Manchester Phoenix 2012/13 line-up so far

Forwards

Joachim Flaten - Tony Hand - ?

Scott McKenzie - Tom Duggan - James Archer

Liam Chong - Ciaran Long - Andy McKinney

Jake Nurse (10th F)

Defence

James Neil -?

? - ?

Ben Wood (5th D)

Netminder

Steve Fone

?

Phoenix go down to the Jets in Playoff Final

Playoff Semi-Final
Manchester Phoenix 6-5 Sheffield Steeldogs (After penalty shootout)

Playoff Final
Manchester Phoenix 1-4 Slough Jets

After a season long battle with injuries, Manchester Phoenix had nothing left in the tank in the Playoff Final on Sunday night as they went down 4-1 to Slough Jets.

Phoenix, who beat rivals Sheffield Steeldogs after a penalty shoot out on Saturday, simply had no answer to the Jets game plan the following night and ended the season trophy less.

Ciaran Long netted the lone Phoenix goal in the final but goals from Adam Calder, Doug Sheppard and Darius Pliskauskas (2) handed Slough their third playoff title in five years.

Phoenix squandered a three goal lead against Sheffield the night before, but Stephen Wallace fired in the decisive penalty shot after overtime couldn’t separate the sides.

Steeldogs opened the scoring in the first period through Andre Payette but Phoenix hit back with three straight goals from Wallace, James Archer and Martin Cingel.

Edgar Bebris brought Sheffield back to within one, but goals from Long and another from Archer seemingly put Phoenix out of sight.

However Phoenix stumbled in the final minutes allowing Sheffield to tie the game with goals from Payette again and Ben Morgan (2) pushing the game to overtime where Juraj Faith converted his penalty shot and Wallace struck the winner.

EPL Playoff Semi Final Line Up

Semi Final 1 - Saturday 14th April 3pm
Guildford Flames v Slough Jets

Semi Final 2 - Saturday 14th April 7pm
Manchester Phoenix v Sheffield Steeldogs

Phoenix sink Cats; Progress to Coventry

Playoff Quarterfinal 2nd Leg
Manchester Phoenix 4-0 Swindon Wildcats (6-1 agg)

A full strength Manchester Phoenix booked their place at the EPL playoff finals weekend after stellar weekend performances from Steve Fone and James Archer.

Phoenix despatched Swindon Wildcats over two legs with a narrow 2-1 win in Wiltshire on Saturday before a second period blow out and 4-0 win on Sunday kept Phoenix in the hunt for the final piece of silverware.

Manchester will now face rivals Sheffield Steeldogs in the second semi final with Guildford Flames facing the Slough Jets in the early face off.

On Saturday, Phoenix goals from Slava Koulikov and Stephen Wallace were enough to take a slender lead back to Altrincham after netminder Fone produced a sparkling performance with 45 saves, keeping Swindon to a lone Jaroslav Cesky goal.

Phoenix then finished the job with ease on Sunday after Archer opened the scoring in the 8th minute, three goals in nine minutes from the home side ended any hopes for Swindon.

Archer bagged his second early in the middle period before a shorthanded goal from Tom Duggan and a second strike of the weekend from Wallace settled the contest leaving Fone to blank the visitors and put Phoenix in the final four for the third year running.

EPL Final League Standings

		Pld	W	OW	OL	L	GF	GA	Pts
1	Guildford Flames	54	30	6	5	13	242	158	77
2	Manchester Phoenix	54	30	4	5	15	205	169	73
3	Sheffield Steeldogs	54	26	6	5	17	170	143	69
4	Slough Jets	54	29	4	2	19	228	175	68
5	Milton Keynes Lightning	54	27	5	2	20	176	145	66
6	Basingstoke Bison	54	20	7	3	24	183	189	57
7	Swindon Wildcats	54	25	0	6	23	201	193	56
8	Peterborough Phantoms	54	17	3	7	27	188	232	47
9	Bracknell Bees	54	13	5	10	26	163	213	46
10	Telford Tigers	54	6	7	2	39	138	277	28

Phoenix edge Phantoms in final league game

Manchester Phoenix 3-2 Peterborough Phantoms

James Archer scored with less than three minutes remaining to lift Manchester Phoenix past a desperate Peterborough Phantoms.

