STREAKING CRUNCH VISIT PHANTOMS   

The Crunch look to extend their winning streak to five games as they visit the Lehigh Valley Phantoms tonight at the PPL Center.
 
The Phantoms have won the first two matches in this year's four-game season series. The series concludes in Syracuse on April 11.
 
BROADCAST COVERAGE

Countdown to Crunch Time at 6:50 p.m.
Streaming: Pay-to-watch video via AHLTV on FloHockey | www.syracusecrunch.com/watch
Radio: ESPN Radio Syracuse | www.espncny.com
 
LAST TIME OUT

The Crunch routed the Springfield Thunderbirds, 8-3, Saturday at the MassMutual Center to cap a home-and-home sweep of the T-Birds.
 
One day after earning a 9-4 win against the Thunderbirds, the Crunch's offense went right to work again on Saturday. Logan Brown opened the scoring with his 11th goal of the season at 4:06 of the first period. The T-Birds countered with two goals in less than two minutes to take a 2-1 lead, but Declan Carlile leveled the game at two with 1:05 left in the period.
 
Springfield capitalized early in the second period to take a 3-2 lead, but the Crunch scored six straight goals to pull away. Joel Teasdale tied the game at 13:30 and Conor Sheary put the Crunch ahead for good at 14:45. Jack Finley also tallied in the second period to make it 5-3.
 
Syracuse picked up goals from Max Crozier, Gabriel Szturc and Tobie Bisson in the third period. The 17 total goals over two games by the Crunch established a new team record for goals in a two-game span.
 
SCOUTING THE CRUNCH

The Crunch have won four games in a row to match their longest winning streak of the season (also Dec. 27-Jan. 3). Syracuse has earned points in 11 of the last 14 games (9-3-2-0) since Feb. 8. 
 
The Crunch are 27-19-8-4 on the season, and they are tied for fourth place in the North Division with 66 points. They are five points behind Toronto for third place and two points clear of Belleville — the first team on the outside of the playoff cutoff.  
 
Defenseman Derrick Pouliot is coming off his second three-point game of the season on Saturday. He leads all AHL players with 41 assists this season, and he is tied for first among defensemen with 48 points. Both represent new career highs for the 11th year pro. 
 
OFFENSIVE FIREPOWER  

The Crunch hope their goal-scoring prowess carries into the new week after nearly a full week between games. The Crunch had their two finest offensive performances of the season on back-to-back nights against the Springfield Thunderbirds. The Crunch scored a season-high nine goals on Friday at home and then followed that with an eight-goal outburst Saturday in Springfield. It established a new team record for most goals scored in a two-game span.
 
Seventeen players notched at least one point during the two-game set, and 10 different players scored a goal.
 
Syracuse has scored 24 goals during their four-game winning streak, outscoring their opponents 24-9. The team has raised its goals per game from 2.72 to 2.95 in that time. 
 
BROWN STAYS HOT

Forward Logan Brown helped power the Crunch to their two-game sweep of the Thunderbirds. He potted a hat trick on Friday and then opened the scoring on Saturday. He also earned an assist in the rematch to total five points (4g, 1a) in the two-game series. 
 
Brown has earned points in all four games during the Crunch's winning streak. He has 26 points (11g, 15a) in 30 games played this season to rank fourth on the team in scoring.
 
SHEARY RISES TO THE TOP

Forward Conor Sheary had a dominant week for the Crunch to power the club to three wins in four days. He scored a goal in all three games and finished with seven points (4g, 3a) to lead the Crunch. Two of his four goals were game-winning goals.
 
He delivered a late game-winning goal in Wednesday's 2-1 win over Utica, capping a two-point performance. He added two goals Friday and three points (1g, 2a) on Saturday against the Thunderbirds; his Saturday tally was also a game-winning goal. Sheary has taken the team lead with 17 goals and ranks second with 46 points in 46 games. 
 
SCOUTING THE PHANTOMS

The Phantoms are 2-1-0-0 to begin their five-game homestand. They picked up a 6-3 win over the Milwaukee Admirals on Wednesday to improve to 31-23-5-2 this season. They are in fifth place in the Atlantic Division with 69 points. They are 17-10-2-1 on home ice this season.
 
With leading scorer Olle Lycksell recalled to Philadelphia, Jacob Gaucher tops active Phantoms in scoring with 36 points (20g, 16a) in 60 games. His 20 goals are the most on the team. Zayde Wisdom has been productive over the last two weeks. He has a point in four of the last five games, earning six points (4g, 2a) in that span.
 
The two goalies with wins against the Crunch — Parker Gahagen and Keith Petruzzelli — are both currently with ECHL-Reading. In their places are Alexei Kolosov (5-5-1/3.20/.880) and Cal Petersen (11-12-3/3.28/.880).
 
HEAD-TO-HEAD

The Crunch and Phantoms are meeting for the third time this season. Lehigh Valley has won the two previous contests — one at home and one on the road. Syracuse's other four-game winning streak this season was snapped by the Phantoms on Jan. 4. The Phantoms have not won a season series against the Crunch since moving to Allentown ahead of the 2014-15 season.
 
In this year's series, Alexis Gendron leads the way with three goals in two games. He scored twice, including the game-winning goal, in the matchup at the PPL Center on Feb. 15. Derrick Pouliot tops the Crunch with three points (1g, 2a) against one of his former clubs (2020-21).