A goal from Cam Squires and Josh Filmon, their first goals of the season for their Utica Comets, are enough to push the game into overtime and then a shootout and then a Lenni Hämeenaho shootout goal, the only during the period is enough to give the visiting Comets a 3-2 shootout win.
Joel Blomqvist’s nickname should be The Bondsman, as he was bailing his Penguins team out time after time. The Penguins earned this point, but the way they played the full 60, didn’t nor should have earned the two points.
Lineup Notes: Scooter Brickey for Daniel Laatsch on defense, Raivis Ansons for Phil Tomasino who was added to the injured list with Aho, Huglen and Alexeyev. I didn’t listen to Nick Hart pregame so don’t know the extent of the injury, if they even disclosed that.
First Period: No scoring. Penguins had a power play snuffed out on a Tristan Broz hooking call.
Second Period: Cam Squires gets his first goal of the season on a shot that Phil Kemp tried to block, which redirected high and into the net for a 1-0 Comets lead.
Third Period: Penguins knocking and knocking, sometimes they look away and Blomqvist has to bail them out again, finally Avery Hayes gets a puck to squirt across the line and it’s tied again.
Overtime: Matt Dumba took a lot of dumb penalties in the game, none more dumber when the Penguins had possession of the puck in overtime and he takes an interference penalty.
Penguins kill it, survive a scare where the puck dinks off the back of Blomqvist but stays out, and it’s off to…
Shootout: Lenni Hämeenaho in the bottom of the second…
Jákub Małek stopped Tristan Broz, Rafäel Harvey-Pinard and Gabe Klassen in that order.
Three Stars: 3) Cam Squires (goal) 2) Josh Filmon (goal) 1) Lenni Hämeenaho (shootout game winning goal)
The Good: Managed to steal a point.
The Bad: Where are the Christmas jerseys? They always wear Christmas jerseys. They auctioned off replicas via their app. Are we not doing Christmas jerseys anymore?
Also, Matt Dumba has done nothing to impress me other than taking stupid penalties.
Turning Point: The Hayes goal that got them the point gets it here.
Around the Division: The Charlotte Checkers look like world beaters when they play teams better then they are like the Penguins but when they play last place teams like Springfield they lose 3-1….Providence beats a tough Syracuse team 3-1…Hershey wins 4-1 against Bridgeport. The Leigh Valley / Hartford box is here. It’s not my fault you can’t start on time but I like that you televise all your home games.
Standings: Penguins 42 — Providence 41 – Charlotte 30 – Hershey and Lehigh Valley 29 (add points if LV wins) – Bridgeport 24 – Springfield 23 – Hartford 22 (add if HFD gets a point)
Wheeling Update: Nailers win 3-2 in OT down in Greensboro on a Matty De St. Phalle goal
Video Highlights: I think everything you need to see if shown above.
More Sunday as they close their first three in three weekend against the Hershey Bears at 3.
I came home from shopping around 4 p.m. today to no phone, TV or internet. As a result I wasn’t able to watch any of the 4-2 Wilkes-Barre win in Utica. Thankfully, I had a radio where I could catch Nick Hart’s call.
The Penguins did grit out a 4-2 win. in Utica against the Comets. The two teams will rematch Saturday in Wilkes-Barre.
Phil Tomasino was lost to injury in the first period and didn’t return.
Kyle Criscuolo had a pair of goals, one of them shorthanded. Joona Koppanen also had a pair. Boko Imama had a goal in the third period that game the Penguins their first lead of the game. Tristan Broz had an empty netter that sealed the win.
The win gave the Penguins sole possession of first place in the Atlantic with 41 points and gave them their 20th win of the season. Providence was idle and as I mentioned in the Weekend Preview earlier today, they will have four games in hand after the weekend.
Lineup Notes: Raivis Ansons and William Dufour out for Zach Gallant and Nolan Renick up front. No changes to the defense. Sebastian Aho is week to week with Aaron Huglen and Alex Alexyev is day to day.
A good win and needed after the hellish week that the Penguins endured. I only listened tonight and get the sense that it was a gritty win that the Penguins earned. We will have to see how Utica responds Saturday and the status of Tomasino. Hopefully it isn’t that bad. He did return for a bit after the hit, but perhaps the adrenaline wore off.
Back at it Saturday. Sorry about the striped down version tonight.
The Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins hit some turbulence Sunday and Tuesday of this week after two rough losses to the Charlotte Checkers, and now turn their attention to their first three in three weekend of the season beginning with a home and home with the Utica Comets and then a Hershey Bears drop in Sunday afternoon.
