Phantoms vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 3-11-09: Game Recap and Box Score

CLICK HERE for the recap of the game on the Phantoms site.

CLICK HERE for the box score from the AHL's site.

What a frustrating, frustrating game, and that's putting it mildly. We got behind the 8 ball early and never recovered from that. The game was a goal-fest for both teams, but it was also a Special Teams Parade. 10 infractions per side? 9 PPs each? 4 PP goals each? Take a look through the box score -- it appears to bear out my suspicion that the special teams were on the ice for nearly as much time as the teams spent at full strength. I wish the ref had let the teams PLAY THE GAME. We could have decided the outcome of the game for ourselves without nine powerplays and nine penalty kills per team.

But we need to stop falling behind early in games. And in particular, this game's kind of start needs to be a complete anomaly from here on out. The Phantoms recap says that we gave up three goals on our first three shots. But I remember seeing 3 shots on goal listed for the Pens well *before* their third goal went in. But it took forever for the fourth shot to be registered on the board (if it ever was). So unless one of those three shots was an error that was allowed to sit on the board until an actual shot on goal took place, we might have given up FOUR shots on goal and three goals-against. Which is, to be sure, no comfort to anyone who plays for or supports the team. Sigh.

But dwelling on the past won't change it. Time to move on to the next games, which will take place on Saturday and Sunday.