Comments Off on Weekend Preview — Do You Need a Push?
Posted by nafsnep on December 18, 2024
After an up and down week where they spilt with a team they are tied in points with in Charlotte and a thrilling overtime, oh-my-god-they-nearly-blew-it game against Springfield, the Penguins are where they were last week, and the week before and the week before that and…you get the idea. In a group that is locked in tight with one another pursuing a Bear off in the distance that seems like it is getting away, despite the Bears run of play in these recent weeks.
It would appear that one of the teams would need a bit of a push. Hell, it may as well be the Penguins, right?
Music to Set the Mood…
–
A Quote…
No matter the circumstances that you may be going through, just push through.
– Ray Lewis
I don’t think you need to go that deep, just saying.
The Setup…
A midweek visit from the Toronto Marlies then a Friday off, but that comes at the expense of a Saturday home game against Lehigh Valley and a 5 o’clock visit to Hershey on Sunday.
Wilkes-Barre split with Charlotte last week and won a nail biter in OT against Springfield on Saturday. In the games that they won, Boris Katchouk had a hat trick plus a goal Wednesday then Emil Bemström had a hat trick with the OT game winning goal on Saturday. Prior to that, Vasily Ponomarev had a hat trick in Hartford.
In games where hat tricks were not scored resulted in all losses. 4-0 blanking by Charlotte Friday, 5-0 shutout loss last Sunday to Providence and a 6-1 throttling by the Hershey Bears on December 4.
The trend of, “a hat trick gets you a win, otherwise you lose” seems a bit far fetched. Or does it?
Toronto comes in after hosting the Pacific Division’s Bakersfield Condors this past weekend. I have always wanted to do the AHL’s version of six degrees of separation. If the Penguins beat the Marlies, are they then better than the Condors who also beat the Wranglers? I should start with the worst team and work my way to the best team one day and see. I don’t think I will, though.
Lehigh Valley had a run up in Canada against the Marlies and lost 6-3 then split a pair of 3-2 decisions in Cleveland against the Monsters.
Hershey had a down week by their standards, losing 3-0 in Hartford, needing a late goal and some heroics to tie and win in sorry Syracuse and lost to a Charlotte club 2-1 Saturday night.
So, keeping with the theme, the Penguins could use a push because seemingly they are better than all the teams I just mentioned above, save for the Marlies, who they will see for the first time Wednesday.
Records
The Penguins are 14-7-1, good for 29 points and third place in the Atlantic Division.
Toronto is 13-4-2-3, with 31 points and in fourth in the North.
Lehigh Valley is 10-10-4-1, with 25 points and seventh in the Atlantic Division, but will have played Providence and the Marlies Wednesday and Friday respectively.
Hershey leads the Atlantic with a 18-7-3 record and 39 points. The Bears will have played Toronto Saturday before playing the Penguins, so they will be the fresher of the two teams when they meet Sunday.
Who’s Up? Who’s Down? Who’s Out?
No better time to check out the Roster Page for all of the latest and where everyone is. They are seemingly in good shape and doing alright, personnel wise. Nate Clurman went up to Pittsburgh on Tuesday.
What can we learn about the Penguins this week?
Will they make a push or is it going to be like this for a few weeks with Providence, Charlotte, Springfield and maybe Lehigh Valley?
Someone has to step up and take the second seed and be there if the Bears falter hard enough to be caught for the lead. The Penguins have played consistent enough to be considered but, one could argue, that so have the Bruins, Checkers, Thunderbirds and even the Phantoms.
Like, how are the Phantoms only four off of the Penguins when they haven’t looked good at all? Imagine if the Penguins don’t get that key power play goal that gives them the two points or say, more recently, that they don’t have a player like Vasiliy Ponomarev get them a hat trick.
But they have and to date but for some clunkers, are finding ways to win. That’s what I would expect this week. They find a way to win all three games.
Who’s in Goal?
Blomqvist – Larsson – Blomqvist is what I would go with. Or, call up Murashov and have him get the start in Hershey.
Really good point was made by someone this week was that Murashov is just eating starts in Wheeling which helps acclimate him to the North American game vs. playing backup to Joel Blomqvist.
Artur Akhtyamov, Cal Petersen and Hunter Shepard for the opposition if you made me guess.
Who’s Running the Show?