Phantoms, needing a point from the game or Bracknell to lose to make the end of season playoffs, staged a third period fight back to scare the home side in their final league game.

Phoenix took the lead early in the first period as Stephen Wallace netted from close range after good work from Tom Duggan as he fought his was through the Phantoms defence to create the chance.

They doubled their lead late in the second period with a controversial goal from Juraj Faith, which Phantoms netminder Damien King was adamant the puck did not cross the goal line.

But with the Phantoms playoff hopes in the balance, they tied the game with two goals in less than a minute through Ondrej Lauko and Luke Ferrara seemingly sending the game to overtime with a valuable point going to the visitors.

However a late power-play chance for Phoenix saw Archer fire a bullet slap shot that was too hot for King to handle to seal the points, with the assist again going to Duggan.

Phantoms however clinched a playoff spot after Bracknell crashed out with a 7-3 loss to Swindon Wildcats, who will be Phoenix’s opponents next weekend in the playoff quarter-finals.

Coach Tony Hand said: “This has been a real rollercoaster of a league campaign and I think we can be proud of what we achieved, considering the injuries we carried for a large part of the season.

“We are ready for the playoffs, we know what Swindon are capable of, and we are looking forward to challenging for the final piece of silverware this season.”

Jets end Phoenix title hopes

Manchester Phoenix 2-5 Slough Jets

Slough sniper Darius Pliskauskas netted a hat-trick on Sunday night to end Manchester Phoenix’s hopes of retaining their English Premier League crown.

Phoenix went down on back to back nights for the first time since December as they lost 2-1 in Sheffield on Saturday whilst league leaders Guildford beat Basingstoke to clinch the title on Sunday.

Tony Hand’s side, who still haven’t completed a single game this season with a full squad through injuries, went behind to a controversial opener from the visitors as the Jets took the lead whilst Phoenix’s Slava Koulikov was down injured on the ice.

Slough doubled their lead on the power-play before the first break through Aaron Connolly but Jaroslav Spelda struck early in the second period to cut the deficit in half.

Phoenix however were struggling to create clear chances against a resilient Slough defence and they went behind further as Pliskauskus beat Manchester netminder Steve Fone twice early in the third period.

Juraj Faith scored on the power-play for the home side with just under five minutes remaining but Pliskauskas sealed the win for the visitors with his hat-trick strike just seconds later.

Hand said “That was a tough defeat to take. Slough caught us cold from the start and we were always chasing the game from then on.

“It’s sad to have to relinquish the title, but congratulations to Guildford Flames. We’ll regroup and focus our efforts on building a strong momentum going into the playoffs.”

Phoenix double up Tigers

Manchester Phoenix 4-2 Telford Tigers

Forward Stephen Wallace broke a 2-2 tie early in the final period and Juraj Faith added an empty net goal to help lead Manchester Phoenix past Telford on Saturday.

Phoenix, still hopeful of catching league leaders Guildford, beat the Tigers 4-3 away on Sunday as well for a maximum points weekend.

On Saturday, Tom Duggan rang a shot off the cross bar and then hit the post before player coach Tony Hand finally opened the scoring in the 13th minute to give Phoenix the lead at the first interval.

But Telford drew level early in the second period through Josh Henry before
Ciaran Long restored the home sides lead once more in the 36th minute.

Phoenix captain Luke Boothroyd’s bad pass in his own zone gifted the Tigers an equalizer through Scott McKenzie which sent the sides into the second break all square.

Wallace scored the game winner in the 44th minute as the puck slid under a clawing Tigers netminder Declan Ryan before Faith added an empty net goal with a second left on the clock.

