Chirps from Center Ice

A fan blog about the AHL's Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins

Category Archives: Postgamer

Vasily Ponomarev is NOT an All-Star — Pens WIN 9-0

1 Comment Posted by on January 29, 2025

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Yes, you are reading it all right. Both the scoreline and the headline. Vasily Ponomarev leads AHL rookies in points (35) and is yet somehow not an AHL All-Star. Baffling, and maybe downright insulting.

And yes, the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins beat up the Hershey Bears like they owed them money to a tune of 9-0.

It’s just the second regulation road loss for the forward depleted Bears, who are missing a ton of offensive firepower but are generally OK on defense on goaltending.

Not tonight, though.

Four goals for Vasily Ponomarev, a hat trick also for Ville Koivunen and 27 saves for Sergei Murashov, his first AHL shutout and he wasn’t even named a star of the game.

Valtteri Puustinen, Colton Poolman, Owen Pickering, Marc Johnstone and Dan Renouf were held off the score sheet for the Pens Wednesday. Only Bogdan Trineyev, Chase Priskie and Garrett Roe for the Bears weren’t on the ice for any even strength goals scored.

Historic night.

Biggest margin of victory over the Bears….biggest margin of victory ever….seven hat tricks this season shatters the franchise record of five, and they had two in one game, also first time ever.

I said in the Weekend Preview that if they beat Hershey then the rest (with Charlotte this week) takes care of itself.

I think we are getting to the point to where a win should be expected. Not given, but expected.

The Penguins jumped on the Bears from the outset with Ville Koivunen scoring at 4:39 off a nice feed from Boris Katchouk.

Vasily Ponomarev would net a power play goal at 6:42 and it was 2-0.

Ponomarev again at 9:12 and that was all for Clay Stevenson in net for the Bears, enter Hunter Shepard.

It didn’t matter.

Ville Koivunen netted the free coffee goal at 14:15.

This was just the first period.

More in the second.

Koivunen for his hat trick at 1:36 at the expiration of a Penguins power play made it 5-0, Sam Poulin creeping behind the defense off a very nice pass from Joona Koppanen to make it 6-0 at 7:02,  Koivunen for his fourth at 13:09 and then Filip Kral, who had four assists, tucked in a goal that made it 8-0 at 17:28.

The only question is would the Penguins score ten and would Ponomarev get a hat trick of his own?

Ponomarev would at 3:17, back on Clay Stevenson who went back in net for the Bears to start the third, but the Penguins would not continue shattering franchise records by scoring a tenth goal, something they have never done.

Here they are, in all their glorious glory. Pick your favorite and let me know in the comments.

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That goal was my favorite, by the way.

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Whew.

Lost in the ether was a strong effort in net from Sergei Murashov whom I thought was a good call to go in net against the Bears. What offensive mustard the Bears put on Murashov when they weren’t having to put out fires on the backs their defensemen or fishing pucks out of the net or scheduling audiologist visits after Todd Nelson gave them an earful in intermission, were all shut down rather easily by the Russian rookie net minder.

But again, buyer beware, Hershey has a lot of forwards hurt.

Lineup wise, Atley Calvert made his AHL debut on the fourth line in place of Corey Andonovski and Colton Poolman was in Scooter Brickey.

Three Stars: 3) Filip Kral (goal, four assists) 2) Vasily Ponomarev (hat trick) 1) Ville Koivunen (hat trick plus one)

The Good: Again, they jumped on Hershey like they owed them money. I said in the Power Rankings earlier this week I don’t think the Bears win the division this season. I think the Penguins are the best team in the division but they just haven’t played enough games to have people notice yet.

The Bad: They didn’t get ten?

Turning Point: I think the power play goal scored by Ponomarev back in the first set the ball in motion and it was downhill from there for the Bears and just a runaway train for the Penguins.

Around the Division: You won’t believe this, but there was another team that scored nine goals. Lehigh Valley throttles Bridgeport 9-2…Hartford loses 6-5 in overtime in Belleville.

Standings: Hershey 57 – Providence and Charlotte 51 – Penguins 50 – Lehigh Valley 48 – Springfield 42 – Hartford 40 – Bridgeport 24

Wheeling Update: Nailers were off.

