Chirps from Center Ice

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The Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins were up 3-1 and seemingly in control.

Until they weren’t.

Eight seconds is all it takes for the Utica Comets to score a pair of goals in the second period, then a tense third period sees Dmitry Osipov score with 30.8 seconds to play and the Utica Comets defeat the Penguins 4-3 Friday night in Central New York.

I didn’t particularly like the games from a few guys in particular, but let’s save that for later.

Here’s how they lined up:

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Lineup Notes: Rafaël Harvey-Pinard made his season debut after missing the start of the season due to injury, Justin Brazeau played game one on his conditioning stint and Avery Hayes was back from Pittsburgh for Hugh McGing (lower body, day to day) Lucas Ciona and Tiernan Shoudy, which if you read the weekend preview like I knew you did, know he was sent to Florida. On defense, Phil Kemp yielded to Chase Pietila, back from Pittsburgh.

First Period: Pens didn’t waste any time, scoring on their first shot of the game from Melvin Fernström here at 2:46…

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But Utica was quick to respond, scoring at 4:54 when Lenni Hämeenaho picked off a D to D pass (Brunicke to Pickering) and skated all the way in and scored to make it 1-1…

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Undeterred, and on the penalty kill, Avery Hayes scores shorthanded at 10:07 and the Pens re-established the lead…

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I don’t think Hayes has anything to prove in the AHL anymore and Pittsburgh should either call him up and play him or embrace the tank already and call him up next year.

Second Period: Atley Calvert, who will be in Pittsburgh one day, fed Bill Zonnon here that made it 3-1 Wilkes-Barre at 5:43 of the period…

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Utica killed the Penguins only power play of the contest to this point and had momentum and had Wilkes-Barre hemmed in a bit and Brian Schmelzer’s goal here at 13:48 brought the Comets to within one…

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But eight seconds later, Shane Lachance outmuscles Owen Pickering and the game is tied!

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Just brutal.

So the Pens go from being in control of the game then just like that, it’s a tie contest headed into the…

Third Period: Nothing doing for either side in an evenly matched period that saw each team trade a power play with no success, then Utica catches the Penguins in their own end and then Osipov here, with the dagger…

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Brutal. With Joel Blomqvist pulled the Penguins couldn’t even set up, coming out of the time out called.

Three Stars: 3) Ryan Schmelzer (goal, assist) 2) Shane Lachance (goal) 1) Dmitry Osipov (goal)

The Good: They played well for the first half of the game, but obviously let off or were unable to finish.

The Bad: It’s a point they are going to wish they had in March of April. Owen Pickering continues to struggle and Joel Blomqvist can’t make saves when he needs them. I’d argue they are the biggest weaknesses on the team right now.

Turning Point: The two goals scored in eight seconds crawled so the Osipov goal could walk.

Around the Division: Toronto beats Hershey at home 5-3….Charlotte and Iowa are in second intermission when this post goes up, link to the box here….Hartford beats Belleville 4-1…Lehigh Valley loses in Rochester 6-3 and Providence rallies from down big to beat Springfield 7-6 in overtime.

Standings: Can’t really update these because Charlotte is having all the fun playing a Western Conference opponent, so let’s leave the standings link here and you can check in at your leisure.

Florida Update: The Everblades were in Greenville, South Carolina Friday and lost 5-4 to the Swamp Rabbits (their real name) – reigning ECHL Goaltender of the Week Cam Johnson took the loss. Tiernan Shroudy had a goal and and assist and was a +3.

Video Highlights: Utica’s YouTube page is here. The highlights aren’t up at press time.

They will have Halloween off. If any of them knocked on my door, I’d send them away with carrot sticks and raisins based off of tonight’s performance. They will play Hershey at 5 on Sunday in Hershey and you can bet the Bears will be ornery after losing Friday as well so it should be a good matchup.

Let’s Go Pens!

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Finn Harding had himself a third period.

A goal, to go with two assists, and the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins used a big third period to down the Hartford Wolf Pack 3-2 Saturday night in Wilkes-Barre.

Here’s how they lined up:

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Lineup Notes: But for lineup shuffling none to speak of.

First Period: Wilkes-Barre had a power play come and a power play go, but they went scoreless after the first 20 minutes.

Second Period: Glenn Gawdin unleashed a shot from the slot that Taylor Gauthier tracked and was on but a split second late on. In the ECHL, he probably makes that save, here, it beat him for a 1-0 Hartford lead.

