Chirps from Center Ice

This is the last Wednesday game for the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins until February 21 when they have to start paying off the home games with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms they still have left. The real magic with the Phantoms doesn’t come until March, when the teams meet five times. After hosting Toronto Wednesday, they hit the road for five straight and aren’t home against until Saturday February 17, when they take on the Laval Rocket.

Music to Set the Mood…

So there’s no mention at all about Wednesday in this song. Moving on…

The Setup

Toronto drops in for their only visit of the season this Wednesday then it’s off to Hartford and Allentown for a pair of really important road games this Friday and Saturday.

The Marlies are a lot like the Phantoms in that they are playing at or slightly above average and their standings position reflects that. You always think when you look at the North Division standings to expect that the Marlies will be at or near the top. Well, Cleveland and Syracuse are playing really well then you have three teams in Rochester, Laval and Belleville who are within three points of one another. It’s a more competitive division because last place Utica is only two points out of a playoff spot.

Toronto went to Allentown on Saturday and won in a shootout. Then they turned around and played Hershey on Sunday and the Bears scored with seconds left in regulation to tie and under five seconds left in overtime to win 4-3 in overtime. A stunning loss for the Marlies.

Hartford impressed me by a mile after getting smoked in Wilkes-Barre. They travel all the way out to Cleveland and win in regulation in both contests, beating the division leading Monsters twice on their home ice. The Wolf Pack still have five games in hand on the Penguins. They play Charlotte at home on Wednesday.

Lehigh Valley dropped a pair of 4-3 decisions this week. After coming back from 0-3 to tie it against the Pens Friday, they lose 4-3. Then they lose 4-3 in a shootout to Toronto Saturday. They will host Hershey on Wednesday and on Friday.

Records

The Penguins are 23-15-5-0, good for third in the Atlantic with 51 points.

The Marlies are 17-14-6-1, good for sixth in the North with 41 points.

Lehigh Valley will have played Wednesday and Friday but enter the week with a 17-16-5-2 record, seventh in the Atlantic good for 41 points.

Who’s Up? Who’s Down? Who’s Out?

Pittsburgh sent down a small mercenary unit on Sunday morning when they assigned Valtteri Puustinen and Ryan Shea to Wilkes-Barre and assigned John Ludvig for conditioning.

Remaining up in Pittsburgh are Jansen Harkins and Colin White.

On recall from Wheeling are Owen Headrick. Raivis Ansons is also a recall but he’s injured.

Injured along with Ansons are Sam Houde, Avery Hayes and Jonathan Gruden.

What can we learn from the Penguins this week?

The nice shot of reinforcements from Pittsburgh is great but don’t expect it to last because it never does, so take advantage of it while you can.

Puustinen should help on the power play. Ludvig will probably play Wednesday and Friday, but not Saturday or maybe he won’t travel to Hartford Friday and they will play him Saturday. Shea should get all games. Does Gruden return? What about Hayes? Can they continue the elevated play? How long will the power play (scoring in the past two games) stay hot?

I expect them to win against Toronto because they played with confidence against the best team in the league on Saturday night and came up on the losing end. I expect a battle in Hartford who again impressed me because I was expecting the Wolf Pack to take a nose dive. That didn’t happen. Anything can and usually does happen in Allentown when the Pens and Phantoms meet.

Who’s in Goal? 

No reason to stray from Blomqvist being your number one in this instance. Who knows though. Maybe rarely used Garrett Sparks will start against his old squad Wednesday. Expect Hellberg if not. This could be a week where you see Hellberg get two of the three stars because don’t forget that Blomqvist is facing a cross country trip to San Jose for the All Star event next Monday.

Keith Petruzzelli, Louis Domingue and Felix Sandstrom for the opposition this week. Just a hunch.

Who’s running the show?

Riley Brace and Mason Riley get the life of Riley and are the referees Wednesday with Brandon Grillo and Chandler Yakimowicz as the linesmen.

And another week of no weekend refs posted yet by the League. I guess we will find out when they drop the puck.

Looking ahead…

Just one next week, a Friday visit to Allentown. I may bust out the old Gameday blog for that one and go old school.

Give us a bold prediction…

I think they sweep the week handily and Providence, due for a slip, has trouble with the Charlotte Checkers and the Penguins are tied or are a point ahead of the Bruins for second in the division.

So the way that the season is shaping up for the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins, they should aim high for third place in the Atlantic Division.

I don’t have any music to set the mood, but here’s the best 50 three pointers in the 2018-19 NBA season. When you type in “famous three pointers” in the YouTube search bar, you get this…

So let’s take a look at the Atlantic Division and see what we have right now.

