After a sensational home opener on Saturday, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms came back down to earth Sunday afternoon against the visiting Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. Two Penguins power play goals dampened a solid debut from Carson Bjarnason as the Phantoms lost 4-1 before 5,343 at PPL Center in Allentown.
The basics
First period: 4:03- Aidan McDonough (Tristan Broz, Danton Heinen) (PPG)
Second period: 4:08- Avery Hayes (Ville Koivunen, Ryan Graves) (PPG), 15:52- Helge Grans (Unassisted)
Third period: 5:11- Tristan Broz (Ville Koivunen), 17:59- Tristan Broz (Sam Poulin, Avery Hayes) (ENG)
SOG: 27 (LV) – 30 (WBS)
Some takeaways
Carson’s debut definitely strong
After a strong performance in the season opener on Saturday by Aleksei Kolosov, the Phantoms gave Carson Bjarnason the nod for his first career AHL start. And he was busy from the opening puck drop with a Ville Koivunen breakaway missing the mark and pressure in the initial Wilkes-Barre/Scranton shifts. He also stood tall during the Penguins’ first power play, finding the puck with a scrum in front before stopping a slapper from the recently waived Ryan Graves. Bjarnason had no answer for an Aidan McDonough snipe that opened the scoring.
McDonough notches his first as a Pen on the power play! pic.twitter.com/DjaxV3jBqG
— Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (@WBSPenguins) October 12, 2025
Bjarnason’s best stop came late in the second with the Penguins up 2-0. Avery Hayes was looking for his second of the game but his breakaway attempt was stoned by Bjarnason. The Phantoms were hanging in thanks to the netminder, who ended up giving the Phantoms a chance to get back in it. After a fine stop on an Atley Calvert wraparound, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton kept applying pressure and beat Bjarnason to give the Penguins some insurance. Bjarnason got run into and pushed deep into his net with roughly eight minutes to go. Thankfully he was back up and shaking it off. The keeper stopped 26 of 29 shots he faced for an .897 save percentage. A very good first impression!
Phantoms’ French Connection line?
The Phantoms started the game with three Quebec-born forwards: Anthony Richard, Jacob Gaucher and Alexis Gendron. It wasn’t a great beginning for the trio, with Gaucher intercepting a pass late in the first but not getting any shot off. Generally, the line mirrored Lehigh Valley’s effort most of the game. At times they were good, but too often the Penguins were limiting their chances and making things very difficult for the Phantoms.
Richard was responsible for the Phantoms first goal of the game. A wild dash up ice saw Richard tear through the defense before getting a chance to score. A scramble ensued before the puck went back to the point. Helge Grans took the shot and beat a prone Larsson to cut the deficit in half late in period two. Minutes later Richard drew a minor penalty as Lehigh Valley’s momentum started to briefly change the game.
That one found a way! #LVvsWBS | #LVPhantoms pic.twitter.com/XEmfoZrECU
— Lehigh Valley Phantoms (@LVPhantoms) October 12, 2025
The third period started with the same Phantoms line and some fantastic attempts to tie the game 2-2. Richard, Gendron and Gaucher set the tone for Lehigh Valley as they opened the third with their foot on the gas pedal. It was quite refreshing considering it would be understandable if they were their gas tank was running low given back-to-back games. But in the end it wasn’t enough.
Discipline doldrums
Lehigh Valley took seven penalties in their first game, and needed to clean things up. So a minor to defenseman Ty Murchison wasn’t a great start minutes in. For the first time this year, the Phantoms didn’t successfully kill it. The Phantoms began finding their wheels after the opening goal, with some good shifts by Samu Tuomaala (who was scratched on Saturday night but inserted into the lineup on Sunday) and the whirling dervish that is Denver Barkey. But another minor by Lane Pederson had Lehigh Valley on their heels, and probably coach John Snowden preaching to play penalty-free.
When Lehigh Valley played it clean, they tilted the ice a bit better in their favor. Another minor in the second to Ben Meehan proved costly as Avery Hayes was the recipient of a lovely pass from Ville Koivunen. Hayes fired a shot over a diving/sprawling Bjarnason for a 2-0 lead. Overall, the Penguins scored twice on five chances. The fifth chance (from a Samu Tuomaala hooking penalty) effectively nixed any conceivable comeback with the Phantoms down by two in the closing minutes. Twelve penalties in two games is something the team is going to have to tidy up.
Good showings from Guryev and Grundstrom
The two pieces the Flyers received as part of the Ryan Ellis trade with San Jose were busy and engaged. Artem Guryev drew a minor for Lehigh Valley’s opening power play. But the two minutes were rather underwhelming until Samu Tuomaala’s one-timer was stopped by Larsson. He also made a nice give-and-go with Tuomaala early in the second but couldn’t capitalize. He also fired a howitzer at Larsson moments after the Pens went up 2-0 but the shot missed the mark.
As for Carl Grundstrom, he was on one of the penalty killing units early on and found himself on a line with Alex Bump and Lane Pederson. Grundstrom had an outstanding chance in the second when Lehigh Valley had a three-on-one in tight. Bump basically put the puck on a tee for Grundstrom but his shot just glanced the outside of the net. He had Larsson beat, just couldn’t finish. He was also a nuisance in front of the Penguins net during another power play, getting the attention of a few opponents after the whistle.
Bump and Pederson showing chemisty
Bump is hoping to find his game from the start so he can be in the conversation for a call up if Philadelphia run into injuries. Bump’s first good chance was from one of the Penguins’ faceoff circles. Penguins goalie Filip Larsson made the save but had no clue where the rebound went. It was one of a handful of quality chances as Wilkes-Barre/Scranton played an up-tempo, tight-checking game that didn’t give the Phantoms a lot of room or time to be creative. After 40 minutes Bump had a pair of shots on goal. Pederson led all Phantoms with five of the 17 shots Lehigh Valley managed in the first two periods. He ended up with seven of the team’s 27 shots for the contest. And had a golden chance to make it a one-goal game while short-handed in the third. Pederson couldn’t beat Larsson despite getting a great shot off.