Mason Riley and Adam Tobias will hand out discipline and Ryan Knapp and Jud Ritter will keep them onsides on Wednesday. Bobby Jo Love and Jim Curtain with Chandler Yakimowicz and Tommy George are here Saturday and Curtain will take the trip down I-81 to meet up with Jake Kamrass with Jeremy Faucher and Richard Jondo on the lines.
I don’t mind seeing Jim Curtain, he’s one of my favorite refs. Calls it straight, let’s them play.
Looking Ahead…
The Penguins close out 2024 with a Friday home game against the Hershey Bears and then a Saturday trip to Hershey.
Give us a bold prediction…
They win a game this week without the requirement of a hat trick being scored for them.
Comments Off on AHL Power Rankings — Week 10
Posted by nafsnep on December 16, 2024
So, the curse is very real.
I put Hershey at the top of the Power Rankings last week and they were shutout in one game and only scored a goal in the other. In the game that they won, they needed a late goal and overtime to win against a team they had no business losing to.
I think the curse is real. Sorry Wranglers fans, but you get the dubious number one distinction this week after being skipped over for weeks due to my ineptitude or East Coast bias, one or the other.
Oh, a note about the records section of the Rankings. Those will return next week. Too many games played on Sunday for me to wait until 10:30 p.m. to fill all of them in with an 8 p.m. start and work in the morning. The Penguins and Bears are the last team out of the gate Sunday, they will return in the Week 11 version. Apologies in advance.
Let’s go!
1. Calgary Wranglers
Last Week: 2nd (up 1)
We will see if the Chirps from Center Ice #1 curse is real or not. Wranglers get the dubious distinction this week.
2. Grand Rapids Griffins
Last Week: 6th (up 4)
I’d say that was a productive trip out to Loveland, getting points in every game in a hostile environment.
3. San Jose Barracuda
Last Week: 5th (up 2)
Barracuda look good but still some flaws with this club.
4. Cleveland Monsters
Last Week: 10th (up 6)
Monsters are in the middle of an eight game homestead and looking pretty good leading the North Division.
5. Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins
Last Week: 9th (up 4)
Up and down week for the Penguins who split with Charlotte and win a nail biter against Springfield. A midweek date with Toronto seems like a nice measuring stick.
So I believe I had this week nailed. From this past Wednesday’s Weekend Preview…
Give us a bold prediction…
We all make dentist appointments next week after we grind our teeth to dust. Pens split with the Checkers and take the Thunderbirds to overtime and find a way to win. Everything stays tight a week before Christmas.
Indeed, the Penguins split with the Checkers and nearly lost it all in the third period of Saturday’s game against Springfield but win 5-4 in overtime off of an Emil Bemstom power play goal, the Penguins third of the night and Bemstrom’s third off the night, a hat trick, their third in five games.
So I hope the trend of needing a hat trick to win a hockey game doesn’t continue because the last three games where they have won a player has recorded a hat trick.
Here’s how they lined up. I thought the embeds were fixed, didn’t use them Friday so I am crossing my fingers for Saturday…
Lineup Notes: Corey Andonovski for Marc Johnstone was the only change.
First Period: 1:53 in and Rutger McGroarty scores a goal that unleashed a flurry of fur as it was the Annual Teddy Bear Toss Night. After a brief delay, they were back underway but let’s hope the embeds still work and check it out below.
I think the only two people who knew the puck was loose were Sylvegard and the referee.
But the Penguins would respond three minutes later when Vasily Ponomarev found Valtteri Puustinen for yet another power play goal that re-establihed the two goal lead.
Just under three minutes later, ex-Penguin Scott Harrington scored his first of the season for the Thunderbirds and it was a one goal lead for the Penguins.
Puck left sitting in the slot and there’s Harrington to sweep it in.
They managed to eat a lot of time off the clock but then they took a late penalty with about two minutes left to play. Springfield opts to pull Vadim Zherenko. Oh boy.
Tie game. Aleksanteri Kaskimaki. I feel for any Springfield bloggers out there that have to type that name on a daily basis.
Somehow, someway, they managed to drag that flaming wreck of the third period off to….
Overtime: Penguins get a late opportunity on the power play and while the goal was initially credited to Boris Katchouk, after review post game the goal was attributed to Emil Bemström, for a hat trick.