Hershey – 64 points: Absolute class of the division, conference and league. Not only is it a foregone conclusion that the division is playing for second, but I think it’s a Hershey repeat.
Providence – 51 points: I think they benefit from playing more of Bridgeport and Springfield and less of the Penguins and Bears. I think they are lucky if they finish second.
PENGUINS – 47 points: Are they punching above their weight? No. It’s a sneaky good team.
Hartford – 45 points: Started good, battling inconsistency and teams have tape on them now.
Charlotte – 44 points: I think they are the most underwhelming team in the division. Jobs may be on the line at some point soon.
Springfield – 41 points: Dealing with a lot; some of Hartford (inconsistency) a bit underwhelming (they have been battling injuries) and are in serious danger of missing playoffs.
Lehigh Valley – 40 points: Still can’t figure this team out. Is Ian Laperriere a better coach than J.D. Forrest?
Bridgeport – 27 points: Thanks for playing, Bridgeport. Don’t forget your parting gift at the door.

I am not considering tie breakers or games in hand yet.

Yet.

(Let’s skip the quote this week, I can’t find anything good on finishing third)

The Setup

Hartford Wednesday, the first trip to Allentown Friday then a Saturday home game against Hershey.

That thing about games in hand? Hartford has five of them on the Penguins. That’s ten (possible) points. They have five on the Pens, six on Providence and five on Hershey. Only the Bakersfield Condors out in the Pacific Division have played fewer games (32) than the Wolf Pack.

A reasonable expectation is that the Penguins finish third in the division, but they can still play for second. Let’s focus on third for a minute. If they want to finish third, they have to deal with Hartford at this point. Discount Charlotte on back at this point. Beat Hartford in a head to head Wednesday and you put four points between third and fourth. You inch closer to Providence who have cupcakes for the rest of the month (two more with Bridgeport, one with Charlotte)

So it’s an important Wednesday game for both teams.

The Penguins managed to salvage two points out of the week after going up 2-1 Wednesday at home against Providence but losing 3-2. Then they went to Hershey, played a really, really good against the Bears and lost 1-0 on a 5-on-3 goal against. They beat a downtrodden Springfield team 2-1 on Sunday.

The power play sucks again. Offense doesn’t look there. Defense and goaltending is carrying them.

Hartford lost 4-2 Friday at home against Hershey and shut Bridgeport out on the road on Saturday.

Lehigh Valley had a Lake Erie trip last week, losing 6-0 in Rochester Wednesday and splitting a series in Cleveland.

I gave you Hershey’s body of work above. They rested guys Saturday and still managed to beat the Penguins. There’s no stopping this team. The Bears will host Springfield Wednesday.

Records

Hershey is a league best 31-7-0-2

The Penguins are 21-14-5-0

Lehigh Valley is 17-15-5-1

Points and standings above.

Who’s Up? Who’s Down? Who’s Out?

I didn’t think we would see Radim Zohorna back with the Penguins but here we are, he was assigned last week after clearing waivers.

Jansen Harkins, Colin White and Valtteri Puustinen remain up in Pittsburgh with Ryan Shea.

Owen Headrick and Raivis Ansons are up from Wheeling with Dillon Hamaliuk.

Jordan Frasca was reassigned to Wheeling Monday. Don’t be surprised to see him up, down, up and back down again when we do this again next week.

Injured: Avery Hayes, Sam Houde and Raivis Ansons. Add Jonathan Gruden who missed Saturday and Sunday with an upper body designation he’s classified as day to day with. Hope for him Wednesday, expect him Friday or else he’s week to week and they are lying.

What can we learn about the Penguins this week?

I said last week that the two games against Providence nd Hershey would spin a tale on how they do in playoffs because I said that I expect them to make playoffs. They lost both games close, but clean. Maybe the pressure adjusts a bit in April vs. January, but they lost. It really should be them working to solidify third place and push or at least maintain pace for second and a first round bye.

Answer the question but change the response. If they want to finish third, they have to beat Hartford on account of the amount of games in hand they are in arrears to the Wolf Pack.

Last week I was talking about putting distance on third and now I am talking about finishing third. Life comes at you fast.

They should get points out of Lehigh Valley. Who knows about Hershey. Should be a decent Saturday crowd as the January Saturday games usually are, last change…etc., who knows. They are one of a few teams in the AHL who have beaten Hershey and can beat Hershey.

Who’s in Goal? 

Has to be Blomqvist Wednesday, Hellberg Friday and Blomqvist Saturday, right?

Louis Domingue, Felix Sandstrom and Clay Stevenson for Hartford, Lehigh Valley and Hershey, respectively, if you made me guess which you kind of are.

Who’s Running the Show?

Andrew Bell and Jim Curtain are here Wednesday with Patrick Dapuzzo and Tyler Loftus working the lines.

I don’t have the weekend crews yet. Sometimes the league populates the box scores weeks in advance and stop. This is that point.

