RECAP: HAMMERS FALL TO PHANTOMS, SPLIT SEASON SERIES
Nov 13, 2026
Game Summary
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On the second stop of their four-game road trip, the Hamilton Hammers (5-10-0-2) came up short against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms (6-7-1-0), falling 3-0 Friday night in Allentown to split the season series.
After Hamilton grabbed a 6-3 victory over Lehigh Valley last Saturday, the Phantoms responded by keeping the Hammers off the scoresheet in Friday’s rematch, the second and final meeting between the teams this season. The loss also brought an end to Hamilton’s two-game winning streak.
A recap of the action:
THE SUMMARY
Josh Kotai was tested early in his eighth start of the season, making a sharp glove save on a Spencer Gill slapshot just 38 seconds into the contest. Lehigh Valley struck first, however, as Zayde Wisdom (4) beat Kotai with a backhand shot over his blocker-side shoulder to give the Phantoms a 1-0 lead.
Kotai came up with another big stop late in the frame, turning aside Noah Powell on a penalty shot with less than two minutes remaining. The Hamilton netminder finished the period with seven saves as the Phantoms carried a 1-0 lead into the intermission.
Hamilton generated its best chance of the second period off the stick of Joey Larson. Following a point shot from Kashawn Aitcheson, Larson collected the rebound and quickly fired on goal, but couldn’t get his attempt past Aleksei Kolosov.
Neither side could find the back of the net in the middle frame, with the Phantoms maintaining their one-goal advantage heading into the third.
Lehigh Valley added to its lead in the third period with goals from Zach Aston-Reese (3) and Riley Thompson (1), securing a 3-0 victory for the home side.
Back in the building where he made his professional debut against the Phantoms last season as a member of the Bridgeport Islanders, Kotai turned aside 27 of 30 shots faced. At the other end, Kolosov stopped all 15 shots he faced to record the shutout for Lehigh Valley.
Neither team found the back of the net on the power play, with Hamilton going 0-for-3 and Lehigh Valley finishing 0-for-1 on the man advantage.
COMING UP ON THE SCHEDULE
The Hammers are back in action Saturday evening, continuing their road trip against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins at 6:05 p.m. EST. Hamilton then heads to Cleveland for a Tuesday night matchup with the Monsters. Watch the action live on AHLTV on FloHockey.
The Hammers are back at TD Coliseum on November 20 to host the Belleville Senators for its inaugural Hockey Fights Cancer game in partnership with St. Joseph’s Healthcare Foundation. Specialty warm-up jerseys will be auctioned, with all proceeds supporting robotic-assisted cancer surgery and care at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton. Tickets are available at HamiltonHammers.com, with game broadcast live on CABLE14 and AHLTV on FloHockey.