Chirps from Center Ice

Penguins valiant in defeat, bow out of the 2012 Calder Cup Playoffs 3-2 in seven games to the St. John’s Ice Caps.

Penguins played out of a hole all game long, stymied by losing their shut down defenseman Robert Bortuzzo early in the first period due to injury. Tom Grace mentioned post game that Bortuzzo was taken to the hospital as a precaution.

Brad Thiessen vs. Eddie Pasquale – no lineup changes the WBS way. Kevin Clark was in for Carl Klingberg on the STJ side.

First Period: Pens looked fatigued, having played two straight must win games. Paul Postma rung the post. First ten minutes was all IceCaps. Bortuzzo got boarded hard. He went to the room, returned, and John Albert stepped by him, dished to Ray Sawada who scored to make it 1-0 IceCaps. Thiessen really kept the score lower that what it should have been.

Second Period: Eric Tangradi sprung Ryan Craig who scored on a breakaway to even things at one. Then, Brian Gibbons took an interference call and in the ensuing IceCaps power play, Aaron Gagnon scored when he centered it and it banked off of Alex Picard’s skate.

Third Period: Aaron Gagnon again. 3-1 St. John’s. Penguins chased and chased and chased this period. Finally, Ben Street was boarded, and Colin McDonald would score the last goal of the season to bring it to 3-2, but your, my, OUR Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins were never able to find the equalizer.

Three Stars: 3) Eric Tangradi (two assists, +1) 2) John Albert (assist, +1) and 1) Aaron Gagnon (two goals, +1)

The St. John’s IceCaps are off to face the Norfolk Admirals in the Eastern Conference Finals opening Thursday in Hampton Roads.

Blog content now will be scarce unless someone from St. John’s, Norfolk, Oklahoma City or Toronto wants to hire a WBS Penguin blogger to cover a game or two. I’m cheap. I work for free.

Jonathan Bombulie will likely have the UFA / RFA chart organization wide which I will piggy back on and offer here on the blog. Watch for any signings this year too as I’ll closely document the movement in the offseason.

Firmly believe and will continue to believe that the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins will have her day of reckoning one day. That day is not today, or tomorrow. Here’s hoping it is sooner than we think.

Let’s Go Pens!