After a disappointing loss to the San Jose Sharks, the Philadelphia Flyers and their fans have something to cheer about today.
For the first time since being cut by the Flyers on Oct. 6, Wade Allison found twine as a member of the Lehigh Valley Phantoms for the first time this AHL season. In his previous nine games, the 26-year-old was goalless with two assists. Despite Allison’s goal, the Phantoms fell to 4-5-2 on the year, and their 0.455 points percentage places them just 25th in the AHL.
To get the counterattack started, Allison follows the puck as he normally would before deftly swatting the puck from a Springfield Thunderbirds defenseman at the blueline. After recovering the loose puck, the former Flyers forward surges forward to create a 2-on-1 for the Phantoms in the offensive zone. After feigning a pass to a streaking teammate, Allison pivots to the middle of the circles before uncorking a wrist shot that beat the Springfield goalie on his far side.
The former second-round pick was never much of a goal-scorer at the NHL level – he has 13 goals in 75 career games – but a heady play turning defense into offense is exactly what the Flyers want to see out of him. More plays like that will earn Allison the attention of Ian Laperriere and John Tortorella, and should the injury bug bite a forward, he figures to be one of the first names on the list of potential call-ups.
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