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Really felt like a lifeless game for the Penguins to this point. No real jam, goaltender keeping them in it.

Third Period: Penguins catch a break when, :12 into a Finn Harding tripping penalty Marc Del Gaizo unleashes a slapshot that beats Gauthier, but Kirk MacDonald challenges it for offsides and wins. Shout out to video man Ryan Lennon for the call and the challenge.

Harding later atones for the penalty and scores here to tie the game at one at 10:27

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Just over four minutes later, the Penguins would go ahead with a deflection goal here from Tristan Broz at 14:34

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Wilkes-Barre fell into penalty trouble late, and then with Harrison Brunicke in the box for the second time in the period, Juuso Pärssinen would connect on a power play goal that was onside and tied the game at two late, with Hartford goaltender Callum Tung pulled for the extra attacker.

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Penguins could have packed it in and played for overtime.

Owen Pickering was having none of that philosophy.

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We talk about defense and we talk about secondary scoring. Any team wishes they had it on a consistent basis and when you do, you normally win hockey games.

Maybe this game will be the kickstarter to get Pickering going. Maybe it’s the game that gets them all going.

Three Stars: 3) Tristan Broz (goal) 2) Finn Harding (goal, two assists) 1) Owen Pickering (goal)

The Good: Way to pick yourselves off the mat twice in the third period and find a way to win.

The Bad: Should it have been that close? I don’t know. Maybe? I don’t know if that’s good or bad long term.

Turning Point: I thought he was off his nut, but the challenge for offsides that took the Del Gaizo goal off the board energized the Penguins to tie it, and they rode that momentum wave to pick themselves off the mat a second time when they were legally scored on for the tying power play goal from Pärssinen.

Around the Division: Herhsey scores five unanswered to beat Belleville 5-2….Syracuse beats Lehigh Valley 7-2….Springfield edges Charlotte 2-1 and Providence downs Utica 5-2.

Standings: Hershey and Charlotte 10 – Penguins 9 – Hartford and Springfield 8 – Lehigh Valley 7 – Providence 6

Florida Update: The Everblades hosted the Atlanta Gladiators and won 4-2. Devon Paliani had a hat trick. Cam Johnson started again and won, stopping 23.

Video Highlights: 

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Have a great week everyone and we will talk next Friday setting up the weekend with the Comets and Bears.

Let’s Go Pens!

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In keeping with the theme of Weekend Preview from earlier, the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins mounted comebacks but in the third period, down one, see Belleville rattle off two early and the Senators skate away with a 7-3 win Friday night in Wilkes-Barre.

It was death by a thousand paper cuts for the Penguins, who were never really in it from the jump, being outshot 8-1 when the Senators jumped on the board early, and then 3-0 after the first.

The Penguins scored three times in the second period with goals from Tristan Broz, Daniel Russell and Jake Livanavage, but a malfunction at the junction in the neutral zone kept the away team ahead by one heading into the third.

Here, Ex-Penguin Phil Tomasino scores :30 into the third period to make it 5-3, then it takes the Senators :11 in a power play to wax the game away that made it 6-3. Then a desperation attempt by Kirk MacDonald with over six minutes to play in regulation the Senators net their seventh via an empty net.

That’s basically the ball game. It wasn’t a penalty slop fest like last Saturday was, in fact I thought referees Matt Menniti and Luke Stork could have called some more penalties. The Pens went 1/1 on their only opportunity while Belleville went 1/2.

Here’s how they lined up, then I will post the Penguins goals. I’d love to post the Senators goals but they never bothered to.

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I appreciate the lineup card, but when you need a microscope to read it….

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Tiernan Shoudy was recalled from ECHL Floriday on Friday, with the announcement hitting the wire around 6:15 p.m. Other lineup notes were Brayden Edwards and Daniel Russell in for Tanner Howe (listed as injured) the recalled Rutger McGroarty and Avery Hayes, who was not officially recalled, but why else isn’t he in the lineup. Defensive changes saw Ryan Johnson and Phil Kemp in for the recalled Ilya Solovyov and Chase Pietila.

Okay here’s the Penguins goals.

Goals for Belleville went like this, Shane Bowers opened the scoring at 3:19, Samuel Blais followed at 4:03 – Wilkes-Barre could not match the Belleville speed exhibited. Later at 13:11 Tyler Boucher slammed home a juicy rebound that made it 3-0.