Music to Set the Mood…
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A Quote…
The measure of who we are is how we react if something doesn’t go our way.
— Usain Bolt
The Setup…
First three in three of the season with a trip to Utica, then a home game with the Devils and a Sunday home game against Hershey.
The Penguins blanked the Hartford Wolf Pack 3-0 with a 34 save performance from Sergei Murashov last Wednesday. They had Friday off then took Providence to overtime and a Valtteri Puustinen overtime goal gave the Penguins their first home win over the Bruins since 2019.
Then Charlotte. They laid an egg Sunday and lost 6-2 and on Tuesday were a bit more competitive but lost 2-1 to the Checkers.
The Comets lost to Hartford 2-1 last Friday, Springfield 3-2 Saturday and then beat Rochester 3-2 Wednesday.
Hershey lost 4-1 to Providence last Friday and then shutout the Charlotte Checkers 4-0 on Saturday. The Bears host Bridgeport Saturday and will take on a Penguins team playing its third game in three days Sunday.
Records…
Penguins still lead the Atlantic with a 19-7-1 record and 39 points.
Utica is last in the North with a 6-14-3-1 record and 16 points.
Hershey is 13-10-1 and have 27 points in fifth place in the Atlantic.
The Rest of those Rascals…
The biggest winner this week were the Providence Bruins. The Bruins have two games in hand on the Penguins and are tied in points with Wilkes-Barre with a 19-5-1 record. Providence was off this week and have one game, Saturday against Syracuse, this weekend. They will four games in hand on the Penguins after this weekend.
Charlotte looks like a team on the rise, sweeping the Penguins for a pair this past week. They are third in the division with a 14-8-2 record. You shouldn’t focus so much on the Phantoms and Bears and really should be concerned about the Checkers. The Grand Rapids Griffins are off to the best start in AHL history with just one regulation loss. That loss was dealt to them by the Charlotte Checkers. They are giant killers. They host Springfield Saturday and Sunday.
Lehigh Valley is fourth in the division with a 13-10-1-2 record and 29 points. The Phantoms lost in Syracuse last Friday, won in Rochester Saturday via shootout then lost to last place Springfield on Wednesday. They host Bridgeport and Hartford this weekend.
Hartford is 9-12-4 with 22 points and sixth in the Atlantic. They beat Utica last Friday then got smoked in Syracuse 7-2 last Saturday. They host the Crunch tonight then travel to Allentown Saturday.
Bridgeport is 10-12-1-1 with 22 points and seventh in the Atlantic. They beat Laval clean and then Belleville in overtime last weekend, and then lost 5-0 on Wednesday at home against Syracuse. Go figure. The Islanders are in Allentown tonight and Hershey tomorrow.
Springfield is 8-11-3-2 with 21 points and in last in the Atlantic but with the way they are playing won’t be for long. The Thunderbirds have points in four straight. They will be tested this weekend in Charlotte.
Who’s Up? Who’s Down? Who’s Out?
David Breazeale was up and then back down to Wheeling without appearing in a game.
Matt Dumba cleared waivers and played his first AHL game in over a decade on Tuesday.
Sam Poulin was traded to Edmonton with Tristan Jarry.
Aaron Huglen is week to week with an upper body injury.
Sebastian Aho and Alex Alexeyev are also injured, but with Breazeale going back down maybe one of them are back this weekend.
I think that is everything.
What can we learn about the Penguins this week?
I mean they should get a start out of Sergei Murashov this weekend and would likely win that game. How much do they have left in the tank Sunday at home against Hershey playing their third game in a row when the Bears were home all weekend and just had Bridgeport in Saturday.
It would behoove them to win these games because Providence will have four games in hand and Charlotte is on the come.
Also, Alexeyev and Aho aren’t really the straws that stir the drink defensively, are they? Let’s hope we don’t have to answer this question and they are back this weekend at some point.
Who’s in Goal?
I’d like to see Filip Larsson get back in there against Utica and have them use all three goaltenders this weekend but that isn’t how it always works. Murashov – Blomqvist – Murashov would be the safe bet.
Nico Daws and Jakub Málek will see work for the Comets this weekend against the Penguins and then probably Mitch Gibson for the Bears Sunday.
Who’s Running the Show?
Jordan Deckard and Jared Cummins will adjudicate in Utica with T.J. Dockery and Jason Brown on the lines.
