Phantoms of Philadelphia

The Phantoms of Philadelphia are a professional frankness from Hockey of the American Ligue of hockey. They belong to division is in the conference is.

Logo : A mask of phantom formed by 2 logos of the Flyers reversed.

Titles of division : 4 (1996-97, 1997-98, 1998-99 and 2003-04)
Titles of regular season : 2 (1996-97 and 1997-98)
gained Championships : 2 (1997-98 and 2004-05)

The team plays usually her matches with the Wachovia Spectrum but when this last is occupied for other events, Phantoms play their match with the Wachovia Center.

History

Philadelphia and the LAH

When the Canadian-American Hockey League (1926-36) and the international Ligue of hockey created in 1936-37 the International-American Hockey League, the champion of the league " Edge-Am" , the Ramblers of Philadelphia (in the past Arrows of Philadelphia) became one of the eight original teams of the LAH. (After two seasons of gropings, the two leagues amalgamated officially the June 28th 1938 at a meeting with New York. In 1940, the new league was renamed in American Ligue of hockey). In 1941, Ramblers lost their affiliation with the Rangers of New York and were famous in Rockets of Philadelphia. However, in 1942, this frankness original from Philadelphia ceased its activities. The two following tests in LAH in Philadelphia were not more conclusive: Rockets again (1946-49) then the Firebirds (1977-79), defector team of NAHL, made failure, Rockets holding even the record little glittering of the more small number of victories for a team of LAH in one season (5 victories, 52 defeats, 7 ties). Lastly, in 1966, the team of Phantoms took again the torch, and in better manner.

Phantoms are the 3rd frankness to have belonged to Flyers after the Aces of Quebec of 1967 with 1971 and the Mariners of Maine of 1977 with 1983. From 1984 to 1996, Flyers were affiliated with the Bears de Hershey.

After having spent 29 years (1967-1996) with the Wachovia Spectrum, Flyers moved towards CoreStates Center (which will become later the Wachovia Center, leaving unoccupied old the cave of Flyers. Not wanting to demolish a building which could still accommodate events, the owner sought a team to install in these buildings.

Flyers brought the solution by buying in December 1995 a frankness LAH which would take part in the championship as of the season 1996-97. A few weeks later, the name of the new team, Phantoms of Philadelphia was revealed, as well as the name of the trainer, old attacking of Flyers and member of the temple of famous the, Bill Barber. To bore would be assisted of Mike Stothers, former player of the club him also, with which it formed already the tandem of trainer of Bears de Hershey.

Fast success

Phantoms played their first match of regular season the October 4th 1996 obtaining their first victory by beating the Falcons de Springfield 6-3 in Springfield. Two days later, the team made her beginning in Spectrum in front of a crowd of 9166 spectators come to attend the victory as of theirs over the score of 3-1 against the Americans of Rochester. This first season saw Phantoms gaining the regular season with 111 points, 10 points in front of the seconds, Bears de Hershey. Peter White gained the Trophée John B. Sollenberger with 105 points while Vinnie Prospal finished 4th better pointer with 95 points while having missed 17 matches.

After having eliminated the Gangsters from Baltimore in 3 matches at the time of the 1st turn, they met Bears. After having lost the first meeting on the score of 3-5, Phantoms equalized while gaining over the mark of 7-4 a match which will remain in the memories. Indeed, one did not count less than 350 minutes of penalty in this match (including 171 for Phantoms), 4 exclusions of match, 2 suspensions, a combat of guards during whom Neil Little, guard of Phantoms, put K.O the replacing guard of Bears Sinuhe Wallinheimo and, makes even less frequent, during which 5 goalkeepers took share with the play. (J.F. Labbe, Wallinheimo and Sylvain Rodrique for Hershey, Little and Dominic Roussel for Philadelphia). Unfortunately, although leading 3 parts to 2, Phantoms lost 6th match 2-3 at the time of the 57e shootings of Bears of the evening! (the goal was registered during the prolongation) and their season taken end the May 14th by a defeat 2-3 in the 7th match of the series against those which was going to become later the winners of the Coupe Calder.

1998: First Calder cut

As at the time of their inaugural season, Phantoms finished first of the regular season 1997-98 with 106 points and Peter White brought back to Philadelphia the Sollenberger trophy thanks to 105 points. During the season, Phantoms played closed counters 8 times in front of 17380 spectators. The total frequentation of the regular season was of 472392 people and 100000 of more were added in eliminatory series.