Phoenix now lie six points behind leaders Guildford with six games left whilst they have a four point cushion over third placed Sheffield.

Hand said after the game: “All credit to Telford they worked hard all night and made things difficult for us. I thought we lost a very soft goal to make it 2-2 but we took control in the third to take the points.”

Hand returns to boost Phoenix past Cats

Manchester Phoenix 6-5 Swindon Wildcats (After Overtime)

Player coach Tony Hand returned to line up on Sunday night and helped propel Manchester Phoenix past Swindon in overtime.

Hand had been out with an ankle injury since November but lead a Phoenix third period comeback with three assists after his side trailed 5-3 at the second break.

Phoenix, who went down 6-3 in Swindon the previous night, went behind after only 20 seconds on Sunday when Aaron Nell ripped a shot past Manchester netminder Steve Fone.

But goals from Tom Duggan and James Archer put Phoenix in front at the first break before a disastrous middle period put the home side in a hole.

Swindon struck four times through Nell (2), Michal Pinc and Lee Richardson whilst the only response from the home side came from Stephen Wallace leaving Phoenix with everything to do in the third period.

Phoenix were level within five minutes of the restart as Hand provided back to back assists on two goals from Jaroslav Spelda and the teams went to overtime where Phoenix captain Luke Boothroyd scored with a speculative shot from the half way line to secure the extra point.

Hand said after the game: “We were off the pace this weekend and we were punished. We needed a big slice of luck to take the points from this game and we got it, but we can’t rely on that.

“We’ll regroup ready for our double header against Telford next weekend.”

Archer fires last minute winner to sink Bees

Manchester Phoenix 3-2 Bracknell Bees

James Archer netted a dramatic late goal on Sunday night to lead Manchester Phoenix past Bracknell after the visitors tied the game late.

Bracknell equalized with a minute and a half remaining in the third period and the game looked to be going to overtime before Archer hit the winner on the power-play with 18 seconds left.

Phoenix, who beat Bracknell 5-3 away on Saturday, went behind to a Peter Jasik strike against the run of play but Ladislav Harabin quickly brought the home side level with a power-play goal minutes later.

Archer gave Phoenix the lead in the 25th minute with another power-play goal before Bracknell’s style of the play brought tempers to boiling point and Phoenix’s Ryan Johnson was given a match penalty for roughing after an altercation with the visitors Scott Spearing.

Martin Masa brought the sides level with little over a minute remaining after a rough, hard hitting third period where the visitors looked to have carved out an away point.

But a late power-play opportunity for Phoenix resulted in Archer hitting the winner with seconds on the clock securing a maximum points weekend for Manchester.

Player coach Tony Hand said: “That was an ugly win, but we’ll take the points however they come.

“We knew the Bees would come at us hard, but we were determined to stick to our style of play and we were confident the chances would come.”

Phoenix all square with Flames; beat Lightning

Manchester Phoenix 2-2 Guildford Flames (Cup Semi Final 1st Leg)
Manchester Phoenix 5-2 Milton Keynes Lightning

Ciaran Long ensured Manchester Phoenix go into the EPL cup semi-final second leg against Guildford all square with a vital equaliser on Saturday.

Phoenix, who were in danger of going behind to league leaders Guildford Flames after their home leg, came from behind twice to give themselves a fighting chance in the second game on Wednesday night.

The Flames took the lead late in the second period through Josef Kohut after the Phoenix defence turned the puck over but James Archer drew the home side level early in the final period.

David Longstaff gave the visitors the lead once more in the 53rd minute, but Phoenix fought back and Long finished off a slick move from Phoenix with Luke Boothroyd and Tom Duggan assisting to leave the sides all square for the second leg.

Meanwhile on Sunday, Phoenix returned to league action with a convincing 5-2 win over Milton Keynes Lightning.

Three goals in the first nine minutes set Tony Hand’s side on their way and they never looked back.

