By: Alex “Shaggy” Shragis
Photo By: Matthew Pawlowski
The Philadelphia Phoenix traveled north with just 15 players and folded to the New York Empire, losing 37-20 in the final game of the season. This was the third time this season that the Phoenix lost by 17 points, and the sixth game they lost by double digits. Marking the first season since 2019 the team lost even a single game by double digits, and the first time since 2016 losses of multiple games by 15 or more points occurred (2016 had multiple 20+ point blowouts). Philly did manage a break, but New York outscored them each quarter en route to a brutal one sided blowout.
Ben Jagt, who has been a thorn in the side of the Hotbirds since he came to New York in 2017, had an outrageous game with eight assists, six goals and two hockey assists on just 23 points played, leading to a +14 statline and 547 yards. Jagt’s big day is the culmination of the talent drain from Philly after last season. With so many key pieces leaving the Phoenix and forcing defensive personnel to shift to offense, Philly lacked a primary defender for the top tier goal scorers around the league all season. Further hampered by injuries and Masters Nationals, the Phoenix were powerless to stop the two time MVP.
Credit to the Hotbirds however, who after falling behind 6-1 midway through the first and finishing the first quarter down eight, managed to be outscored by just nine the rest of the way. While losing three quarters by nine points may not seem like much, any amount of fight on Saturday was important for the team moving into the off season. The Empire have been a difficult team to play under the best of circumstances, and forcing them to play the entire game is an accomplishment in its own right.
Moving into the off season, the most important goal for the Philadelphia Phoenix is to establish a gameplan surrounding their leadership positions. Coaches Adam Callahan and Harrison Schwarzer took several leaps this season as a first time head coach and first time pro coach respectively. While I may have questioned some of their decisions, empowering them would be the correct move, particularly when considering the current coach market in the Philly area. Moving quickly here is of utmost importance, because maintaining lines of communication between the team and its very young core is vital to starting next season off on the right foot.
Bringing 15 people to a game is never the goal. However, it did allow several young Phoenix future stars the opportunity to stretch their game and grow into big roles. Sam Davies and Nolan McCloskey had their biggest games as rookies, with Davies being the primary finishing option on the team — Davies had five goals, one assist and 434 receiving yards — while McCloskey displayed his throwing prowess coming in with three assists and 431 total yards. Tyler Mackey and Will Zamsky also had their biggest games as rookies, stepping up when the gameplan called for them to be distributors. Mackey’s 34 completions were the most he’s had in any game this season, while Zamsky had more points played, more assists and more completions than his four other games combined.
While this season’s record may be disappointing, growth does not come without growing pains. The Phoenix have had a lot of turnover over the last three seasons, both on the roster and among coaching staff. Throughout this season, Philly got massive debut performances from first and second year players, with Ezra Beidler-Shenk, Max Tran, Owen Erdman, Chase Rawlins and many more all finding themselves thrust into the spotlight, and all were up for the challenge. With the promising start to so many young careers on the 2026 Phoenix, the most important goal for the off season is to start building towards the consistency the team desperately needed throughout the season. The next step for the fledgling Hotbirds is player development, a monumental task which requires established units to foster the growth needed to help see all the young Philly players make the leap from exciting rookie to UFA star. The Phoenix leadership has its work cut out for them, but hopefully they can put 2026 in the past, moving forward to stretch through the growing pains and meet 2027 head on!
Stay up to date on Phoenix happenings including summer and fall youth programs, special events, tournaments and open tryouts on Instagram @phl_phoenix and the Hotbird Web Shop: phoenixulti.com.