Video Highlights: 

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They fly to Charlotte Thursday and we will be back here Friday.

Seriously, Vasiliy Ponomarev isn’t an AHL All-Star.

Let’s Go Pens!

Postgamer

Sunday Scaries – Pens WIN 5-1

Comments Off on Sunday Scaries – Pens WIN 5-1 Posted by on January 26, 2025

Quick one today because of you have followed along for any amount of time you realize that I detest with the fire of a thousand suns Sunday games. I can tolerate road games easier then I can home games (not having to negotiate crowds, etc) but still detest the concept. I’d make a terrible Hershey Bears fan, they love their 5 o’clock starts on Sundays. They are crazy. 

Anyway, Emil Bemstrom’s hat trick and the Penguins three power play goals are enough to sail past the Lehigh Valley Phantoms Sunday afternoon. Penguins inch closer and use a game in hand on Hershey to pick up two points on the Bears after a 5-1 win.

Here’s how they lined up:

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Lineup Notes: Owen Pickering, assigned Friday because he was the only waiver exempt non-goaltender on the roster, went down and Boko Imama went up. He replaced Colton Poolman from Saturday. Up front, Jesse Puljujarvi was out for Marc Johnstone. I’ve been generally underwhelmed by Puljujarvi, so that was a wash. 

First Period: Wilkes-Barre blitzkrieged the Phantoms to the tune of three goals, while Tristan Jarry only had to face five Phantoms shots and didn’t let the first one he saw go in. Progress.

Emil Bemstrom slammed home a Boris Katchouk pass on the near side to give the Pens an early 1-0 lead at 11:36. 

Under two minutes later, Avery Hayes comes flying down the near side, cuts to the net and digs Alexei Kolosov out, dekes him and roofs it to make it 2-0. 

Hayes is a fellow you want to get going. You accomplish that, this team is unbeatable. 

Late, Ethan Samson cross checks Corey Andonovski right in front of referee Jake Kamrass. Penguins power play. Mac Hollowell squeaks in a goal with two seconds left on the clock to give the Penguins a 3-0 lead. 

Here’s all the goals. Writing this on the fly, hope they all go through. 

Second Period: Avery Hayes was awarded an early penalty shot when a Phantoms covered the puck in the crease in an early scramble. He made a good move but Alexei Kolosov got a pad on it. That would be a theme of the period.

Ville Koivunen would get run over (legally) by Hunter McDonald and Boris Katchouk stepped up and fought McDonald. Katchouk would pick up 2-5-10 and the Phantoms got a long power play.

That thing I said about Kolosov’s pad? He stopped a Marc Johnstone setup and pass to Jonathan Gruden with the pad. Just a straight up robbery and then in the immediate rush up ice the other way, Cooper Marody scored to put the Phantoms on the board.

Hard to believe that was Marody’s first of the season, but Sunday was just his third game of the season and he’s been dealing with injury.

Third Period: It’s good when you have a power play that’s effective.

With the Phantoms still hanging around down two, Wilkes-Barre goes on a power play with seven minutes remaining. Thought here is that if the Penguins get one here, it’s over.

Emil Bemstrom is inevitable.

Phantoms take a late delay of game penalty and you think that the Penguins would send a bunch of guys out there to get power play work who aren’t regulars.

Wrong.

Bemstrom again, for the hat trick, scores to ice it away as if the game wasn’t already sealed.

Three Stars: 3) Avery Hayes (goal) 2) Ville Koivunen (four assists) 1) Emil Bemstrom (three goals, assist)

The Good: Power play went 3/4 (they had a brief :03 one if you want to count that) and that’s what got them the win. You do that and you win more than you lose.

The Bad: Would have been nice to see Jarry get the shutout, but it’s nitpicking.

Turning Point: The second goal Bemstrom goal gets it here. It’s 4-1 and there’s no way you come back from that unless you collapse.

Around the Division: Hey the AHL has a functioning website again! Hooray! Springfield hosted Hartford and Providence hosted Laval. The Rocket beat the Bruins in overtime 3-2 and Springfield beats Hartford 4-2.

