Impressive Peterborough Phantoms power into the play-off semi-finals

Peterborough Phantoms could hardly have started their challenge for NIHL Division One South play-offs glory any more impressively.
Petr Stepanek scored four for Phantoms against Thunder.Petr Stepanek scored four for Phantoms against Thunder.
Petr Stepanek scored four for Phantoms against Thunder.

The city side reeled off high-scoring successes on consecutive nights to blow away lowly Milton Keynes Thunder at the quarter-final stage.

They triumphed 12-1 at Planet Ice yesterday (March 24) to seal a 19-4 aggregate verdict following their 7-3 victory in the first leg the previous evening.

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Regular season runners-up Phantoms were ruthless and relentless as they put their second-bottom rivals to the sword to set up a semi-final showdown against Basingstoke this weekend.

Another hat-trick for Ales Padelek for Phantoms against Thunder.Another hat-trick for Ales Padelek for Phantoms against Thunder.
Another hat-trick for Ales Padelek for Phantoms against Thunder.

It means a mouth-watering repeat of the NIHL South Cup final, in which Phantoms pipped the Bison 6-5 on aggregate earlier this month to complete an honours double following their December success in the NIHL Autumn Cup, lies ahead.

“We were pretty sharp offensively over the two legs,” said head coach Slava Koulikov. “We moved the puck well, we produced a lot of good combination play and we scored plenty of goals.

“It was important to have the right mindset over this weekend. We couldn’t afford to play at 50 per cent just because we were facing a team who finished seventh.

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“We can now take this momentum and intensity into a really tough challenge next weekend against Basingstoke.

“We’ve already played them eight times this season and I’ll be more than happy with a repeat of the cup final.

“It’s tough to predict what will happen in play-off hockey, but I can guarantee two good teams will be laying it all on the line as they try to reach the final.”

Phantoms’ two imports led the way in the scoring stakes last night. Big Petr Stepanek struck four times while his fellow Czech star Ales Padelek hit a fourth hat-trick of a prolific month.

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Martins Susters and captain James Ferrara also bagged two goals apiece with Glenn Billing the other man to find the net.

Half-a-dozen of the Phantoms efforts arrived in powerplay situations while Stepanek twice struck when they were short-handed.

Phantoms’ haul would have been even greater had Stepanek not pinged he pipes on two occasions and Thunder netminder Jordan Lawday not pulled off a string of impressive saves.

The visitors’ only reply arrived early in the final period from one-time Phantoms man Jamie Line. Thunder had seen Hallden Barnes-Garner thrown out for jumping Ferrara towards the end of the opening session.

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Phantoms’ 19-4 verdict was only the third biggest aggregate margin recording during quarter-finals weekend. Elsewhere in the South, league champions Swindon thumped rock-bottom Invicta 24-5 while NIHL Division One North winners Hull bashed Sutton Sting 29-4 in the opening round of the play-offs in that section.

Such scorelines are highly unlikely to be repeated next weekend at the semi-final stage.

Phantoms travel to Basingstoke on Saturday (March 30, 6.30pm) for the opening leg before hosting the Bison at Planet Ice on Sunday (March 31, 5.30pm).

Swindon take on Bracknell, who finished the regular season in fourth spot, in the other last-four clash.

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NIHL Division One South play-offs, quarter-finals aggregate scores: Swindon 24, Invicta 5; Phantoms 19, Milton Keynes Thunder 4;

Basingstoke 10, Streatham 4; Bracknell 6, Raiders 3.

MATCH DETAILS

Goals

PHANTOMS

10.08 Stepanek (PP) ass: White/Robson

13.20 Stepanek ass: Weldon/R. Ferrara

14.06 Padelek ass: Long/Billing

15.20 Susters (PP) ass: Stepanek

21.39 Billing (PP) ass: Norton/Padelek

30.50 J. Ferrara (PP) ass: Weldon/Padelek

32.56 Stepenak (SH) ass: Susters

35.42 Padelek ass: J. Ferrara/Billing

42.12 Susters ass: Norton/Long

46.42 Padelek (PP) ass: Billing/J. Ferrara

52.34 Stepenak (SH) ass: Susters

57.13 J. Ferrara (PP): ass: Padelek/Billing

MILTON KEYNES THUNDER

40.45 Line ass: Edwards

Men-of-the-match

PHANTOMS - Petr Stepanek

MILTON KEYNES THUNDER - Alex Whyte