Long scored his second of the weekend after two minutes with an easy tap in before Juraj Faith bagged a power-play goal. Tom Duggan scored Phoenix’s third and the Lightning were forced to take an early time out to right the ship.

Ladislav Harabin grabbed Phoenix’s fourth early in the second before the Lightning staged a brief fight back with goals from Grant McPherson and Tuomas Tikkanen but Martin Cingel added a late empty net goal to seal the win.

Phoenix rout Tigers

Manchester Phoenix 9-1 Telford Tigers

Josh Ward scored his first ever goal for Manchester Phoenix and earned the man of the match award as Phoenix ran riot against bottom of the league Telford.

Phoenix, who have now won 13 of the last 16 games, scored 3 goals in each period to cruise to victory on Saturday night.

Goals from Slava Koulikov, Ladislav Harabin and Martin Cingel got the home side going in the first period, whilst Ryan Johnson and a Tom Duggan double saw Phoenix lead 6-0 at the second break.

Ward netted his first of the season in the 46th minute before setting up Ciaran Long for Phoenix’s eighth of the night and Juraj Faith rounded out the scoring for the home side with a solo goal.

But to Telford’s credit, they pressed forward and scored a late consolation through Tomas Janak as he beat back up netminder Jorge El-Hage who saw some rare ice time in the third period.

Player coach Tony Hand said: “I am very pleased with the performance. We showed how well we can play, and how well we understand each other.

“Telford are a hard team to play against, and you need a strong start to set the tone. We did that, and reaped the reward.”

Phoenix now look forward to a home double header this weekend in Altrincham with a cup semi final clash against Guildford Flames on Saturday and a visit from Milton Keynes on Sunday.

Manchester Phoenix promo trailer

Archer fires Phoenix past Cats

Manchester Phoenix 6-3 Swindon Wildcats

James Archer fired in a natural hat-trick on Sunday night to help Manchester Phoenix come from behind to beat Swindon.

Archer struck three straight goals in the second period after Ladislav Harabin netted a power-play goal to put Phoenix 4-1 up after going a goal down in the opening period.

Swindon cut the deficit to two goals when Aaron Nell scored in the 32nd minute but Ciaran Long restored the home sides three goal cushion going into the third period.

Both teams traded goals in the last twenty minutes with Swindon’s Paul Swindlehurst blasting a slap shot past Steve Fone in the Manchester net whilst Phoenix’s Stephen Wallace added a late power-play goal.

The win completed a four point weekend for Phoenix after they beat Milton Keynes Lightning 3-1 on Saturday.

Goals from Juraj Faith and Wallace (2) ensured Tony Hand’s side stay in second place in the English Premier League table, four points behind leaders Guildford.

Hand said: “That was an excellent win against a very hard-working team. We were dominating, but the chances weren’t going in until the second period, but when we found our rhythm we took charge.

“I’m delighted for James. He works hard every shift and doesn’t always get the praise he deserves, but it was great to see him grab a hat trick and take the plaudits in front of our own fans.”

Phoenix shutout Dogs; Move into second place

Manchester Phoenix 3-0 Sheffield Steeldogs

Manchester Phoenix have stepped up in their challenge of retaining the English Premier League title after shutting out rivals Sheffield on Thursday night.

Phoenix have now won ten of their last eleven games with their only defeat coming last Sunday where they went down 5-2 to the league leading Guildford Flames.

With the game deadlocked at 0-0 after forty minutes on Thursday, Phoenix scored three times in eight minutes to seal an important win that keeps them in the hunt for a second league title.

Goals from Tom Duggan, Ciaran Long and Slava Koulikov ensured Phoenix took the points whilst another stand out performance from netminder Steve Fone was a highlight in a gritty nights work from the home side.

Player coach Tony Hand said “It wasn’t a pretty win, but we’ll take it. We needed to get another victory under our belts after the disappointment of losing to Guildford on Sunday.