At the time of the ninth match with closed counter, the June 10th 1998, Phantoms beat the Flames of Saint-John 6-1, thus gaining their first Calder cut. Mike Maneluk gained the Trophée Jack A. Butterfield and finished the series with 34 points (13 goals and 21 assistances). The captain of the team John Stevens, which had already gained the cut with Hershey in 1988 and Springfield in 1991, celebrated the victory with his coquipiers over the same ice which had seen twenty-four years before Flyers gaining their first Coupe Stanley.

1999: Match of stars LAH

The June 24th 1999, Phantoms accepted the match of stars of the LAH. Five players of Phantoms partipèrent: Sergei Klimentiev, Richard Park and Jean-Marc Furrier for the team of PlanetUSA, Peter White and Jim Montgomery for the Canadian team trained by Bill To bore and Mike Stothers. Furrier gained the trophy of the best player of the match. For the little story, the team of PlanetUSA gained the match 5-4.

Phantoms continued to drain the fans and reached a record of spectator on February 28th, 1999 with 19532 entries. They finished the season with a total assistance record of 480106, that is to say 12000 per match.

A guard marks a goal in numerical inferiority and prolongations

At the time of the season 2003-04, Phantoms beat a record of team with one the 13th washing in regular season at the time of a tie the 0-0 on April 10th, 2004. The following day, they beat Bears in a strange way: the guard Antero Niittymäki was credited with the victorious goal in a deserted net, in prolongation, at the time of a numerical inferiority, making of him the first guard of the history of the frankness register a goal. (Bears needing 2 points at the time of all their last matches of regular season to take part in the eliminatory series, their trainer, Paul Fixter, made leave his guard at the time of a numerical advantage. But Bears, by awkwardness, missed the metal disc at the time of a master key and this one finished its race at the bottom of their nets. Niittymäki, which was the last player of Phantoms to have touched the disc, was credited with the goal.) Phantoms finished the season with 46 victories and 101 points but were eliminated with the 2nd turn from the series by the Penguins de Wilkes-Barre/Scranton which had finished the regular season 15 points behind them.

2005: A second Calder cut

The season 2004-05 saw the Calder cut returning to Philadelphia for the second time of the history of Phantoms. After having lost their the first two match of the season on the road, they gained their first home match 5-3 against the Bulldogs of Hamilton the October 22nd. This victory was the first of a series record of 17 consecutive victories. The April 15th, at the time of a victory 4-1 against Hershey, Antero Niittymäki recorded its 32e profit and beat the record of the greatest number of victories in one season for a guard of Phantoms by beating the mark of its fellow-member Neil Little realized in 1996-97 and 1997-98. Although Niittymäki played the most matches this season, the guard veteran of Phantoms Neil Little succeeds in becoming the 10th guard of the history of the LAH to reach the plate of the 200 victories during a washing against the Sound Tigers de Bridgeport the March 4th. Phantoms finished 2nd of their division behind the Senators de Binghamton taken along by Jason Spezza.

Although already a solid team for the eliminatory series, Phantoms were reinforced by the arrival of the two choices of first turn of the Repêchage of entry in the LNH 2003, Jeff Carter of the Sault co. Marie Greyhounds and Mike Richards of the Kitchener Rangers whose teams were already eliminated from the eliminatory series of OHL. Casing arrived in time for the last three matches of regular season and finished better pointer of the series with 23 items (12-11) in 21 matches. Richards joined the team with the second round of the series and recorded 15 items (7-8) of 14 matches.

The series of Phantoms began vis-a-vis the Admirals de Norfolk, team which had beaten them 6 times in 10 confrontations of regular season. Philadelphia carried it by 4 victories against 2. Season LNH having been cancelled, Phantoms played all their matches of series in the enclosure of Flyers.

With the second round, they met the Penguins de Wilkes-Barre/Scranton which had eliminated the Senators de Binghamton with the first turn. After having gained their the first two home matches, Phantoms returned bredouille of their displacement at their adversaries and the two teams returned to play Philadelphia for one of the most memorable matches of the history of the frankness. Carried out 1-4 and in middle of 3rd period, Phantoms registered 6 goals in the 10 last minutes to gain the match 7-4T. They were qualified in 6 matches for the final of conference.

They beat the Bruins de Providence by 4 victories with 2, extending their invincibility over their skating rink to 11 matches of series.