Three Stars: 3) Aleksanteri Kaskimaki (goal, assist) 2) Emil Bemström (three goals) 1) Boris Katchouk (assist)
Katchouk was initially credited with first star honors because, at the time, everyone though he scored the OT GWG.
The Good: 3/4 ob the power play. That should win you plenty hockey games.
The Bad: I didn’t particularly like that third period. Bad team effort. Thankfully they built up enough credit and were able to drag it to overtime.
Turning Point: I want to go back to the disallowed goal that Springfield scored because that could have ganged things a lot. I won’t thought, the Bemstrom power play hat truck goal gets it here.
Around the Division: Hartford beats Laval 4-2….Charlotte beats Hershey 2-1 and the number one curse in my Monday Power Rankings is alive and well….Lehigh Valley beats Cleveland 3-2 in overtime.
Standings: Hershey 39 – Penguins, Charlotte 29 – Providence 28 – Hartford 27 – Springfield 26 – Lehigh Valley 25 – Bridgeport 14
Wheeling Update: The Nailers win again. 13 straight wins. Longest in franchise history. 4-1 win against Reading. Sergei Murashov stopped 30.
I have an Ethan Prow Christmas jersey I swear is cursed.
I can’t remember the last time the team this blog is dedicated to won a game when I was wearing it. I busted it out because it is the holidays and because the Penguins did beat the Checkers on Wednesday but tonight, a 4-0 Checkers win, proves that the Prow Christmas jersey is bad luck.
Even moreso now that I think of it because :15 into the game, a turnover leads to a Rasmus Asplund goal that put the Penguins in an early hole, before most of the patrons even made it to their seats.
Then about five minutes later an Asplund pass to teammate John Leonard actually caromed off Leonard and into the net of Joel Blomqvist for a 2-0 lead for the visitors.
Penguins couldn’t muster any type of offense in front of Ken Appleby, who had a 29 save shutout, his second consecutive (vs. Rochester last weekend) and third overall. The only time I thought he was tested was when Tristan Broz had a chance point blank, but Appleby flicked it away with the pad. This was in the second period right after the Penguins killed off :61 of a two man advantage for Charlotte.
The Penguins had an opportunity at 4 on 3 after a timeout called by Kirk MacDonald to get back into it, but did not.
Patrick Giles then goes unmarked into the Penguins zone and whizzes a shot through Blomqvist’s five hole that gives the Checkers a lead at 13:50 0f the second.
Charlotte connects on a third period power play when a Wilmer Skoog shot is kicked out by Blomqvist but right to Ben Steeves who put it home.
Wilkes-Barre went 0/5 on the power play, and that was one of the many things that cost them the game.
You had to know that Charlotte would come out juiced up after losing Wednesday and they did. It was a picture perfect start for them and their goaltender did the rest.
That’s really it. They got defensemen Mac Hollowell and Filip Kral, forward Emil Bemström back from injury and released Chris Ortiz of his PTO and sent him back to Wheeling. Corey Andonovski and Mats Lindgren came out of the lineup. I thought the infusion of Bemstrom would help, it didn’t.
Three Stars were John Leonard with a goal, Rasmus Asplund with a goal and an assist and Ken Appleby with 29 saves in that order.
Providence beats Bridgeport 5-3 and Hershey pulls another rabbit from its arse with a late goal from Ethen Frank to tie it in Syracuse and then the Bears win in OT on a Bogdan Trineyev goal to win 2-1. The rest of the Atlantic was idle.
Wilkes-Barre will slip to third in a tie with Charlotte with 27 points, a point behind Providence’s 28 and 12 points back of division leader Hershey.
Wheeling wins 4-1 down the road in Reading for a franchise record longest point streak at 15 games. There are a lot of players there that belong here. Matty De St. Phalle is one, who had two goals for nine on the season. Jordan Martel had three assists. Taylor Gauthier stopped 28. Give them a look.
No highlights to this one.
Back at it under hopefully the old conventional way tomorrow after the Springfield contest. I saw their broadcaster on radio row getting his equipment set up so I know the Thunderbirds are already in town, unless he drove down himself with coaches. Doubtful Springfield is one of if not the hottest team in the AHL currently, so the Penguins need to be ready. More then.
Comments Off on Bing! Bang! Boris! — Pens WINS 6-4
Posted by nafsnep on December 11, 2024
vs.