In the second, Xavier Bourgault threw a bucket of cold water on the Penguins who scored twice in the period prior at 12:21.

Tomasino opened the scoring in the third just :30 in, Boucher followed :11 into a power play at 3:37 for his second of the game and that was all she wrote there. There’s your turning point…Djibril Touré netted an empty netter from about 170 feet away at 13:29 to nail the extra point. Friday night lights and all.

Three stars were Phil Tomasino with a goal and three assists, Daniel Russell with a goal and an assist, Tyler Boucher with two goals in that order.

The Good: Power play seems like it could be an advantage?

The Bad: The start in the first was overcome by the effort in the second but the start of the third has the Penguins a .500 team. That’s not good.

Turning Point: The Boucher power play goal in the third gets it here. Last one to leave turn out the lights.

Around the Division: Charlotte wins 3-2 at home against Springfield….Hartford gets back in the win column with a 2-0 win at home over Providence. The Wolf Pack won despite bing outshot 35-17. Where have I seen that before?

Standings: Charlotte 10 – Hershey 8 – Hartford 8 – Penguins 7 – Lehigh Valley 7 – Springfield 6 – Providence 4

Florida Update: Everblades with a 5-0 win over the Atlanta Gladiators. Maleek McGown had a goal and two assists. Cam Johnson stopped 17 for the shutout and also logged and assist.

Video Highlights: 

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Back at it Saturday at 6:05 against Hartford. Talk to you then.

Let’s Go Pens!

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There were SEVENTEEN power plays awarded by Nick Isaacson and Alex Gagné Saturday afternoon in Cleveland. Newsflash guys, the paying customers aren’t there to watch you skate up and down the ice and pretend like you know what goaltender interference is. This display set the standard of AHL officiating back about 15 years.

Nevertheless, Wilkes-Barre wins 6-3 in The Land, scoring on three power plays of their own today, but so do the Monsters. It was a stellar performance from both Rutger McGroarty (two goals and an assist) and Mikhail Ilyin (goal, three assists) to carry the Penguins through a game dominated by useless holds and stick fouls.

Wilkes-Barre seemed to grab the game by the scruff of the neck early on and never really released, Cleveland backed their way into making it closer than it should have been late in the third.

Here’s how they lined up:

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Lineup Notes: David Gustafsson returns from the injury list and takes the place of Brayden Edwards up front. On defense, Phil Kemp came out for Chase Pietila.

First Period: After killing a penalty just :10 in. Hugh McGing opened his Penguins scoring account with this goal that gave the Penguins a 1-0 lead at 2:54.

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A flurry of saves from Evan Gardiner about halfway through on three different Penguins shots, but then Avery Hayes finally solved the Monsters goaltender with a goal that made it 2-0.

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But then a late pair of penalties by Owen Pickering put Cleveland on essentially back to back power plays and you could see the desperation watching on FloHockey, and it’s Oiva Keskinen breaking through with 6.4 seconds to play in the period that gave the home team life.

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Second Period: Took them a bit but it was Melvin Fernström scoring 12:50 in to the period that made it 3-1 then :57 later Rutger McGroarty scores a power play goal that makes it 4-1.

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Monsters take a bunch of penalties at the end of the period and that forebode into bad things for them at the open of the…

Third Period: Mikhail Ilyin scores :28 into the period to turn it into a runaway for the Penguins at the time, and makes it 5-1.

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The penalties continued and, much like the end of the first period in this one, allowed the Monsters to gain some momentum.

Luca Pinelli scores here that makes it 5-2.

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Steven Lorentz scores to make it 5-3 for the Monsters third power play goal of the game and then it started to get weird.

(no GIF here, I hate when teams do this, cut up all the goals!)

McGroarty tacks on a late power play goal that ices it away here.

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(bless you Coal Street for cutting up all of your goals)

Three Stars: 3) Taylor Gauthier (30 saves) 2) Rutger McGroarty (two goals, assist) 1) Mikhail Ilyin (goal, three assists)

The Good: Nice to see the power play come alive, I guess? But do you toss this because this game was an anomaly with everyone and their mother being awarded a power play?