Standings: Hershey 57 – Providence 51 – Charlotte 49 – Penguins 48 – Phantoms 46 – Springfield 42 – Hartford 39 – Bridgeport 24.

Wheeling Update: Nailers in their third contest of the weekend with the Kansas City Mavericks. That one started a little later then the Penguins game. Here’s the box.

Video Highlights:

Bad enough I had a Sunday game to go to but I have a busy Monday so the AHL Power Rankings will likely be delayed to late Monday, possibly Tuesday. Check them out then.

Let’s Go Pens!

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Spasibo, Sergei — Pens WIN 2-1

Comments Off on Spasibo, Sergei — Pens WIN 2-1 Posted by on January 25, 2025

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Sergei Murashov is now 3-0 at the AHL level after a very strong showing in net Saturday night for the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins, shutting down the Utica Comets three power plays and stopping 29 of 30 shots. Penguins win 2-1, snapping their four game losing streak.

Back at it Sunday afternoon at home (sigh) against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.

Here’s how they lined up…

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Lineup Notes: Mac Hollowell for Scooter Brickey on defense; Corey Andonovski for Marc Johnstone up front. Isaac Belliveau was sent to Wheeling Saturday afternoon.

First Period: Sergei Murashov was tested early and often as the Comets boat raced the Penguins to a tune of 10 shots to 1 at one point, then Shane Bowers connected for a goal at 13:34.

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I initially thought it was goalie interference, but that angle showed otherwise.

A minute and change later, Rutger McGroarty connected on a tic tac toe pass and scored to make it 1-1.

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I don’t know why the folks in attendance clapped at the end of the first period, that was an awful period for the home teams who were lucky that their goaltender was dialed in.

Second Period: Murashov dazzled with a stop through bodies and a screen then slid over to stop the rebound attempt with the pad. Wilkes-Barre was starting to come unraveled a bit because Utica was getting all the calls (refs Rob Hennessey and Jake Kamrass did not give Utica a single penalty all night) but that boiled over at the end of the period.

Third Period: Vasily Ponomarev this time connects on another tic tac toe pass play and scores to push the Penguins ahead 2-1.

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Utica did not find the equalizer with the net, tended by Nico Daws again in back to back nights, emptied.

Three Stars: 3) Rutger McGroarty (goal) 2) Sergei Murashov (29 saves) 1) Vasiliy Ponomarev (goal)

The Good: Nice to see them snap out of it and grit out a win. Utica plays better then its record and place would indicate.

The Bad: The AHL’s servers. You will note that this is blog piece is short scores from out of town or links to boxes. It’s 2025 and we have major hockey operations have server issues. I can’t get the scoreboard to load and am not going to continue to try.

Turning Point: The Ponomarev goal that put them ahead gets its here.

Hopefully the League gets new servers or pays the bill tomorrow so I can update standings and an out of town scoreboard for you.

Wheeling Update: Nailers are getting hammered at home by the Kansas City Mavericks. Box here. Hey, the ECHL’s servers are just fine!

Video Highlights: AHL VideoCenter, provided they also have the bandwidth, likely your best bet as Coal Street hasn’t posted them yet.

Back at it Sunday afternoon against Lehigh Valley.

Let’s Go Pens!

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Got That Daws In Him — Pens LOSE 5-3

Comments Off on Got That Daws In Him — Pens LOSE 5-3 Posted by on January 24, 2025

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The Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins pumped 35 shots at Utica Comets goaltender Nico Daws Friday night and Daws and the Comets shut down the visitors, playing in their first game in nine games and Utica wins their fourth straight beating the Penguins 5-3.

The two teams rematch Saturday in Wilkes-Barre.

Daws made some jaw dropping saves from all angles. In close, in traffic, from the point, on breakaways, et cetera. It was partially the play of Daws in net and the fact that Tristan Jarry’s tick of allowing the first shot of the game he sees in continuing at the AHL level, and the Penguins played from behind all night and never could get it in gear.

Expect a different effort Saturday. Hopefully.

Here’s how they lined up:

Lineup Notes: Marc Johnstone for Corey Andonovski up front. Andonovski took warmups. Jack St. Ivany returned from injury and replaced Mac Hollowell.

