Chirps from Center Ice

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Here’s a telling little nugget dropped on Twitter by Pens play by play man Nick Hart after the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins 2-0 win over Syracuse Saturday night.

So the defense, which we have kind of singled out as a bit of an early problem, has a bit of of a course correction as the Penguins sweep the weekend and pick up a maximum of four points to remain in contention in the Atlantic.

However, this was all Casey DeSmith tonight. The Penguins didn’t really give him a lot of run support tonight nor Friday night with Dustin Tokarski in Utica, but when you are scoring more goals than your opponent, it doesn’t really make a difference if it’s 2-1 or 1-0.

Syracuse outshot the Penguins 35-22 tonight and went 0-for-6 on the power play. DeSmith dazzled in goal, stopping a few 2-on-1 rushes and was generally dialed in from the drop. Sometimes you can tell early on if a goalie has it, and DeSmith definitely did, picking up his first shutout of the season.

He opposed Spencer Martin.

Lines were…

Syracuse didn’t post any lines that I saw through their platforms.

Lineup Notes: Essentially Andreas Martinsen for Ryan Haggerty vet for vet, Jon Lizotte was back in from injury for Matt Abt.

First Period: Andrew Agozzino got one to go with a weird play where he had a puck deflect off of him and then off of a Crunch defender that went in for a 1-0 Wilkes-Barre lead.

The new LED light system slaps, by the way. 100% better than the old sodium lights they had.

Penguins would go on to outshoot Syracuse 13-11 in the first, but would only muster nine more shots the rest of the way, six in the second and three in the third.

Second Period: Felt at the time that this was Syracuse’s big push period. Syracuse just likes to play run and gun and if you are a slow team or aren’t ready for that transition out of nowhere style, you’ll get buried quick. DeSmith was dialed in. Example:

Wilkes-Barre would see Sam Miletic leave after a nasty hit along the boards by Dominik Masin. Masin would receive a five minute major for boarding which carries an automatic match penalty.

Here’s the excerpt from the AHL Rulebook on the subject of a major penalty for boarding:

41.4 Match Penalty – The Referee, at his discretion, may assess a match penalty if, in his judgment, the player attempted to or deliberately injured his opponent by boarding.

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A lesson in patience Friday night in Utica for the WIlkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins.

After a masterful performance in goal by Dustin Tokarski would appear to be for naught, the Penguins pick up two goals in the span of :34 seconds and beat the Utica Comets 2-1.

Tokarski was beat in the first minute of the game by what was essentially an own goal by Macoy Erkamps. The Penguins as a team looked okay from there on out, but could not crack Comets goalie Michael DiPietro at all in the first or second periods.

Finally, Zach Trotman’s power play goal with about six minutes left to play in the third period tied the game for the Penguins and then later Trotman’s shot was deflected by Jordy Bellerive for a goal that gave the Penguins the lead for good.

It was a very solid performance by the team tonight and one that they will be looking to build on. Utica came into tonight second overall in the AHL in offense but was shutout in two games last weekend by Providence and Rochester and only scored two goals in Binghamton on Wednesday. What was the last undefeated team in the AHL has not lost four straight and are reeling.

What I am trying to say is, with all due respect to the opponent, it would have been a shame if the Penguins lost this game.

Here’s how they lined up on both sides tonight:

Zane McIntyre backed up DiPietro for Utica, not Richard Bachman.

Lineup Notes: Niclas Almari picked up what’s being described as a, “middle body injury” so Justin Almeida slotted in up front and but for Almari, went with the same defensive unit they did on Wednesday. Ryan Haggerty stayed in the lineup over other vets Joseph Cramarossa and Andreas Martinsen. Emil Larmi was cleared medically and was a healthy scratch.

First Period: I’ll let my opening tweets speak for themselves here.

It was actually a Macoy Erkamps own goal to my eyes.

Erkamps looks like he wanted to pass it back to Tokarski to cover and, well, that happened.

Wilkes-Barre settled down a bit after that, but it could have been a false front on the basis that they had two power plays but failed to cash. Shots were 12-8 Penguins heading into the…

Second Period: Benign period. Pens opened with a power play, then the teams were four on four for an odd concurrent delay of game penalty then the Penguins had to kill a power play late. Both goalies remained sharp.

Third Period: Tokarski continued to be sharp and dialed in stopping a shot / pass from Tyler Graovac to Brogan Rafferty that was a good play but not enough to add on to the Comets lead. Later, Josh Teves was caught holding with 6:20 left to play in regulation and Zach Trotman connected for this goal that leveled the score line:

Homemade videos tonight. Glad it wasn’t a five goal affair.

:34 later, Trotman stayed on and fired a shot which was deflected for a goal by Jordy Bellerive that put the Penguins out front 2-1.

With the way that Tokarski was dialed in, all the Penguins needed to do was stay the course which they did and they picked up their first regulation win since October 16 at home against Binghamton.

Three Stars: 3) Mitch Eliot (goal) 2) Zach Trotman (goal, assist) and 1) Jordy Bellerive (game winning goal)

The Good: Obviously the power play came through tonight, because that would have been, “the bad” otherwise had the Penguins not won considering they had four opportunities. Honorable mention to Tokarski, who was dialed in and really should have had a shutout but for the Erkamps gaffe.

The Bad: Whenever the opponent scores just one goal its seen as nitpicking, but that Erkamps gaffe in the first could have been a costly error and a one way ticket out of town.

Turning Point: You don’t need me to say it but I will, the power play goal by Trotman finally broke the wall down for the Penguins in a game where they pressed all night and then Bellerive’s goal shocked the Comets right out of the building.

