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I almost feel like saying to people what Aaron Rodgers said to Green Bay Packers fans a few weeks ago when the Packers were losing and not looking like the Packers.

Relax.

John Hynes didn’t forget to coach. Jeff Zatkoff didn’t forget to play goal. Philip Samuelsson didn’t forget how to play defense and Tom Kostopoulos didn’t forget how to skate.

The Penguins started out 0-2 to start their season, but they are finally in the win column after a 2-1 overtime win in St. John’s, after Reid McNeill’s slap shot after a J-S Dea faceoff win sent the away team home winners and spoiled the IceCaps home opener, where they raised an Eastern Conference Championship banner tonight.

Jeff Zatkoff vs. Peter Budaj

Lines were….

Scott Wilson – Nick Drazenovic – Jayson Megna
Adam Payerl – Zack Torquato – Tom Kostopoulos
Tom Kuhnhackl – JS Dea-Rust
Dom Uher – Matia Marcantuoni – Bobby Farnham

Brian Dumoulin – Taylor Chorney
Barry Goers – Philip Samuelsson
Reid McNeill – Alex Boak

Jeff Zatkoff – Matt Murray

Scratches were Anton Zlobin, Nick D’Agostino, Pierre Leblond. Injury scratches were Conor Sheary and Josh Archibald. Obie said that Sheary was not on the trip and likely could be seen next weekend.

First Period: Pens would get an early power play but couldn’t generate a good look. The Pens really looked light years better from the effort put forth from last week, hitting everything that moved and dominating everything in the period. Zatkoff was tested just once, but made the saves.

Zack Torquato, fresh up from Wheeling, was everywhere. He hit two posts, and had a great period/

Second Period: Pens continued the dominance, but the grip started to loosen a bit. Pens had some chances shorthanded, but later the IceCaps would score off a faceoff when a pass was centered from behind the net to Scott Kosmachuk to give the IceCaps a 1-0 lead.

Third Period: Pens looked like the late second period goal had no affect on them as they came out flying again. But goaltender Peter Budaj continued to close the door on any opportunity the Pens had on evening the game. Finally, Jayson Megna came flying down the far wing and snapped a shot past Budaj to tie the game at one goal apiece.

The Pens then had a power play and agains looked like world beaters but Budaj was up to the task once again.

A few chances for the Pens shorthanded, but it was onto….

Overtime: Both teams had a chance to end it respectively. Then a long delay as the net came off the moorings behind Budaj. The mooring didn’t stay set, so after a lengthy delay, J-S Dea lined up for a faceoff and won it to McNeill who zipped one past Budaj and in.

The two teams rematch tomorrow at 6 p.m. Wilkes-Barre time.

Three Stars: 3) Scott Kosmachuk (goal, +1) 2) Peter Budaj (28 saves on 30 shots) 1) Jayson Megna (goal, +1)

Around the Division: Lehigh Valley beats Adirondack in their home opener in overtime, 4-3….Binghamton beats Portland at home 3-2 and Norfolk beats Manchester 3-2. Hershey was off.

Standings: Norfolk and Leigh Valley have 4. Binghamton has 3. Hershey and the Pens have 2.

Conference: A bunch of teams have 4 points. No one has five. The Pens, despite the two points, sit at the bottom of the Conference in 15th.

SendToNews HIghlights: Are here.

Coal Street put together an awesome infographic which you can look at here. This is something I hope that they get good at and do, often.

Gameday for the rematch tomorrow will be up at 3 p.m.!

Let’s Go Pens!!!

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Oh boy.

After a promising preseason, the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins will wake up on Columbus Day tomorrow staring at an 0-2 record.

The numbers, and I will get into them this week as I roll out a feature I used late last season, will speak for themselves. Goaltender Jeff Zatkoff, through two games, is 0-2, with a 4.51 GAA and a .735 SV%. 9 goals allowed on 34 total shots. That isn’t good.

But it’s not just on Zatkoff, and I hope to paint that picture as to why later this week when I construct and add up my chart I will roll out this week. I’m not teasing you to come back and I am, I just haven’t put it together yet and I want you to come back and look at it and see for yourself.

Anyway, this game, a 4-1 Penguin loss. It was Jeff Zatkoff vs. J-F Berube.

Lines were….

Anton Zlobin – Jayson Megna – Bryan Rust
Tom Kuhnhackl – Conor Sheary – Tom Kostopoulos
Dominik Uher – JS Dea – Adam Payerl
Pierre Leblond – Matia Marcantuoni – Bobby Farnham

Brian Dumoulin – Philip Samuelsson
Reid McNeill – Taylor Chorney
Nick D’Agostino – Barry Goers

Jeff Zatkoff – Matt Murray

In were Tom Kuhnhackl and Adam Payerl for Scott Wilson and Nick Drazenovic and Nick D’Agostino for Harrison Ruopp. The other scratches were Josh Archibald (shoulder) and Alex Boak.

First Period: :27 in, the Monarchs score. A seemingly harmless wrist shot from the blue line and in over Zatkoff’s shoulder and in. Penguins would get a few power plays and nearly scored on one, but Brian O’Neill would score for the Monarchs to push the Monarchs lead to two. Wilkes-Barre had a late power play that was a mess.

Second Period: JS Dea would get a goal for the Pens from the blue line, Adam Payerl was in the area and provided interference. The goal came on a delayed penalty call on the Monarchs.

The Penguins were finding the gas. They were creating opportunities. It looked like they were going to tie the game.

No. Vincent LoVerde found himself wide open in the slot, made a few moves and deked a puck past Zatkoff to re-establish the two goal lead.