Injury Updates: Filip Larsson is week to week with a lower body injury and Tristan Broz has mono. Fantastic.

First Period: I thought it was purely a Pittsburgh thing, but on the first shot of the game by Utica, Brian Halonen scored to give the Comets an easy 1-0 lead.

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I don’t pay attention enough anymore to know why they threw socks on the ice. I assume it was for a good cause.

Later, Dan Renouf scored his first goal of the season for the Penguins when his shot deflected off of a skate of a Comet and it was tied.

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Late and off of a face-off, Colton White scored to push the Comets back ahead.

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Wilkes-Barre had a furious final push in the last minute but it remained 2-1 Utica heading into the…

Second Period: They had two issues which were developing.

First, was the opposing goaltender. Nico Daws was stopping everything, including some breakaway-ish chances. He stopped Jesse Puljujarvi late after Xavier Parent scored to make it 3-1 after a Scooter Brickey turnover.

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The second issue was the defending and the shakiness that they were getting from their NHL All-Star goaltender whom I am sure was not pleased with some of the work of his rearguards.

But Jarry would stay dialed in and found Valtteri Puustinen for a long pass while Utica was making a change on a penalty kill. Puustinen found Puljujarvi who scored this time to cut the deficit to one.

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They were showing life, but needed to figure out Daws and correct things in house heading into the…

Third Period: Utica gets another when Xavier Parent nets his second of the night, cue balling one past Jarry during a fire wagon change and it’s 4-2 Comets.

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Less than ideal response by Wilkes-Barre, who had just one shot on goal for the first ten or so minutes of the period.

With Jarry pulled late, Sam Poulin scores with 1:46 left and the Penguins are, once again, within one.

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Ensuing face-off, Penguins threaten again with an extra attacker but then an errant pass finds the stick of Ryan Schmelzer who backhands the puck down the ice from about 180′ away and it finds the back of the net to make it 5-3 Comets.

Sigh.

Three Stars: 3) Jesse Puljujarvi (goal, assist) 2) Ryan Schmelzer (goal, assist) 1) Xavier Parent (two goals)

The Good: Man, I don’t know. They let the first shot of the game in and they chased from there. The power play scored a goal for them, let’s go with that.

The Bad: They went behind on the first shot that their goaltender saw and they chased the game from there, seemingly one step behind all night.

Turning Point: Don’t want to say the first shot of the game, but it seems to keep recurring, so let’s keep with it.

Around the Division: I am not sticking around for the Charlotte Checkers Friday, who are out in Milwaukee and somewhere in the second period when this post goes up. Box here. Other scores in the division: Belleville beats Hershey 4-3 in overtime, Laval beats Hartford 4-3, Bridgeport beats Syracuse 5-2, Springfield beats Lehigh 5-1 and Providence shuts out Rochester 3-0.

Standings: Can’t update these because Charlotte has all the fun and plays Western Conference teams. Pens will stay on 44 points and in fourth place but have a ton of games in hand still.

Wheeling Update: Nailers win 4-3 over the Kansas City Mavericks. Taylor Gauthier stopped 35. Kyle Jackson had a pair of goals.

Video Highlights: AHL Video Center is your best bet.

More tomorrow when these two rematch.

Let’s Go Pens!

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Point Lost — Pens LOSE 4-3 (OT)

Comments Off on Point Lost — Pens LOSE 4-3 (OT) Posted by on January 15, 2025

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So when the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins miss a chance at the division championship or a first round bye or, let’s say a playoff spot by three points or less, we can point to this week.

They lost clean in Belleville with 2.2 seconds left on Sunday.

On Wednesday, they had a 3-0 lead in Laval and lose 4-3 in overtime.

Now, granted, it was a backup goaltender making his AHL debut which hasn’t seen live fire in a game in over a month, but the points count all the same.

Let’s get into it since it’s 10 p.m. on a Wednesday and I have work in the morning.

Here’s show they lined up:

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Lineup Notes: Jesse Puljujuarvi was officially re-assigned this week and joined the team. They are over the vet limit so Valtteri Puustinen drew the short straw for Puljujuarvi and Corey Andonovski was in for Marc Johnstone. On Defense Isaac Belliveau was in for Nikolai Knyzhov.

