after the game. The Phantoms should be right up there with the best, yet the minor details prevent them from getting there.