Around the Division: In the game to watch tonight in Hartford, the Wolf Pack defeat the Hershey Bears in regulation 2-1 to stay hot and at the top of the Atlantic….Charlotte did the same to Springfield 2-1. Lehigh Valley, Providence and Bridgeport had the night off.

Standings: Hartford 21 — Providence and Springfield 16 — Lehigh Valley, Hershey and Wilkes-Barre 14 — Charlotte 11 — Bridgeport 9

Wheeling Update: Make it five wins in a row for the Nailers, who pick up a 4-1 win over the Reading Royals. Ryan Scarfo had a pair of goals. Alex D’Orio picked up the win.

Video Highlights: If Utica posts em, I’ll run an edit. If Wilkes-Barre does the same, I’ll still run the edit.

Pens bus home for a home game Saturday night against Syracuse, the Crunch’s first and only visit this season. If you come to the game Saturday and notice something different, it isn’t your eyes…

Can’t wait to see what it looks like in person Saturday. Gameday setup here on the blog at 3 Saturday afternoon.

Let’s Go Pens!

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Kyle Criscuolo’s goal in the final knockings in the second and the third (via open net) give the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins a 4-2 loss in Allentown on Wednesday night.

Typical game in this early season. Get a lead, lose it, play from behind in the third, get close and lose. It’s becoming a troubling trend how the Penguins have allowed three or more goals in 11 of their 12 games so far this season. If the strength of the team is on its veteran defensive presence, it sure isn’t showing so far.

Casey DeSmith opposed J-F Berube.

Lineup:

Lineup Notes: With Sam Lafferty recalled to Pittsburgh on Tuesday, Ryan Haggerty took his spot on the second line. Haggerty was the veteran replacement for Joseph Cramarossa. He and  Andreas Martinsen were the healthy scratches along with Justin Almeida. They went with 11F/7D, with Matt Abt getting back into the lineup. I suppose it’s a good way to rotate Abt and Haggerty back into the lineup and I suppose it’s good to get an extra defensemen out there with all the firepower that the Phantoms boast but if you aren’t going to use Justin Almeida, send the kid to Wheeling. It doesn’t do anything for him to constantly sit.

Injuries: Jon Lizotte blocked a shot last week and that’s why he wasn’t in the lineup Saturday or tonight. His status is the benign day to day. Everyone else was status quo. Emil Larmi is on the trip, pending a doctor release.

First Period: Jake Lucchini was flying in the first so of course he would score for the Penguins here in this nice sequence that beat Berube to give the Penguins a 1-0 lead.

Lehigh Valley would answer a few minutes later when off of a face-off Andy Welinski would rip and fire a shot from the point that tied the game at one.

Let the bloggers handle the puns, Phantoms social media person.

Game settled into a rock fight after that to close out the period.

Second Period: Pens missed on a goal then finally got one to go. Stefan Noesen flew the slot to open the second on a carryover power play and dished off to Andrew Agozzino who hit a post, but then Adam Johnson and Ryan Haggerty played backhand with the puck when Haggerty cashed to bring the Penguins level at two a piece.

Have to back up to the Phantoms second goal, a Paul Carey undressing of Michael Kim and a snap shot that beat DeSmith that initially gave Lehigh Valley a 2-1 lead.

Kyle Criscuolo found a sliver of daylight and ripped one from mid-slot that hit the post and beat DeSmith that gave the Phantoms a late 3-2 lead.

Less than ideal position for Wilkes-Barre / Scranton who had to play from behind heading into the…

Third Period: Playing behind, the Penguins only mustered six shots on goal, and not necessarily from high danger areas. They had two chances on the power play in the period as well and Lehigh Valley’s bottom third penalty kill easily handled the Penguins sixth ranked power play unit.

Further, Lehigh Valley was down to five defensemen as Samuel Morin went down and didn’t return.

Phantoms would bag an empty netter from about 100 feet away when Criscuolo hit the empty net to ice the game away from the home side.

The Good: Jake Lucchini was arguably the best Penguins player tonight, up on a line with Anthony Angello and Oula Palve.

The Bad: Defense continues to struggle. You’ll see the updated chart next week but David Warsofsky’s got the worst goal differential on the team, -10 at even strength and -5 overall. Not singling Warsofsky out per se, but he’s a defenseman on the team and also serves as the captain.

Turning Point: Criscuolo’s goal with under two minutes to play in the second that gave the Phantoms a slim edge gets the nod here. The Pens simply didn’t or couldn’t do much in the third period despite the luxury of two power plays.

Three Stars: 3) T.J. Brennan (two assists) 2) Greg Carey (goal, assist) 1) Kyle Criscuolo (two goals, assist)

Around the Division: Bridgeport ends Springfield’s winning streak with an impressive 1-0 shutout over the Thunderbirds at home today in a morning kids day game. Bridgeport has won two in a row all of a sudden. Everyone else was off.

Standings: Hartford 19 — Providence and Springfield 16 — Lehigh Valley and Hershey 14 – Penguins 12 — Charlotte and Bridgeport 9.

Wheeling Update: The Nailers also played in a kids day game in Toledo and lost 5-4 in overtime. Jan Drozg had a strong game, with a goal and an assist.

Video Highlights:

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If I read the November Penguins practice schedule correctly, then the Penguins are bussing up to Utica tonight for practice Thursday and then their game Friday against the Comets. Smart, when you think of it, get all the travel out of the way today, recover and play Friday then bus down back home for Syracuse Saturday night.

More as it comes, although the Gameday setup against the Comets is probably the next entry, Friday at 3.

Let’s Go Pens!