“We’re still in the mix at the top of the league and we’ll keep plugging away. The guys did well tonight against tough opposition.”

Fone keeps Phoenix flying

Manchester Phoenix 4-1 Guildford Flames

Netminder Steve Fone produced a stellar performance against the league leading Guildford Flames on Saturday night to extend Manchester Phoenix’s hot streak to nine games.

Fone kept his cool during wave after wave of Guildford pressure during the second period and stopped 39 of 40 shots in total that the visitors fired his way.

Ben Wood opened the scoring for Phoenix early in the first period and his strike was added to by Ladislav Harabin, who blasted a slap shot past Mark Lee in the Flames net on the powerplay before the first break.

Tony Hand’s team had Fone to thank after a goal-less middle period in which Guildford took the game to the home side but were unable to find the net.

Phoenix converted their third goal in the first minute of the third period with Juraj Faith finding the net and Slava Koulikov added Phoenix’s fourth shortly after to end the contest.

Guildford finally found a way past Fone with less than five minutes remaining with a late consolation goal to end the shut-out attempt.

Phoenix coach Tony Hand said: “This was a massive win for us, and the guys thoroughly deserved it.

“Everyone played their part in a superb performance. We created chances and we took them, and we kept our heads when we were under pressure, which we knew we would be against a team like Flames.”

On-fire Phoenix sink Lightning for 8 straight wins

Manchester Phoenix 6-3 Milton Keynes Lightning

A three goal blitz in the third period secured another two points and an eighth consecutive win for Manchester Phoenix on Sunday against Milton Keynes.

Phoenix, who shut-out Basingstoke 5-0 in Hampshire on Saturday, beat the Lightning for the third time in their current eight-game winning streak and Tom Duggan scored a double on his return to the line up.

Duggan opened the scoring early for Phoenix before Adam Carr quickly pulled the visitors level. Martin Cingel then set up Duggan for a shorthanded goal to give the home side the lead at the first interval.

Lightning came back strong in the second period and equalised through Juraj Gracik on the power-play before Juraj Faith and Grant McPherson traded goals to leave the teams tied at 3-3 going into the final period.

Phoenix broke the deadlock with the game winning goal in the 45th minute when Ben Wood fired a quick snap shot that trickled through the pads of Lightning netminder Alex Mettam and further goals from Jaroslav Spelda and Ladislav Harabin saw Phoenix out of sight.

Player coach Tony Hand said: “Games against the Lightning are never dull, and this was another superb evening’s entertainment for the fans.

“We are on fire right now, and this sets us up perfectly for two crunch games against Guildford Flames next weekend.”

Faith & Spelda keep Phoenix rolling

Slough Jets 2-4 Manchester Phoenix
Telford Tigers 5-8 Manchester Phoenix

Manchester Phoenix continued their hot start to the New Year with back to back road wins in Slough and Telford last weekend to take their streak to six games.

Still without player coach Tony Hand and Tom Duggan, Phoenix returned to Slough on Saturday where they were humiliated in a 9-0 thrashing a few weeks ago. But since then Phoenix have not lost and gained some revenge for the hammering with a 4-2 win.

Goals from Ciaran Long, Juraj Faith and Ryan Johnson gave Phoenix a 3-1 lead going into the third period and in spite of the Jets pulling a goal back, Jaroslav Spelda hit an empty net goal in the dying seconds to seal an important victory.

The following night in Telford, Spelda and Faith again led Phoenix to victory with two goals each whilst Martin Cingel also grabbed a pair.

Stephen Wallace and Long also scored for the visitors in the win which sees them rise to joint third with Slough and Sheffield in the English Premier League table.

Phoenix will now look to continue their winning form when they take on Basingstoke Bison away on Saturday before returning to Altrincham on Sunday to face the Milton Keynes Lightning.

Koulikov keeps Phoenix hot; nets OT winner.