With the victory over Providence, Phantoms finally fought Calder cut for the first time since 1998 by meeting the Wolves of Chicago. The combat between the two teams promised to be a combat between the two Finnish guards Niittymäki and Kari Lehtonen which, both, had had one exemplary season. The first match was played Chicago because, although Phantoms reached 103 points in regular season, Wolves had registered 105 of them while having lost only 7 home match.

As envisaged, the first matches were tightened, little goals being boxed by the two guards. Niittymäki was perhaps just a little better than Lehtonen, recording a washing at the time of victory 1-0 of Phantoms during the first match. The second meeting finished on the score of 2-1 in double prolongation and the final returned to Philadelphia for the following matches. Again, the meeting finished on the score of 2-1 in favor of Phantoms. Lehtonen had boxed only 5 goals up to that point but Niittymäki had boxed only 2 of them. This small difference made it possible however Phantom to lead 3 victories to 0 in a series to best of the 7 matches.

The June 10th, an assistance record (in match of eliminatory series of LAH) of 20103 spectators came while hoping to attend the sacring of its local team in residence. Phantoms did not disappoint their fans by beating Wolves 5-2, Ben Stafford (which took its retirement at the conclusion) registering the goal gaining the cut. Niittymäki gained the Trophée Jack A. Butterfield.

Statistical of seasons

Trainers

When Bill Barber was named assistant trainer of Flyers in 2000, its assistant of then, John Stevens, which had to stop its career of player the previous year because of a serious wound in an eye, became the second trainer-chief of the history of the frankness. Stevens, which was also the first captain of the history of the team, was joined by two former players of Flyers, Kjell Samuelsson and Don Nachbaur. In November 2003, Craig Berube, former player of Flyers also, signed to him a contract of player/associated trainer with Phantoms enabling him to finish its professional path in Philadelphia. At the end of the season, it took its retirement and became trainer associates full-time to replace Nachbaur left to involve the Americans of Tri-City in WHL.

December 28th, 2003, little time after the arrival of Berube (which is one of the most punished players history of the LNH with 3149 minutes of penalty), the Senators de Binghamton beat Phantoms 1-5 in a match where many records of the club fell: greater number of penalties combined (373 minutes), greater number of penalty for Phantoms in only one match (210 minutes), greater number of penalty for only one player in a match (Peter Vandermeer, 44 minutes). After 11 brawls and 15 exclusions of match, the part was stopped at 8 seconds of fine the fault of combatants: it did not remain enough any more of players in each team.

When Stevens became in its turn trainer associated at Flyers at the conclusion of the season 2005-06, Berube was promoted third trainer-chief of the history of the frankness. It did not remain a long time places from there since joining the team of Stevens when this one took the post of trainer chief of Flyers.

October 23rd, 2006, the fourth trainer of Phantoms became Kjell Samuelsson which occupied the post of trainer associated during six seasons within the frankness. He was joined by Joe Mullen which was its fellow-member with Pittsburgh.

With the temple of the fame

Records of team

In one season

Goals: 47 Mike Maneluk (1999-00)
Assistances: 78 Peter White (1997-98)
Points: 105 Peter White (1996-97 and 1997-98)
Minutes of penalty: 416 Francis Lessard (1999-00)
Goals by part: 1,96 Neil Little (2003-04)
%Arrêt: 92,6% Neil Little (2001-02)

In career

Goals: 153 Peter White
Assistances: 319 Peter White
Points: 472 Peter White
Minutes of penalty: 1046 Pete Vandermeer
Victories of guard: 177 Neil Little
Washing S: 18 Neil Little
Many parts: 431 Peter White

Other professional teams of hockey having evolved/moved in Philadelphia

  • Arrows of Philadelphia (C-AHL: 1927-35)

  • Quakers of Philadelphia (LNH: 1930-31)
  • Make of Philadelphia (T-SHL: 1932-33)
  • Ramblers of Philadelphia (C-AHL: 1935-36 and LAH: 1936-41)
  • Rockets of Philadelphia (LAH: 1941-42)
  • Falcons of Philadelphia (EAHL: 1942-46)
  • Rockets of Philadelphia (LAH: 1946-49)
  • Falcons of Philadelphia (EAHL: 1951)
  • Ramblers of Philadelphia (EHL: 1955-64)
  • Flyers of Philadelphia (LNH: since 1967)
  • Blazers of Philadelphia (WHA: 1972-73)
  • Firebirds of Philadelphia (NAHL: 1974-77 and LAH: 1977-79)

Refer

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