4 6
–
The second hat trick in three games for the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins, this time by Boris Katchouk, who also added another goal for four on the night, is enough to carry the Penguins to a 6-4 win over the Charlotte Checkers Wednesday night.
These teams rematch Friday.
I’d love to stay and chat, but the job that actually pays me starts at 8:30 and it’s past 10:30 now and I don’t normally stay up this late on work night, so let’s get moving!
Lineup Notes: Ten guys injured for the Penguins. Minutes after the Weekend Preview went up, Coal Street signed Chris Ortiz to a PTO. He, Justin Lee and Mats Lindgren were in for Nikolai Knyzhov, Mac Hollowell and Filip Kral, all injured. Forwards from Sunday were unchanged, but shuffled.
First Period: Boris Katchouk was either hooked on a long delayed call that award him a penalty shot or Jaycob Megna’s stick throwing in the defensive zone at a puck caused a penalty shot, which Katchouk buried here…
I got the sense that despite the lead, they were playing with house money.
Second Period: Charlotte has the leagues best power play. The Penguins, who were not only badly outshot in the period, gave the Checkers opportunity after opportunity on the man advantage.
Only a matter of time before future AHL Hall of Famer and Checkers captain Zac Dalpe scored ti tie the game on the power play.
Shots were 30-12 Checkers for the game and 15-6 in the period, same as the first.
Third Period: They adjusted in this period.
They get the kickoff goal from probably a player that isn’t long for the AHL if he keeps this up, Tristan Broz scored at 3:43 off a rebound of an Isaac Belliveau shot that tied the game.
But here’s where the game got interesting. Wilmer Skoog scored at 17:02 that made it 5-3 and then John Leonard followed about a minute and a half later with Chris Driedger pulled that made it a one goal game!
(The Checkers didn’t bother to post these goals)
Geordie Kinnear called time out but then Boris Katchouk stepped back up and flipped a shot in front of his own goaltenders crease 190′ down the ice and scored into the empty net that sealed the deal for good.
Here’s a snapshot of the Atlantic Division Standings through Sunday, December 8.
2. PENGUINS – 19 GP – 25 points
3. Springfield – 22 GP – 25 points
4. Charlotte – 19 GP – 25 points
Yes. It’s tight. Really tight. And, oh by the way, the Penguins play both of these teams this week, Charlotte twice.
Music to Set the Mood…
–
Not really a country fan, but it kind of fits here.
A Quote…
I need some leg room here…
– Me, only every day.
Lots of tight spaces in cars, under tables, desks and my seat in Section 104.
The Setup…
Three game home stand with the Charlotte Checkers on Wednesday and Friday and then the Springfield Thunderbirds on Saturday, and a gripe about this weeks officiating assignments.
It’s an important week for all three teams, I would say more so the Pens and Checkers, because they play each other twice. And you can argue that the team that say, wins the week, will be in a good position to hold onto the second seed in the Atlantic and maybe, just maybe, pursue Hershey for the lead come January or so.
The Penguins got stomped by the two ursine named teams in the division in Hershey and Providence by a 6-1 score on Wednesday and a 5-0 score on Sunday. Both games stung. They looked great the Saturday before in Hershey and got smoked at home Wednesday against the Bears then get outshot 17-3 in the first period Sunday to a team playing their third game in as many days. It’s unacceptable. I told you Wednesday that Bears head coach Todd Nelson was incensed at his teams effort the Saturday prior to when they lost to the Penguins. Could the same be said about Kirk MacDonald? I have no idea but I guess the answer would be yes. Doesn’t show, though.
The Penguins did beat the Hartford Wolf Pack 6-2 on Saturday on the road scoring a pair of power play goals and a pair of shorthanded goals, so the bounce back after a bad loss is there, it would seem.
Charlotte split shutouts with the Rochester Americans at home last week and the Springfield Thunderbirds sweep the weekend with wins over the Bridgeport Islanders and Rockford IceHogs, both in overtime. The Thunderbirds are one of the hottest teams in the AHL, winning 8-1-1 in their last ten and winners of four straight.
Records
Should have gave those to you in the second paragraph, right? The Penguins are 12-6-1, the Checkers are 11-5-1-2 and the Thunderbirds are 12-9-1.
Who’s Up? Who’s Down? Who’s Out?
