Staff file photo / Brian Yauger. Phantoms forward Evan Jardine fires a shot on net during the Phantoms’ regular season finale against Team USA last season.

Last season, in his first full year with the Youngstown Phantoms, Evan Jardine broke out as one of the team’s top scorers.

Finishing with 44 points (20 goals, 24 assists) in 62 games, Jardine was fourth on the team in points. Going into his draft year, the forward from Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, is expected to take another step forward.

“Coming into his third year, he’s going to drive some offense for us,” Phantoms coach Ryan Ward said. “He’s just been a phenomenal kid at camp and is taking on a leadership role.”

Jardine’s takeaway from his first year was making sure to ride the ups and downs of the season and never get too into the highs or lows.

“There’s a lot of ups and downs, like a little inconsistency, but it’s fun here and you kind of got to enjoy it,” Jardine said. “You don’t want to be too down on yourself, but also not too high. It’s a long season.”

Describing his game as “being a bit of a pest,” and naming Corey Perry as someone he tries to emulate in his game, Jardine is embracing winning above all else.

A big focus for Jardine this season is improving his skating and taking his overall game to a new level. It’s all about helping the team win more.

“One of the main focuses is my skating,” he said. “I’ve been working through that this summer and hopefully that translates into the games. Hopefully, I can have a big year next year and the team has a big year.”

As a veteran in the lineup now, Jardine is going to be counted on for more than just his on-ice contributions. He’s going to be counted on to be a leader, and that’s something Jardine is excited for.

“I want to be a leader on this team and help the younger guys out,” he said. “That’s one of my goals is to be a leader on this team. I’ve been getting the guys together, like some of the draft picks and just talking to them. Getting them integrated with the team, with all the returners, and getting them accumulated. Showing them how the Phantoms do stuff around here. Obviously it’s not (the full experience) like how the season is, but you can give them a little taste of what it’s like.”

Over the last two seasons he’s been in the Phantoms’ system, he’s learned a few things about leadership. Under captains Andrew Strathmann (2023-24) and Coleson Hanrahan (2024-25), he was able to pick things up and Jardine made an effort to catch the newer players up to speed at the team’s camp in June.

“We had a great group last year, one of the best locker rooms I’ve ever been a part of and I think that’s the biggest thing,” Jardine said. “Obviously we came up a little short, but that’s the biggest thing to building a winning team. I can’t say enough about these guys returning either. Everyone’s been great with all the guys. Hopefully, the new guys are feeling welcome and they like what we’re doing here because it’s a special place and a special organization.”

While the draft is important, and getting selected is a goal for Jardine, helping bring another Clark Cup remains the mission.

“Obviously to get drafted would be huge, but I also just want to win a championship, that’s the biggest goal that there is,” Jardine said. “We want to win here, like everyone’s bought into that. And I think we have a good group to do that.”

Jardine was committed to Harvard for the 2026-27 season, but has recently re-opened his college search.