Deckard will drive I-90 West, then merge onto I-81 South in Syracuse, blitzkrieg past the home of the Crunch, blow past Binghamton and will meet up with Chad Ingalls on Saturday to work the rematch with Jud Ritter and John Rey on the lines.
New refs on Sunday. Ben Betker and Koletrane Wilson will work the matinee with the Bears with Dylan Blujus and J.P. Waleski on the lines.
Looking Ahead…
Merry Christmas. Saturday at home against the Bears on December 27 and then another Sunday game (this time on the road) against the Phantoms and then another Tuesday home game against the Charlotte Checkers.
Next week’s Weekend Preview will include that Tuesday game against Charlotte.
Give us a bold prediction…
They will win all three games with a power play goal in each and Sergei Murashov gets named AHL Player of the Week with only one game allowed on 60+ shots.
One of the reasons they are very bad is because they get great pitching, but since the pitchers can only pitch (they got rid of the designated hitter a few years ago) all they can do is watch when their lifeless offense loses game after game for them by scores of 2-0, 1-0, 3-2, 4-1, 3-1, and so on.
Tonight, it was a 2-1 setback for the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins AHL hockey team and Joel Blomqvist was on the hill (or in the net) for the Penguins.
He played tremendous, stopping 29 shots, some of them of the high difficulty range, but he can only stop the pucks and can’t generate offense.
Tonight, he could have been on the hill in Queens and I wouldn’t have been able to tell the difference. Well, maybe, it’s a high probability I was in my pool that afternoon. My pool is a girl ice cube now in this forever Winter that we are in..
Checks calendar…Winter doesn’t start till Sunday you say?!? Bollocks!
Lineup Notes: Raivis Ansons for Nolan Renwick up front, Matt Dumba playing in his first AHL game in 10 years for Scooter Brickey on defense. Add Sebastian Aho to the injured list.
First Period: Penguins had a golden opportunity with :38 of a two man advantage but failed to score.
Late, Kai Schwindt takes a pass from teammate Hunter St. Martin and scores to put the Checkers up 1-0 with under two minutes to play.
You’re thinking, like I was at the time, “Oh Schwindt, here we go again.”
(sorry, had to)
Second Period: Two things of substance occurred here. First, a routine puck gets back to Joel Blomqvist. Matt Dumba tracks it back and Blomqvist comes out to play it. Dumba zigs instead of zags and it ends up on the tape of Nolan Foote who scores into an empty net, essentially.
Then, the Penguins had 1:35 of two man advantage and after a time out, failed to score.
Third Period: Joel Blomqvist bails his team out by pitching a ground ball in a bases loaded situation and turns a double play. No, sorry, he stops a Ben Steeves penalty shot with 11 minutes to play in the period with the Mets Penguins still chasing two runs goals. Finally Phil Tomasino takes a spin-o-rama pass from Rafaël Harvey-Pinard and scores to get the Penguins on the board.
But that was all the offense they could muster. With Blomqvist pulled for the extra attacker, they did not find the equalizer, nor do I think they registered a shot on goal.
Three Stars: 3) Phil Tomasino (goal) 2) Kai Schwindt (goal) 1) Nolan Foote (goal)
I am sorry, but Joel Blomqvist deserved a star.
The Good: Joel Blomqvist. He kept them in it and gave his team a chance to win.
The Bad: They did not win and now Providence has two games in hand on the Penguins.
Turning Point: Look to the over two minutes of five-on-three advantage that the Penguins had and failed to score on.
Around the Division: They all watched us.
Standings: Penguins and Bruins 39 – Charlotte 30 — Lehigh Valley 29 – Herhsey 27 – Hartford and Bridgeport 22 – Springfield 19
Wheeling Update: Nailers were off.
Video Highlights: Trust me, what you needed to see is highlighted above.
Regroup, get ready for the first three in three weekend with a home and home against Utica starting Friday in Utica and then aa home Sunday game against Hershey. Weekend Preview sets it all up for you Friday morning around lunchtime.
So the Charlotte Checkers lost 4-0 to the Hershey Bears Saturday night and the Hershey Bears lost twice to the Providence Bruins Wednesday and Friday and the Penguins beat the Bruins in overtime on Saturday.
Looking at all of that, you would think that the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins would cream a Charlotte Checkers team that came into Sunday afternoon in fifth place in the Atlantic Division and 13 points behind the Penguins.
Wrong.
A 6-2 Charlotte thrashing of the Penguins who were out of it from the drop and thanks to Filip Larsson, would have probably lost by ten or more.