They just started to get healthy with Corey Andonovski back Sunday in Providence and then it was announced that Emil Bemström, Raivis Ansons and Jack St. Ivany were all out. St. Ivany is week to week and the other two are day to day. They lost Mac Hollowell and possibly Nikolai Knyzhov Sunday in Providence as well.
How do they come out in the first ten minutes against Charlotte on Wednesday? If they are lifeless, the Checkers may bite them. Then the rematch Friday. Are they scrambling after a bad or close loss Wednesday or in their heads if they win Wednesday? Who knows when Springfield comes in Saturday. Springfield won’t be playing at all this week, so they will get the Penguins playing their third game in four nights while the Thunderbirds are fresh, likely bussing in on Friday.
If Kirk MacDonald is the guy I think he is after one quarter to play in this season, he holds guys accountable and there’s roster shuffling. Although with injuries starting to hit some guys that don’t deserve it may end up playing anyway.
But that’s why you have Wheeling.
Who’s in Goal?
Have to think Blomqvist – Larsson – Blomqvist this week for the Pens.
Ken Appleby and Cooper Black for the Checkers Wednesday – Friday and then Colten Ellis for Springfield Saturday.
You don’t really think the wrong goalie is in Wheeling, do you?
You are never going to find out what you have with Taylor Gauthier, who has been in the organization for years and won all sorts of awards in the ECHL last year or Sergei Murashov who was named ECHL Goalie of the Month of November if you keep them buried there.
It’s worth having the discussion. Yes, Filip Larsson has two shutouts, but hasn’t won since November 9.
That’s my only gripe with the team right now is that I have zero confidence in Filip Larsson at this time.
Who’s Running the Show?
Okay, so here’s the thing. There are 88 referees on the roster this season. We are getting referee Mike Sullivan again Wednesday with Rob Hennessey and Patrick Dapuzzo and J.P. Waleski on the lines. We had Sullivan up in Providence Sunday. Where’s the variety?
The real kick in the pants is that Jordan Deckard and Jarrett Burton are going to be here Friday with Ryan Jackson and Kirsten Welsh on the lines. Why is that bad? The same crew is assigned to the Springfield game Saturday. Yeah, all four.
There’s no sense in having 88 referees when you only see maybe a quarter of those. You gotta mix it up. Send some of those refs that only work Pacific Division teams East and vice versa.
Looking Ahead…
Toronto stops in Wednesday, a Friday off (nice) and then Leigh Valley home Saturday and then a 5 o’clock start in Hershey on Sunday.
Give us a bold prediction…
We all make dentist appointments next week after we grind our teeth to dust. Pens split with the Checkers and take the Thunderbirds to overtime and find a way to win. Everything stays tight a week before Christmas.
Comments Off on AHL Power Rankings — Week 9
Posted by nafsnep on December 9, 2024
It’s Hershey, again. It seems the Bears are inevitable.
Hershey sweeps the week and retakes the number one spot in the Chirps from Center Ice AHL Power Rankings.
We will see if there is any steam to the jinx that I think I put on the number one team by making them number one. With Hershey though, I don’t think so.
Alright, enough bloviating, let’s go!
1. Hershey Bears
Last Week: 8th (up 7)
Record: 17-5-3
Whatever it was that bugged this team is out of their system. Bears sweep the week and are again the number one team in the Rankings.
2. Calgary Wranglers
Last Week: 4th (up 2)
Record: 17-5-1
Sorry Wranglers fans, but yeah, the East Coast bias is real. Hershey does indeed jump seven spots, over you despite you sweeping a game Tucson club which has been making noise of late. Lead the Pacific comfortably here in mid-December, but so does Hershey in the East.
3. Springfield Thunderbirds
Last Week: 7th (up 4)
Record: 12-9-1
8-1-1 in their last ten so a hot team including a four game win streak. I think they are the hottest team in the League right now. Five game road trip begins Saturday in Wilkes-Barre.
4. Belleville Senators
Last Week: 5th (up 1)
Record: 11-4-0-4
Sweep the Moose in Winnipeg and have won four in a row but the North is ultra competitive, so the B-Sens are fifth in the division. And no, I don’t know what my obsession is with this team is either.
5. San Jose Barracuda
Last Week: 12th (up 7)
Record: 14-6-0-1
Sweep the Firebirds and have some separation for second in the Pacific. One more with Coachella Valley then San Diego and Ontario kick off a five game road trip.
WBS News
Chirps from Center Ice 