You could feel all the air leave the building, because the Penguins would get no closer.

In fact, the Monarchs got father away. Zatkoff let in another questionable goal from the blue line and the Monarchs had a 4-1 lead.

Third Period: The Penguins did not allow the Monarchs a single shot on goal this period. The Penguins fired seven, all saved by Berube, including one while the Penguins were on a 5:00 power play when Kevin Raine crashed Adam Payerl into the boards. Payerl went to the locker room but came back and appeared fine.

This was especially impressive, because the Penguins played this period without the services of Reid McNeill, who left the game with some type of injury Coach John Hynes had no update on post game.

Three Stars: 3) Vincent LoVerde (goal, +3) 2) Kevin Raine (goal, assist, +2) 1) Brian O’Neill (goal, assist, +1)

Around the Division: No one else played.

Standings: Norfolk 2 — Lehigh Valley 2 — Binghamton 1 — Hershey 0 — Penguins 0

Conference: St. John’s has 3. Hartford, Lehigh Valley, Portland, Albany, Springfield, Manchester and Worcester have 2. It’s never too early to start counting points. Oh, the Penguins are dead last in the Conference.

Wheeling Update: Nailers are in their preseason, and lost a preseason game 5-3 to the Cincinnati Cylcones, 5-3. Eric Hartzell stopped 10 of 13, Clark Seymour was a -3.

SendToNews Highlights: I don’t think there is anything that any Penguins fan will want to see of the highlights, but for posterity sake, here they are.

My AHL Power Rankings hit the blog Monday at 4 p.m. New format this year, check them out then. Also, I’ll be debuting the chart this week at some point, probably Tuesday. I may be tweeting some things on it as I build it, so if you aren’t yet, follow me on Twitter, @nafsnep.

Let’s Go Pens!

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I wrote this as a “Case Against” the Penguins in my East Division Preview that ran Friday, part of a weeklong series where I look at each team…

Youth and inexperience. A lot of second year guys and rookies may be relied upon to carry the offensive load this season.

It showed tonight. A 5-2 loss to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms at the home opener. The Penguins aren’t historically great in the first game of the season anyhow, but to lose a game on your home ice in front of your fans to a division rival you will see 12 times this season isn’t the way they drew it up.

Jeff Zatkoff vs. Rob Zepp

Lines were…

Anton Zlobin – Nick Drazenovic – Tom Kostopoulos
Scott Wilson – Conor Sheary – Bryan Rust
Bobby Farnham – JS Dea – Jayson Megna
Pierre Leblond – Matia Marcantuoni – Dominik Uher

Brian Dumoulin – Philip Samuelsson
Taylor Chorney – Barry Goers
Reid McNeill – Harrison Ruopp

Jeff Zatkoff – Matt Murray

Scratches were Alex Boak, Tom Kuhnhackl, Adam Payerl, Nick D’Agostino. Josh Archbald was listed as injured and when introduced had a sling on his left arm.

Tom Kostopoulos is the Captain, we all knew that. Philip Samuelsson and Pierre Leblond are the alternates.

First Period: Ragged back and forth to start, both teams worked the bugs out. Finally late, on a Phantoms power play, Chris VandeVelde scored the first ever goal in Lehigh Valley Phantoms history on a rebound. The puck caromed off of bodies as it was sent towards the net from the blue line. VandeVelde found it, and stuffed it home for a 1-0 Phantoms lead.

Second Period: Zatkoff was leaving a few big rebounds to start but they didn’t end up behind him. But the Penguins fail to clear the puck out of the zone not once, but twice, and it cost them. Brandon Alderson made it 2-0 and then Mark Alt made it 3-0 not too long after.

Bryan Rust scored from just below the blue line as time expired. Referee Jamie Koharski immediately signaled goal, but then went to video review to confirm his call. You would think that this momentum would help the Pens in the…

Third Period: Nope. Nothing doing. The Penguins tried to push, but the Phantoms defense held firm. As time dwindled, the mistakes mounted and just like that, Zatkoff loses another rebound and Nick Cousins cashes for a 4-1 Phantoms lead then the Phantoms on a power play stuff home a Zatkoff rebound to make it 5-1.

Conor Sheary gets his first goal of the season with under a minute to play on a rebound Zepp just left lying there.

Thoughts: The rookies will need to learn that this isn’t juniors anymore and the cutesy dangle plays don’t work against trained professionals. The problems were all over the board tonight. Idiot penalties lead to goals for the other team or failed clears that end up in the back of the net. The problems better get fixed quick with the defending regular season Eastern Conference Champion Manchester Monarchs coming in Sunday afternoon.

Three Stars: 3) Bryan Rust (goal, +1) 2) Brandon Alderson (goal, assist, +1) 2) Chris VandeVelde (two goals, even)

Around the Division: Binghamton and Worcester play late in overtime and Worcester wins 3-2 when the sides are 3-on-3….Hershey loses a back and forth affair with Norfolk by a score of 5-4.

Standings: Norfolk 2 — Lehigh Valley 2 — Binghamton 1 — Penguins 0 — Hershey 0.

Conference: I will look at this once Hartford and Manchester, the only two teams yet to play a game this season, get their season underway Sunday.

Wheeling Update: The Nailers are in preseason, their season does not start until next weekend.

SendToNews Highlights: I prefer YouTube videos, just because they play nicer with the blog then the SendToNews package. So here you go…

Gameday vs. Manchester hits the blog at noon Sunday. No rest for the weary, back at it Sunday afternoon!