PREVIEW: Phantoms at Bridgeport, Game 45

Last Game Before Break

TONIGHT – The Lehigh Valley Phantoms (21-19-4) travel to the Bridgeport Islanders (19-20-5) in the final game before the AHL All-Star Break. This is the third meeting between the Phantoms and Islanders in less than a month. Lehigh Valley took the last matchup 5-3 last Saturday at PPL Center. But the Islanders hold a 3-2 lead in the season series entering Game 6 out of 8 between the two clubs. Tonight is Game 45 of the 2025-26 regular season. After tonight’s game, the league goes on hiatus for a few days while the AHL All-Star Classic takes place on Tuesday and Wednesday in Rockford, Ill. The Phantoms return from the break next weekend with a pair of games on Saturday and Sunday over Winter Games Weekend at PPL Center.

Fans can browse rosters and Media Materials for tonight’s game at www.phantomshockey.com/media/media-materials/

LAST TIME – The Lehigh Valley Phantoms showed resilience, firepower, and relentless pushback on Friday night at PPL Center, but brief lapses in the first and third periods proved costly as the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins held off the Phantoms by a 6-5 count despite Lehigh Valley’s season-high 41 shots on goal. Tucker Robertson (8th), Max Guenette (2nd), Phil Tomasino (7th), Lane Pederson (15h) and Jacob Gaucher (10th) all hit paydirt for the Phantoms in the offensive slugfest. Matt Dumba racked up a hat trick with an assist in another four-point performance to lead the Baby Pens. Anthony Richard blasted an in-tight rebound off the crossbar with just 19 seconds left as the Phantoms came perilously close to forcing overtime. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton raced out to a 2-0 lead to start but the P{hantoms roared back to tie the game at 2-2 and 3-3. But the Baby Pens racked up three goals in a stretch of 4:30 in the third to enjoy a 6-3 advantage which proved enough for the win.

KOLOSOV RETURNS – Goaltender Aleksei Kolosov has been loaned to the Phantoms and Yaniv Perets has been returned to Reading of the ECHL. Kolosov, 24, has started 21 games for the Phantoms this season going 9-11-1, 2.69, .902 and has also played in four games with the Flyers. Kolosov has been moving up and down frequently between the Flyers and the Phantoms the past two weeks:

Wed, Jan 28 – Loaned to Phantoms
Fri, Jan 30 – Starts at Springfield
Sat, Jan 31 – Recalled to Flyers. Backup goalie for Flyers
Sun, Feb 1 – Loaned to Phantoms. Starts vs. W-B/Scranton
Mon, Feb 2 – Recalled to Flyers
Fri, Feb 6 – Loaned to Phantoms

ALL-STAR KYROU – Christian Kyrou has been selected to participate in the 2026 AHL All-Star Classic in Rockford, ill. February 10-11. Forward Denver Barkey is currently up with the Philadelphia Flyers and will be unable to participate.
Kyrou, 22, stormed onto the scene since arriving to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms from the Texas Stars in a trade for Samu Tuomaala on October 30, 2025. The creative, puck-moving blueliner has racked up 24 points in 34 games with the Phantoms scoring seven goals with 17 assists. Kyrou rates third on the team in scoring and is 11th among all AHL defensemen. Christian Kyrou follows in the footsteps of his older brother, Jordan Kyrou, who played in the 2019 AHL All-Star Classic as a member of the San Antonio Rampage. Jordan Kyrou is now a forward with the St. Louis Blues where he has played in 463 career games.

HEATING UP
Christian Kyrou – 6 game point streak, 2-7-9. 12th in AHL Defensemen scoring
Anthony Richard – 6 game point streak, 3-3-6. 5 goals last 11 games
Zayde Wisdom – 3 goals last 4 games
Tucker Robertson – 3-3-6 last 5 games including two multi-point games

UPCOMING MILESTONES –
– Anthony Richard, 197 pro assists
– Phil Tomasino, 198 pro points
– Max Guenette, 98 pro assists

SATURDAY SUPERSTARS – The Phantoms boast an impressive mark on Saturdays this season going 12-2-2. Seven of the 16 Saturday games have gone to overtime or shootout and the Phantoms are 6-0-1 in those Saturday extra-time contests. The Phantoms went 7-1-0 in Saturday games for December and January combined.

ISLANDS IN THE STREAM – Bridgeport (19-20-5) has points in nine of its last 12 to solidify its hold on the sixth and final playoff position in the standings but absorbed a 2-1 shootout loss at the Bridgeport Islanders last night. Lehigh Valley pushed back at the Islanders last Saturday in the form of a 5-3 win led by Zayde Wisdom’s two goals and Christian Kyrou’s three-point night. But Bridgeport still leads the season series 3-2 entering Game 6 out of 8. Former Minnesota draft selection Adam Beckman (17-12-29) had a hat trick against the Phantoms on January 19 in Bridgeport and has scored 5-2-7 in the season series. Michigan State product Joey Larson (15-11-26) is having a strong rookie campaign and has 3-2-5 against the Phantoms. 36-year-old sniper Chris Terry (8-9-17) is tied with Denis Hamel for 11th all-time with 338 career goals. Veteran defenseman Ethan Bear (2-7-9) has played in 275 NHL games but had a preseason injury with the Islanders. Since joining Bridgeport following his recovery, Bear has scored both of his goals this season against Lehigh Valley. 6’9″ netminder Henrik Tikkanen (8-5-1, 2.34, .905) came on relief of Marcus Hogberg last week and has performed well. 36-year-old veteran goaltender Jeremy Smith has become an amazing story recording a shutout last Sunday against Springfield in his first AHL game since 2018-19 with Bridgeport. Smith spent the last six seasons in Beijing, China playing for the Kunlun Red Star of the KHL as part of a career that began in the 2009-10 season with Milwaukee and also ECHL Cincinnati. Former Flyers assistant coach Rocky Thompson is the first-year bench boss for the B-Isles.

SCORING LEADERS
Phantoms Scoring Leaders
Lane Pederson 15-15-30
Anthony Richard 13-13-26
Christian Kyrou 7-18-25
Alex Bump 7-13-20
Alexis Gendron 8-11-19

Islanders Scoring Leaders
Adam Beckman 17-12-29
Joey Larson 15-11-26
Matt Maggio 7-18-25
Liam Foudy 14-10-24
Alex Jeffries 7-17-24

Special Teams PP / PK
LV 18.3%, 17th / 75.4%, 31st (PP vs. BRI, 2/15, 13.3%)
BRI 17.1%, 22nd / 82.1%, 14th (PP vs. LV 9/29, 31.0%)

Season Series vs. Bridgeport Islanders (2-3-0)
11/5/25 Away W 6-2
12/19/25 Home L 1-5
1/16/26 Home L 1-3
1/19/26 Away L 2-6
1/31/26 Home W 5-3
2/7/26 Away
3/8/26 Away
4/11/26 Home

LOOKING AHEAD – The league is on hiatus for the AHL All-Star Break while Christian Kyrou will represent the Phantoms this Tuesday and Wednesday in Rockford, Ill. at the big event.
Next week, the Phantoms have a pair of exciting home games during our Winter Games Celebration Weekend beginning Saturday, February 14 against the Cleveland Monsters on Phantoms Knit Cap Night presented by Gatorade. Sunday, February 15 at 3:05 p.m. against the Syracuse Crunch including a Postgame Photograph session with the players on the ice presented by NJM Insurance.

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