Wait, what? Larsson was the one giving up all those goals you big bald oaf! Technically, yes, but you are wrong if you blame him for the loss. Did he let the Checkers get 37 shots off? No. That’s the defenseman’s job. Did he take four penalties? No, but the Checkers did score two power play goals.
You could have put Marty Brodeur in net for the Penguins today, with the way that they played as a unit, they were not winning the game.
So the moral of the story? There are no scheduled wins in the AHL.
Charlotte is a good team. They are structured, but the standings place shows otherwise. There is a team in Grand Rapids, Michigan that have a 22-1-0-1 record. That one regulation loss? It was the Checkers that beat them. Maybe it’s a style thing, where they play better against better competition. Don’t get me wrong, the Penguins are a great team, but they are prone to clunkers. Hershey two weeks ago. Charlotte Sunday. When they are bad, they are bad.
Anyway, let’s move this along. Here’s how they lined up:
Lineup Notes: Raivis Ansons and Zach Gallant out for Rafaël Harvey-Pinard and Nolan Renwick. I’m glad that whatever it was that kept Harvey-Pinard out Saturday was minor. On defense, Scooter Brickey replaced Sebastian Aho. Coal Street recalled recalled David Breazeale from Wheeling earlier in the day. Matt Dumba should debut for the Penguins on Tuesday.
First Period: You could feel it. They were being outshot 7-2 and Larsson was holding the fort. Then they get a goal from William Dufour and you think that they can just turn it on and turn it off like truly elite teams do.
Jack Devine and Robert Mastrosimone scored power play goals. Devine’s goal came on a five on three and Mastrosimone’s came off of a bonehead Penguins too many men penalty.
Phil Tomasino tips in a Chase Pietila shot to bring the Penguins back within two and you think that we aren’t going to take it anymore and the epic come back is on, right?
Third Period: Ryan McAllister scores :47 in and that buried the Penguins for good. Think Carol putting pavers over Helen’s grave in Pluribus buried.
(Charlotte didn’t GIF up the third period goals)
Wilmer Skoog scored the sixth goal to pile on.
With the Penguins net empty Owen Pickering takes a tripping penalty which just turned a bad game worse fro the defensive corps. Particularly, I thought Pickering was bad. This guy is an NHL defender? I ain’t seeing it and haven’t been seeing it for a while.
Three Stars: 3) Trevor Carrick (two assists) 2) Jack Devine (goal, assist) 1) Robert Mastrosimone (goal)
The Good: I turned 47 today and don’t feel old. I have a VO2 Max in the low 50s per my Apple Watch and as long as that stays higher than my age, I will take it.
The Bad: My favorite professional sports team let me down on my big day in a big way.
Turning Point: Pick one. The. back to back power play goals or the Skoog goal :47 into the third.
A 2-1 Wilkes-Barre win in overtime over the visiting Providence Bruins which snaps a Bruins 13 game win streak at Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza. First win for the Penguins over the Bruins since December 2019.
It’s a, “fight forever” feel between these two teams because they are so evenly matched and equally talented. The fact that they play in the same division and only play four times a season is a joke. Trim some off the Lehigh Valley’s for us and the Hartford and Springfield’s for the Bruins and let’s get after it.
Here’s how they lined up…
Blomqvist in net for WBS vs. Providence tonight. Not expecting Dumba in lineup
Lineup Notes: Sam Poulin was traded to Edmonton with Tristan Jarry. As a result, Sergei Murashov went up while Stuart Skinner figured out his immigration. Matt Dumba cleared waivers and was assigned to the AHL.
Rafäel Harvey-Pinard and Alex Alexeyev are injured.
Alex Gallant and William Dufour went in for Harvey-Pinard and Nolan Renwick, Daniel Laatsch, who was recalled from Wheeling was in for Alexeyev.
First Period: No scoring. Colin Felix fought Boki Imama, John Farinacci took a puck off the back of the head from his teammate Ty Gallagher and starting goaltender Michael DiPietro took himself out of the game favoring a leg ailment. Enter Simon Zajicek who stopped 28 of 29 the night before in Hershey. In a stark contrast to Wednesday in Hartford, it was the Penguins who put up 20 shots in the period.
Second Period: Avery Hayes finally let loose the teddy bears that the patrons were clutching in angst watching these two Goliaths. skate up and and down the ice.
The Penguins found themselves in penalty trouble and it nearly came back to bite them on more then one occasion.
Third Period: The Bruins has thought they had scored but referee Riley Brace was emphatic that they did not due to interference on Joel Blomqvist. Joey Abate made contact with Blomqvist that negated the Bruins goal.