Waiver Wire: Tristan Jarry is back on waivers and will be assigned to Wilkes-Barre if no one claims him. I don’t think any other NHL team will because of the size of his contract. As a result, Jaxon Castor backed up Filip Larsson as Joel Blomqvist will go up tomorrow after 2 p.m.

First Period: Pens get a pair of goals in the period, one from Avery Hayes on a nice two on one rush with Rutger McGroarty and then a shorthanded goal by Jonathan Gruden, the second shorthanded goal of the trip. Goals are highlighted below:

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One item that came out of the period is that Filip Larsson was taking a bit of a beating. Death by a thousand paper cuts, if you will. A tap here, a shove there. He seemed okay.

Second Period: But then Jaxon Castor was out for the second period in relief of Larsson. Well, he acclimated himself nicely into the affair with this save after the Rocket came out full barrel to start the second period…

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The Penguins had a bunch of opportunities late in the period and had 1:25 of a two man advantage but failed to score. I didn’t particularly like this series of events.

Oh, it was Castor’s AHL debut.

Third Period: I didn’t particularly care for the penalties the Penguins were taking. This wasn’t a cause to question the calls that Mathieu Menniti or Will Kelly were making on the ice as the officials, they were fine.

Wilkes-Barre’s penalty kill was tested but was okay. The Penguins get what appeared to be an insurance goal off the stick of Emil Bemstrom that made it 3-0.

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Seemingly, you would think that this game was in hand.

Wrong.

Laval would start their comeback with a goal from William Trudeau at 12:04, then another at 14:40 from Florian Xhejaj and then the tying goal at 16:42 from Gustav Lindstrom. Three goals in the span of about four and a half minutes.

Laval didn’t GIF any goals I figure worthy for your perusal, so just trust me here.

Implosion? You bet. It was a snowball that rolled down hill and took out a village. All three goals I think beat Castor five hole. I am not blaming him for the loss because he’s thrust into his AHL debut in a hostile environment in Laval.

I mean if anything, it’s a bit of adversity that Kirk MacDonald, whom we have all sung the praises of this season, can help guide them out of.

Oh yeah, the game. They made it to…

Overtime: But had to kill a 4:00 Mac Hollowell double minor which carried over. They managed to to that but at the expiation of the penalty, Jared Davidson comes flying in from the point to slam home a loose puck and give the Rocket a 4-3 overtime win.

Three Stars: 3) Luke Tuch (two assists) 2) William Trudeau (goal, assist) 1) Jared Davidson (goal, assist)

The Good: The assumption is that they will hypothetically work on why they all of a sudden can’t close out a damn hockey game. Getting a point seems like an afterthought.

The Bad: I don’t know if having Filip Larsson in the net really would have made a difference. It felt like an artificial lead the whole game and you were just waiting for Laval to erupt. It happened way too late with little time to adjust.

Turning Point: I think that the William Trudeau goal that started the comeback should get it here because there was no looking back for the Rocket from there who come all the way back and win the game.

Around the Division: Kind of a busy night for the AHL for a Wednesday with 11 games. Springfield shuts out Bridgeport 4-0….Charlotte beats Milwaukee 4-2….Providence beats Syracuse 3-2 vis-a-vis shootout….Hartford loses 7-3 in Utica….Lehigh Valley beats Belleville 3-2. Hershey was the only team off.

Standings: Hershey 49 – Penguins 44 – Charlotte 44 – Providence and Lehigh Valley 42 – Springfield and Hartford 35 – Bridgeport 20

Wheeling Update: The Nailers were idle. There was news yesterday that they have a new team in the ECHL. Say hello to the Greenville Gargoyles. I don’t know if the Nailers will play the Gargoyles next year, but I am getting Beast of New Haven vibes from the newest ECHL team, which will begin play this Fall. If they go with glow in the dark jerseys I may just move there.

Video Highlights: With work in the morning, the AHL VideoCenter is your best bet.

No games this weekend with the postponement, so I will be back Monday with the AHL Power Rankings. Enjoy the time off.