The Bad: Owen Pickering is going to be the next Derrick Pouliot. He’s been in the league for three years, close to 130 AHL games under his belt and he still takes consistently dumb penalties. Every passing day, his NHL window closes more and more in my opinion. A quality AHL defensemen most nights, but nothing that screams, “call me up, I have nothing left to prove at this level” out of Pickering, much like Pouliot.

Turning Point: The Ilyin goal that made it 5-1 coming out of the gate in the third period gets it here as it proved to be a big goal, considering what Cleveland was going to produce on the power play later in the period.

Around the Division: Hershey beats Providence 5-3. These two will rematch again Sunday in Hershey…. Charlotte doubles up Hartford 4-2 … Lehigh Valley beats Springfield 3-2 in overtime.

Standings: Hershey and Charlotte 8 – Penguins and Phantoms 7 – Hartford and Springfield 6 and Providence 2.

Florida Update: Everblades / Solar Bears started at 7, I am pulling the chute on a third update here, so here’s the box.

Video Highlights: 

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Talk to you next week to set up the weekend when Belleville and Hartford drop in for a pair next weekend.

Let’s Go Pens!

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The Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins muster just 20 shots at Phoenix Copley all game and this suppression in shots and limiting of offensive chances was a key element in a 4-2 Cleveland Monsters win Friday in Ohio.

That, and the Penguins played too fast and loose with the puck for my liking, which there Monsters capitalized on.

Rematch is Saturday at 3 p.m.

Here’s how they lined up:

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Lineup Notes: Melvin Fernstrom for Daniel Russell up front, Jake Livanavage and Finn Harding for Caleb Jones (traded) and Chase Pietila on defense.

First Period: Took them less than a minute, and Amery Hayes scores to give the Penguins a 1-0 just :54 into the game.

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Been a while since I was in Cleveland. Last time was a booster club trip where I visited the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, so I don’t remember if there were parking issues or delays where the Monsters play at Rocket Arena. Anyway, if there was and you were at the game, you likely missed the Mikael Pyyhtiä goal here that was scored on the power play.

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I don’t know how you get “tuna” out of “Mikael Pyyhtiä” by the way. 🤷‍♂️

(I may start mixing in emoji in the game recaps, you know, to stay hip with the youngsters)

Anyway there was no other scoring in the period and Wilkes-Barre took all the penalties in the period.

Second Period: Avery Hayes scores his second goal of the game the oddest way possible.

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Hayes tosses a puck into the zone which caroms off of the wall and into a vacated cage by Pheonix Copley. I would expect something like this to happen to the visiting goaltender more often than not, strange that a veteran goaltender like Copley let that one beat him.

Late, Mikael Pyyhtiä receives a Jack Williams pass off an odd man rush and beats Joel Blomqvist clean on a very nice shot that ties the game at two a piece.

Pens went 0/1 on the only power play they were afforded in the period.

Third Period: Wilkes-Barre comes out flat footed and it’s Steven Lorentz that scores 1:50 in, which gives the Monsters a 3-2 lead.

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I thought that Joel Blomqvist played great for the Penguins Friday, but he isn’t Superman and wasn’t stopping that shot. That was NHL caliber.

The game flowed fine, I thought that referees Nick Isaacson and Liam Maaskant were average however. The Penguins were given a power play with about 10 minutes to play in the period, down one, but were unable to score.

Late, with Blomqvist pulled, the Penguins treated the puck like a hand grenade and James Malatesta finally pulled the pin and scored after he picked off a pass in the Penguins defensive zone.

(no GIF here)

Three Stars: 3) Owen Sillinger (three assists) 2) Steven Lorentz (goal) 1) Mikael Pyyhtiä (two goals)

The Good: Avery Hayes is getting hot, I think.

The Bad: So they got exposed a bit and their offense was put in a pickle jar and the Monsters caused them to make mistakes that cost them goals. It isn’t the end of the world, but that was a blueprint on how to beat this team.

Turning Point: The Lorentz goal gets it here.

Around the Division: Charlotte beats Hartford 2-1 and Lehigh Valley doubles up Springfield 6-3. Hershey and Providence were off.

Standings: Hershey, Hartford and Charlotte 6, Penguins, Phantoms and Thunderbirds 5, Providence 2

Florida Update: The home and home with the Orlando Solar Bears is a Saturday / Sunday thing.

Video Highlights: 

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Back at it at 3 p.m. Saturday.

Let’s Go Pens!