SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - The Springfield Thunderbirds (3-7-0-0) and the Lehigh Valley Phantoms (3-3-1-1) combined for 88 penalty minutes on Saturday night inside the MassMutual Center. After the dust settled, the Phantoms came away with a 5-2 victory. 

Before the opening draw even happened, there were indications of fireworks as Springfield bruiser Sam Bitten and Lehigh Valley captain Garrett Wilson exchanged pleasantries, leading both players to be separated by the officials. Still, the two enforcers' inevitable showdown occurred just 21 seconds into gameplay, as the two combatants traded fists in the neutral zone and elevated the noise level of both the benches and the crowd. 

Two subsequent scraps followed the Bitten/Wilson tangle as Hunter Skinner squared off with rookie Hunter McDonald, and Marcus Sylvegard got his chance to drop his gloves for his first AHL fight against J.R. Avon. All three concurrent sets of fighting majors happened in the first 7:49 of the period.

All the while, both teams had numerous chances to crack a scoreless draw, but the starting goaltenders were calm in the eye of the chaos around them. Colten Ellis made 16 first-period saves in the Springfield net, while Eetu Makiniemi denied 10 Springfield offerings in the opening 20 minutes. 

Both teams left power play chances on the table in the opening half of the period, but in the dying minutes, Lehigh Valley earned a 5-on-3 on two straight high-stick minors to Springfield. Jacob Gaucher finally opened the scoring with just 48 seconds left in the frame, jabbing a rebound between Ellis's legs just outside the goal crease. 

Gaucher added to his total just 38 seconds into the middle period. Moments after the T-Birds killed off a power play, the puck took a fortuitous kick to Gaucher's stick in the slot, and he chopped a backhander past Ellis to give the Phantoms a 2-0 advantage.

2:59 later, the Lehigh Valley power play continued its early-season surge as Samu Tuomaala wristed one through traffic on the left side and past Ellis to make it a 3-0 lead for the visitors.

Springfield's power play entered the night with just two power-play goals over its first nine games, but the man advantage found its groove late in the second as Drew Callin cleaned up a rebound from Nikita Alexandrov in the blue paint to make it a 3-1 game with 5:04 left in the frame. 

Unfortunately, the momentum did not carry into the third. Gaucher completed his hat trick just 6:33 into the final period, scooping up a centering pass after a misplay behind the Springfield net and making it 4-1. 

Dalibor Dvorsky continued his torrid run with a goal in his third straight game, picking up Springfield's second power-play goal at 8:14 of the third period, cutting the lead to 4-2. 

That would be as close as the T-Birds would come, and Anthony Richard capped the scoring with a breakaway goal at 12:56 to round out the scoring. 

The T-Birds complete their homestand on Wednesday morning for the annual School Day Game against the Bridgeport Islanders. Puck drop is set for 10:35 a.m. for the second meeting between the rivals.

Interested 2024-25 season ticket members can call (413) 739-GOAL (4625) or visit www.SpringfieldThunderbirds.com to learn how to become a regular at the Thunderdome.