Let’s Go Pens!

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@&#$ !! — Pens LOSE 4-3

Comments Off on @&#$ !! — Pens LOSE 4-3 Posted by on January 12, 2025

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So full credit here to the Belleville Senators who got smashed by the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins 6-1 on Friday night and saw the visiting Penguins put the game away essentially on the games first three shots which resulted in goals.

The Senators put up a hell of a fight, lost two forwards in the process and a late power play goal by Wyatt Bongiovanni with 2.2 seconds to play in regulation is enough to edge Belleville to a 4-3 win over Wilkes-Barre / Scranton on Sunday afternoon.

I will say it was a very gritty performance by the Senators who never went away on the Penguins with whatever Wilkes-Barre threw at them.

Result is bad for the Penguins because it is a game in hand up in smoke against the Hershey Bears and no ground made up on the division leading Bears and no separation from against the rest of the division.

Onto Laval Wednesday…

Here’s how they lined up…

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Lineup Notes: Isaac Belliveau for Nathan Clurman was the only lineup change. I didn’t catch any type of an update provided by Nick Hart pregame because I was out on a walk.

First Period: Emil Bemstrom scored at 10:44 after working a nice give and go with Boris Katchouk and the Penguins were off to the races.

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But they weren’t as Wyatt Bongiovanni scored on a Belleville power play that tied the game at one.

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Foreshadowing!

Teams were tied heading into the…

Second Period: Avery Hayes scored on the Penguins first power play of the game and juked Senators All-Star Jeremy Davies out of the building with this move that put the Penguins ahead 2-1…

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The Penguins were being badly outshot I think 20-9 but stepped on the gas with the help of that power play goal and continued to bomb Michael Simpson with shots.

Third Period: Bongiovanni would net his second of the game with a far shot a few steps down from the blue line that would tie the game at two.

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But then Emil Bemstrom would score again the same way he scored in the first period by working some nice tic tac toe with lineman Boris Katchouk and the Penguins edged ahead 3-2.

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But about 90 second later Stephen Halliday scored to tie the game at three again for the Senators.

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If that dogged determination wasn’t apparent with that goal, let me tell you as someone who watched the game it was there all game. Belleville was just not going away and the Penguins needed to find a way.

But the Penguins took a double minor penalty when Nikolai Knyzhov was assessed a double minor penalty with 91 seconds left in regulation. So the Penguins needed to find a way to grit the Senators to overtime.

Wyatt Bongiovanni had other plans.

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2.2 seconds left, so no time to respond for the Penguins.

Damn, or stronger words that my cats heard that I can’t repeat in print.

Three Stars: 3) Michael Simpson (25 saves) 2) Stephen Halliday (goal, two assists) 1) Wyatt Bongiovanni (hat trick and game winning goal)

The Good: Really can’t think of anything here after an eight game point streak. They clearly weren’t ready for what a desperate opponent kept throwing at them. The Bemstrom / Koivunen / Katchouk line is their best and I think they miss Tristan Broz a lot.

The Bad: A lost opportunity to get closer to the Hershey Bears. Sure, they have a lot of games in hand, but games in hand don’t mean jack if you don’t win them. This loss sucks.

Turning Point: The Bongiovanni power play goal gets it here.

Around the Division: Springfield – Hartford and Lehigh Valley – Bridgeport started two hours after the Penguins – Senators game. Boxes on each here and here, respectively.

Standings: Will be incomplete, but the Penguins stay in second with 43 points and are six off idle Hershey with 49 and a point ahead of idle Charlotte.

Wheeling Update: Nailers started an hour later than the Penguins and are hosting the Worcester Railers. Box on that game here.

Video Highlights: AHL VideoCenter is your best bet for this if you are interested.

Penguins head to Laval, Quebec next for a Wednesday road game. I’ll have the AHL Power Rankings up Monday and then the Weekend Preview setting up the game with the Rocket and the rematch at home back with these Senators Saturday night on Wednesday.

Let’s Go Pens!