A few close calls but then it was off to…
Overtime: Bruins possessed the puck for 90 seconds, Penguins get it back and immediately score. Phil Tomasino set up Valtteri Puustinen streaking off the bench for the game winner.
Three Stars: 3) Simon Zajicek (34 saves) 2) Vatteri Puustinen (overtime game winner) 1) Joel Blomqvist (24 saves)
The Good: 50 shots against a really good team like Providence is great, shows that they are aggressive. Great teams manage to get those shots to go in and luck was on the Penguins side Saturday.
The Bad: The Bruins have a two headed monster in goal in DiPietro and Zajicek. One is as good or better than the other and you don’t want to see DiPietro out long term. Beat these idiots at their best.
Anyway, the bad – they were gangbusters in the first period, Zajicek comes in cold and they can’t get anything off on him.
Turning Point: Great game that chased it all night but it’s Puustinen’s goal that gets the distinction.
Standings: Penguins and Bruins 39 – Lehigh Valley 29 – Herhsey 27 – Charlotte 26 – Hartford 22 – Bridgeport 20 – Springfield 19
Wheeling Update: Nailers lose 3-1 up in Glens Falls to the Adirondack Thunder 3-1.
Video Highlights:
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More tomorrow after Charlotte. It’s my birthday tomorrow, so the game story will likely be delayed because after I am going to eat my age in sushi. Have I mentioned how much I detest Sunday home games?
Legitimately don’t know what is left for Sergei Murashov to do in the AHL anymore.
He faces a proverbial Hartford firing squad in the first period and stops all 20 shots put his way and puts his team in position to win. He stops 34 total Wednesday night as Wilkes-Barre wins 3-0 in Hartford.
I don’t think it would be wise putting Arturs Šilovs on waivers and still can’t see anyone taking on Tristan Jarry’s albatross of a contract, so it’s a good thing to have with Murashov here.
But for the first period though, the Penguins were the better team. Again, it’s the goaltender doing what is asked of him and more putting the team in front of him in position to win the game.
Here’s how they lined up – the Wolf Pack didn’t post lines.
Koppanen, Poulin, and Imama are back from Pittsburgh, and Harding’s back from Wheeling ⬇️
Lineup Notes: They returned to the standard 12 F / 6 D setup. Joona Koppanen, Boko Imama and Nolan Renwick were in for Danton Heinen (recall) and Raivis Ansons (scratch) – Sam Poulin went up but was sent back from Pittsburgh and was in the lineup. On defense, Finn Harding was back in.
First Period: The Wolf Pack put 20 shots on Sergei Murashov in the period, the most that they have faced in a period this season, but the Penguins net minder was more than up to the challenge. The Penguins only mustered 6 shots and killed two penalties successfully.
Second Period: The Penguins somehow manage to get two goals in the period from Phil Tomasino and Avery Hayes. Phil Tomasino took a nice pass from Owen Pickering and then got a step on the defense and scored and then Rafäel Harvey-Pinard put one on the tape of Avery Hayes and Hayes got in on a breakaway and scored on Spencer Martin. Here’s the goals.
Third Period: I wanted to see if Hartford would make a move here and as I was waiting for that to happen Avery Hayes’ shot is blocked right to Aidan McDonough who scores to make it 3-0.
Valtteri Puustinen hit the left post, Finn Harding hit the left post with Spencer Martin vacated in a Hail Mary attempt by Grant Potulny to get his team three goals in three minutes. The only question remained whether the Wolf Pack would get one, but Murashov made sure that didn’t happen. Murashov himself tried for the empty net, but his attempt was intercepted by former Penguin Derrick Pouliot.
Three Stars: 3) Phil Tomasino (goal) 2) Avery Hayes (goal, assist) 1) Sergei Murashov (34 saves)
The Good: Sign of a great team is what you saw in the first period. They are getting throttled on the shot board on the road to the tune of twenty shots in the first period on a Wednesday night in Hartford, Connecticut. They make the necessary adjustments and get two goals to give them breathing room in the second, let their goalie fine tune and get a breather then get a third and turn it into a runaway. I don’t know how high the ceiling is with this team. That’s a good thing.
The Bad: Power play went 0/2. It’s nitpicking.
Turning Point: Pick the 20 saves Murashov made in the first or maybe the McDonough goal in the third. Not enough has been said about McDonough’s efforts recently either. Another sign of a great team is scoring threats at more then just one line.
WBS News
Chirps from Center Ice 