If you go to work tomorrow morning and are asked how the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins fared the night before against their division rival Syracsue, you can tell your co-worker that they lost to an Olympic goaltender and not be wrong.
I’m referring to Kristers Gudlevskis, who will represent Latvia in Sochi, Russia next month. He was good for the Crunch tonight. I think the Crunch scouting and defense was a bit better and of course the scoring, but telling yourself that you lost to an Olympic goaltender takes the sting away a bit, doesn’t it?
Lineup Notes: The Penguins sent Cody Sylvester, Peter Merth and Nick D’Agostino to Wheeling this afternoon. Bobby Farnham returned from injury. Harrison Ruopp took warmups, but was scratched in favor of Reid McNeill.
First Period: A couple of early chances for both teams. All of a sudden, the Pens found themselves defending a 5-on-3. They block many shots, but not all of them as Vlad Namestikov scores to make it 1-0. Then, Jon DiSalvatore tips in a Brett Connolly shot and it’s all of a sudden 2-0. Prior to, the Pens were letting the Crunch get some spark.
Second Period: Crunch come out and pressure like hounds on a steak, McNeill breaks a stick. Crunch pound the puck off the back wall which banks to Connolly for Syracuse and into the net and it’s 3-0. John Hynes takes a time out. It wasn’t good enough as later, Deslauriers can’t quite corral a puck, Philip Samuelsson misplays it, the Crunch crash the net and score and it’s 4-0 Syracuse.
That sequence would spell the end for Deslauriers, enter Eric Hartzell.
Two things here. One, while the loss will go on Deslauriers record, this one was not on him at all. Two, message received by the Penguins as the Crunch only took five more shots at the net the rest of the night that Hartzell stopped.
Pens get their first power play of the night. Mud. Then Philip Samuelsson takes a delay of game, puck over the glass penalty. Uh oh…
Well, the Penguins kill it, and at the time that Samuelsson hit the ice out of the box, Denver Manderson hits him for a breakaway that Samuelsson cashes on to cauterize some of the bleeding addend Gudlevskis shutout bid.
Third Period: My amateurism is showing through here, as I totally forgot to explain my elongated headline in my lead. Samuelsson would add another goal, his second of the night and the season, on a nifty pinch in on a rebound chance. He seemed to be the only nationality (Swedish) that the Latvian goaltender (Gudlevskis) was not able to figure out as he stoned Harry Zolnierczyk (Canadian) multiple times and even stopped Mike Carman (American) twice.
Okay, I’m stretching it with that last one, I don’t really remember any memorable shots from Carman tonight, but the scoresheet says he had two and he’s American, so let’s just go with it.
You get the point. Gudlevskis was good when he had to be, and his Crunch team did the rest.
Three Stars: 3) Philip Samuelsson (two goals, +1) 2) Brett Connolly (goal, two assists, +1) and 1) Jon DiSalvatore (goal, two assists, +1)
Wheeling Update: The Nailers lost to the Reading Royals in Reading tonight 6-2. Peter Merth and Nick D’Agostino were both -2.
SendToNews Highlights: Pens put the YouTube package up this Thursday morning, so here’s the video:
Pens practice tomorrow and will probably bud up to Glens Falls tomorrow afternoon for Friday’s game against the Phantoms. If there is anything worth blogging on, I will have something here. If not, Gameday for that will be up Friday at 3.
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