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Sigh of relief: Shaka Toney helps Lions escape Indiana with a win

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WVC Football: Nanticoke Area runs over GAR, 35-0

WILKES-BARRE TWP. &#8212; There were two common themes that surfaced as the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and Lehigh Valley Phantoms closed out a two-game set on Saturday.There were a lot of goals as both teams combined for 18 tallies &#8212; nine in each game. And the penalty calls were lopsided, ending up 10-3 in favor of the Phantoms in both games combined.Those elements doomed the Penguins during Saturday&#8217;s 6-3 loss, after they established a 2-0 lead in the first 20 minutes only to watch the Phantoms score six times in the final two periods.Lehigh Valley also received the only two power plays of the game, and they only needed a combined 14 seconds to score twice with the man advantage.And then there was Will O&#8217;Neill, who was facing his former team for the second time and ended up with 27 penalty minutes thanks to a lengthy list of calls he received after shoving Taylor Leier.After a promising start, it was an ugly finish for the Penguins.&#8220;We didn&#8217;t handle the pressure. We didn&#8217;t handle their skill as well as we did last night,&#8221; said head coach Clark Donatelli.Sam Miletic propelled the Penguins to a 2-0 lead in the first period, beginning with a deflection on an O&#8217;Neill point shot. Minutes later, Miletic scored his second when he poked home a rebound from a Chris Summers shot.But the Phantoms weren&#8217;t done, scoring three consecutive goals to take a 3-2 lead midway through the second period.They gained the lead after Teddy Blueger went to the box for the first penalty of the night more than 11 minutes into the second period.Six seconds later, the Phantoms won an offensive zone faceoff and Phil Varone deflected a point shot past Anthony Peters.After that, the teams exchanged goals with Ethan Prow blasting a point shot over netminder Alex Lyon and Lehigh Valley&#8217;s German Rubtsov connecting for his second of the night to give the Phantoms a 4-3 lead.The Phantoms gave themselves a cushion midway through the third period when Mike Vecchione made a backhand pass from behind the net that went through the Penguins&#8217; defense to Philippe Myers for a one-timer.Later in the period, the second penalty of the night went to the Penguins again, and it took Lehigh Valley just eight seconds to convert for a 6-3 lead.Donatelli said the goal was the result of a faceoff play that the Phantoms copied from the Penguins.&#8220;They ran the same faceoff play we showed them right before the game. They ran the exact same play on their second power play goal,&#8221; he said.O&#8217;Neill wasn&#8217;t happy that the Penguins didn&#8217;t get a chance to use the power play to get back into the game. Instead, he said, they found themselves chasing the Phantoms for most of the night.&#8220;Last night we had three power plays total. Tonight there could&#8217;ve been a couple of hooking or holding (calls) to put us on the power play and it didn&#8217;t happen. They get two and we get zero,&#8221; O&#8217;Neill said.O&#8217;Neill also wasn&#8217;t too pleased about the 27 penalty minutes he was assessed at the end of the game that began with an exchange of shoves with Leier. After a brief scrum, O&#8217;Neill was hit with an instigator, fighting major, misconduct and game misconduct, raising the possibility of a suspension.&#8220;It&#8217;s a play where it&#8217;s a contested breakaway. (Leier) turns around and gives me one, so I don&#8217;t know what the ref really wants me to do,&#8221; O&#8217;Neill said. &#8220;I have to protect myself in that situation. If you want to give us four minutes for roughing and let us leave the rink, that&#8217;s fine.&#8221;<style>
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<div class="neCaption">O&#8217;Neill </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/web1_ONeill.jpg</photo0><caption0>O&#8217;Neill </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta>By Tom Veneskytvenesky@www.timesleader.com</bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta>Penguins 3, Lehigh Valley 6Lehigh Valley `1`3`2 &#8212; `6Penguins `2`1`0 &#8212; `3First PeriodScoring &#8211; 1. WBS, Sam Miletic 2 (O&#8217;Neill, Lafferty) 7:27. 2. WBS, Sam Miletic 3 (Summers, Elliott) 11:19. 3. LV, Mark Friedman 1 (Leier, de Haas) 12:30. Penalties - None.Second PeriodScoring &#8211; 4. LV, German Rubtsov 2 (Friedman) 6:40. 5. LV, Phil Varone 2 (Carey, Brennan) power play 11:44. 6. WBS, Ehtan Prow 2 (Abt, Josephs) 14:38. 7. LV, German Rubtsov 3 (Bunnaman, Friedman) 19:08. Penalties - WBS, Blueger (slashing) 11:38.Third PeriodScoring &#8211; 8. LV, Philippe Myers 2 (Vecchione, Palmquist) 8:49. 9. LV, Chris Conner 1 (Brennan, Varone) power play 12:36. Penalties - WBS, Lafferty (tripping) 12:28; LV, Leier (fighting) 19:26; WBS, O&#8217;Neill (instigating, fighting, misconduct, game misconduct) 19:26.Shots on goalLehigh Valley &#8211; 13-9-15-37Penguins &#8211; 20-18-7-45Power-play OpportunitiesLehigh Valley &#8211; 2 of 3Penguins &#8211; 0 of 0GoaltendersLehigh Valley &#8211; Alex Lyon 1-0-0 (42 saves-45 shots)Penguins &#8211; Anthony Peters 3-1-0 (31-37)StartersLehigh Valley &#8211; G Alex Lyon, D Philippe Myers, D Zach Palmquist, LW Tyrell Goulbourne, C Cole Bardreau, RW Radel FazleevPenguins &#8211; G Anthony Peters, D Zach Trotman, D Will O&#8217;Neill, LW Sam Miletic, C Sam Lafferty, RW Zach Aston-ReeseThree Stars1. LV, German Rubtsov (two goals) 2. LV, Alex Lyon (42 saves) 3. WBS, Sam Miletic (two goals) Referee &#8211; Mitch Dunning, Dan Kelly. Linesmen &#8211; Tom DellaFranco, Luke Murray.Attendance &#8211; 4,837</factboxMeta></div>

WBS Penguins fall to Phantoms despite early lead