Manchester Phoenix 3-2 Bracknell Bees (after overtime)

Slava Koulikov ensured Manchester Phoenix continued their recent winning run into 2012 by firing in an overtime winner to beat Bracknell.

Winger Koulikov fired in a rocket slap shot to beat Bracknell netminder Carl Ambler just seconds into the extra period after the Bees tied the game late on in the third period.

Phoenix have now won four straight games for the first time this season and are starting to find their feet after a bad run of injuries.

However it was the visiting Bees that opened the scoring in the middle period after a dull first, Scott Spearing beating Steve Fone in the Manchester net in the 21st minute.

Tony Hand’s side finally came to life just past the half hour mark with two goals in under four minutes turning the tie. Koulikov grabbed his first of the night before Jaroslav Spelda gave Phoenix the lead in the 37th minute.

But with time ticking down in the third period and the home side unable to add to their lead, Bracknell’s Lukas Smital struck sending the teams to overtime.

A late penalty on the visitors meant that Phoenix started the extra period with a power-play and Koulikov took full advantage and scored the winner for the extra point.

Phoenix edge Steeldogs in shoot-out

Manchester Phoenix 5-4 Sheffield Steeldogs (After penalty shots)

Winger Stephen Wallace returned to the Manchester Phoenix line up on Tuesday night and helped his side fight back against rivals Sheffield.

Wallace, back on the ice after suffering a broken wrist, scored the equalizing fourth goal for the home side as Phoenix recovered from a two goal deficit three times before winning the game in a shoot-out.

Steeldogs scored twice in the opening period through Ashley Calvert and Greg Wood for a 2-0 lead but Phoenix, still without leader Tony Hand, fought back in the second period.

First Martin Cingel cut the lead in the 23rd minute before Stuart Brittle restored the visitors two goal cushion. Phoenix’s Slava Koulikov and Brittle then traded goals within a five minute spell before goals from Ciaran Long and Wallace tied the game at 4-4.

The final period remained goalless despite a five minute power-play opportunity for Phoenix after Sheffield’s Pavel Gomeniuk was ejected for boarding Phoenix’s Josh Ward and neither team could find a winner in overtime.

Koulikov and Juraj Faith scored their penalty shots against Ben Bowns in the Sheffield net whilst only Greg Wood could beat Steve Fone in the home goal and Phoenix took the extra point.

Hand said after the game, “We kept our heads up tonight, we battled back when things looked bleak and we got the win we deserved. That shows the character we have in this locker room.

“The guys are fighting back and the confidence is growing.”

Cingel hat-trick lifts Phoenix past Lightning

Manchester Phoenix 4-2 Milton Keynes Lightning

Martin Cingel fired in a treble for Manchester Phoenix against Milton Keynes Lightning on Sunday night and secured a Cup semi final place in the process.

Phoenix, who were thrashed 9-0 on Saturday by Slough Jets, bounced back with an impressive performance against a strong Lightning team who have already beaten Tony Hand’s side 5-2 earlier in the season.

Ciaran Long opened the scoring for the home side in the 7th minute when he connected with a Tom Duggan pass whilst crashing the net which left Lightning netminder Alex Mettam little chance.

Cingel doubled Phoenix’s lead before the first break, but the Lightning cut the deficit early in the second period with a Leigh Jamieson power-play goal.

Jamieson then netted the equalizer, again on the power-play in the 46th minute setting up a tense final ten minutes. But with Phoenix needing nothing less than a win to secure a Cup semi final place, Cingel struck twice in five minutes.

The first came from an impossible angle, banking the puck off the inside of Mettam’s leg from the left boards whilst his hat trick goal was worked from behind the net with Phoenix debutant James Spurr.

Player coach Tony Hand said: “I’m proud of the guys, and it’s nice to go into Christmas on the back of a thrilling win.

“I’m delighted for the fans that have stuck by us, cheered us on through thick and thin. This was a huge performance and it was for them.”