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Eight is Great! — Pens WIN 6-1

Comments Off on Eight is Great! — Pens WIN 6-1 Posted by on January 10, 2025

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The Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins won easily in Belleville, Ontario Friday night 6-1 and have an eight game point streak, the longest streak since the 2019-20 season. It was a bit of a total team effort for the Penguins, who get 39 saves out of Joel Blomqvist on his 23rd birthday and three assists from Rutger McGroarty who set Sam Poulin up for a pair of goals, one of those shorthanded in the third period.

The teams rematch Sunday afternoon in Belleville.

Here’s how they lined up.

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Lineup Notes: Boko Imama for Corey Andonovski up front, Nikolai Knyzhov, returning from injury, replaces Scooter Brickey on defense. Sebastian Aho is week to week with a lower body injury.

First Period: The Penguins scored three goals on the first three shots they fired at Mads Søgaard, and they were off to the races.

Avery Hayes at 4:55, the first shot of the game for either side made it 1-0.

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Then Sam Poulin capitalized off of a Belleville turnover and it was 2-0 Wilkes-Barre.

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Then the Penguins go on a power play and Valtteri Puustinen scores a power play goal that makes it 3-0.

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It was surreal hearing Nick Hart on radio use the adjective, “lethal” when describing the Penguins power play, which is clicking at around 25%.

Sadly Valtteri Puustinen and Sam Poulin were denied on the fourth and fifth shots of the game for the Penguins.

The Penguins survived a late push by Belleville to conclude the period.

Second Period: Boris Katchouk tallied a goal at 2:03 of the period and that was enough to chase Mads Søgaard from the Belleville net. It was 4-1 Penguins and enter Michael Simpson. Here’s the Katchouk goal:

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Belleville would get on the board when Keean Washkurak would get a step on Jonathan Gruden and collected a nice pass from Jan Jenik and the Senators were on the board, spoiling a would be shutout bid for Joel Blomqvist on his 23rd birthday…

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Game started to devolve a bit as Nate Clurman took what looked like a knee on knee hit which drew the ire of Vasiliy Ponomarev who took a penalty. But there was no penalty heading the way of Belleville. The Penguins were able to kill that off, but then Jonathan Gruden fought Garrett Pilon and then eight seconds after that Boko Imama, who played last year for these Senators, fought Hayden Hodgson.

The Penguins were able to navigate these waters fine, then the aforementioned Imama scored a goal that made it 5-1 Penguins.

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Third Period: The Penguins get a second goal from Sam Poulin who was stopped once by Simpson on the breakaway but then he and McGroarty work some magic to get a turnover and Poulin scores to make it 6-1.

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Belleville put a lot of shots on Joel Blomqvist, but the quantity didn’t overcome the quality and while some of the saves were a bit challenging, at no point were the Penguins in danger of relinquishing the lead.

Three Stars: 3) Rutger McGroarty (three assists) 2) Sam Poulin (two goals) 1) Joel Blomqvist (39 saves)

The Good: Belleville is a bad team and the Penguins handled them easily, which is what a good team should do in this situation.

The Bad: Losing Nate Clurman to injury for one. That’s Clurman and Aho on this trip. There’s winning big, but losing guys to injury is never anything you want to see.

Turning Point: I think the third goal on the third shot would get it here. That buried the Senators and there was no coming back from that on their current run of play.

Around the Division: A three goal deficit is nothing for the reigning Calder Cup Champion Hershey Bears who were down 3-0 to start the third, storm back for three goals to tie and then an Alex Limoges goal in overtime gives the Bears a 4-3 win in Charlotte. Those two teams will rematch Saturday…Providence beats Bridgeport 4-1….Hartford beats Lehigh Valley 3-2 in overtime.

Standings: Hershey 47 – Penguins 43 – Charlotte 42 – Providence 40 – Lehigh Valley 38 – Hartford 35 – Springfield 29 – Bridgeport 18

Wheeling Update: Wheeling wins 4-1 in Indiana against the Indy Fuel. Taylor Gauthier stopped 25. Matthew Quercia had a pair of goals.

Video Highlights: Doubtful. Suggest if you really want them, head to the AHL VideoCenter sometime Saturday morning.

Enjoy the Saturday off, talk to you Sunday.

Let’s Go Pens!

Postgamer

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