Chirps from Center Ice

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The New York Mets are my favorite baseball team.

They are very bad.

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!

Here’s how they lined up:

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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. 

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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. 

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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.

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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.

Let’s Go Pens!