Phantoms rally past Monsters in shootout, 4-3 after wild comeback

Lehigh Valley did more than erase a deficit against Cleveland. It turned a night that started with the Monsters in full control into a one-point swing that mattered in the standings, surviving a back-and-forth finish and winning 4-3 in a shootout after a game that never really lost its edge.

Cleveland came out fast and landed the first punches. Riley Bezeau opened the scoring in the first period, Mikael Pyyhtiä added another before the frame was over, and the Monsters had a 2-0 lead before Lehigh Valley settled in. From there, the Phantoms started the long climb back, and Jacob Gaucher began it with a power-play goal in the second period. Boris Katchouk tied it, giving Lehigh Valley the kind of response that changes the feel of a game and keeps the pressure on the team trying to protect a lead.

The Phantoms kept coming in the third. Noah Powell pushed Lehigh Valley back in front with a goal and later finished with a goal and an assist, underscoring how much the comeback depended on production from more than one line. Jackson Edward and Riley Thompson each picked up assists as the Phantoms kept generating wave after wave of pressure. Cleveland answered again when James Malatesta scored late to force overtime, salvaging a point and dragging the game into a skills competition that the Monsters had spent nearly an hour trying to avoid.

The shot count told part of the story too. Lehigh Valley outshot Cleveland 42-27, a heavy advantage that reflected how often the Phantoms were able to tilt the ice their way even while the score stayed close. Ivan Fedotov stopped 38 of 41 shots for Cleveland over 65 minutes, while Carson Bjarnason made 24 saves on 27 shots for Lehigh Valley in 64:29. Both goaltenders were tested, and both teams got meaningful contributions from multiple players, including Brendan Gaunce, Hunter McKown, Will Butcher and Tate Singleton on the Cleveland side.

In the end, the shootout made the difference, and the standings impact was just as important as the finish. Lehigh Valley took the extra point, Cleveland settled for one, and the result offered a useful snapshot of a Phantoms team that can take punishment early, stay patient and still win the kind of tight, playoff-style game that usually decides April.