Looking ahead…

Toronto stops by for their only visit of the season next Wednesday, then it’s five straight on the road with Hartford on Friday and back to Allentown on Saturday.

Give us a bold prediction…

They figure out the power play and score three goals in each game, beating Hartford and Lehigh Valley clean but then losing in a seven round shootout to Hershey Saturday.

So I should have included Wednesday’s home game against Providence in last weekends Weekend Preview because they are off Friday.

Maybe one of these days I will figure out the whole blogging thing.

Music to set the Mood….

Yes, it is indeed the middle of January and no, January isn’t my friend.

A Quote…

We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.
– Martin Luther King, Jr.

Considering I am advance writing this on my Monday off, which happens to be MLK Day, seems appropriate.

Not a bad weekend for the Pens, who took another 5 out of a possible 6 points and are third in the division. They are a game into the second half of their season and in not bad position, depending on whether you are a pessimist or optimist.

Pessimist: Good now, but only five points out of a playoff spot in an extremely tight division with no real point scorer and a power play which looks lost.

Optimist: Better than we thought, even if we are being honest. Third place at the halfway point? I’ll take it!

I’m ever the centrist, so I am kind of in between. Did I expect them to be third in the division at the half way point? No. Middle of the road, in fourth or fifth or even possibly sixth was more where I thought they would be. Are they punching above their weight? I don’t think so because of how tight they are in with the other non-Hershey divisional teams. Are they surviving? Yeah, I think it’s evident, because they kind of have to.

The Setup…

Home against Providence, an off night on Friday, a trip to Hershey Saturday then a (sigh) Sunday home game against Springfield.

Pens got roughed up a bit in Providence, losing in overtime after coughing up a 2-0 lead. They went to Bridgeport and saw a three goal lead evaporate on them but got a late goal from Jonathan Gruden that got them a clean two points over the last place Islanders then went to Springfield on Monday and won clean 3-2.

After beating the Pens in overtime Friday, the Bruins lost in overtime in Hartford Saturday then shutout Bridgeport Sunday.

Hershey had a light points week by their standards, winning in overtime at home but then losing in a shootout away against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms then played Bridgeport on Monday and also lost in a shootout. They will be in Hartford on Friday.

Springfield, after hosting the Pens on Monday, will have a trip out to Rochester on Saturday. Fun fact about the T-Birds, they don’t play Cleveland this season.

Records

Pens are 20-12-5-0, good for third in the division and 45 points.

Providence is 21-12-3-2, good for 47 points and second in the division.

Hershey is 29-7-0-2, good for 60 points and first overall in not just the division, but the entire AHL.

Springfield is 18-14-3-2, good for 41 points and sixth in the division.

Who’s Up? Who’s Down? Who’s Out?

Pittsburgh: Jansen Harkins, Colin White and Valtteri Puustinen.

Up from Wheeling: Jordan Frasca, Owen Headrick and Raivis Ansons.

Injured: Avery Hayes, Sam Houde and Raivis Ansons. They are all week to week. Houde is undisclosed, Ansons is lower and Hayes is upper.

What can we learn about the Penguins this week?

Really these next two games against teams that are ahead of them in the division are going to tell the tale of what kind of team we have here. Do I think they make playoffs? Yes, this season, barring an absolute collapse (which is still possible) they are a playoff team. Inevitably, they will need to deal with Providence and / or Hershey at some point likely early on in late April. Are they favored right now over Hershey in a playoff series? I don’t think any team in the AHL would be favored. Are they favored against Providence? Well, what are my terms? I like them better in a five game series then I do a three game series, if that makes sense.

One step at a time here. I think they can put some distance on third place here but they need to play a great game against Providence. A power play goal is a must, limiting mistakes and not going into a shell when you face adversity is a must.

I think Hershey is a bit vulnerable now and is regressing a bit. Do I still favor them over every other team in the AHL? You bet I do, but every team regresses. After a hot start, they have cooled off a bit, having to work overtime against non-playoff teams in Lehigh Valley and Bridgeport. If the Pens, who will be the fresher team Saturday when these teams meet, play a leveled game, they can catch Hershey and maybe continue eating into what looks like an insurmountable division lead that the Bears own.

Right now I have Lehigh Valley as a team that makes playoffs before Springfield. I think the shine has worn off with that club. Sure, they are dealing with injuries to key guys but every team does. The Pens are a perfect example, so those Sunday afternoon two points are there for the picking for Wilkes-Barre.

Who’s in Goal?

No reason to believe it will be Blomqvist Wednesday and Saturday with the off night Friday then Hellberg on Sunday.

Brandon Bussi, Clay Stevenson and Malcolm Subban if you made me bet a nickel for the Bruins, Bears and Thunderbirds respectively.

Who’s Running the Show?

Beau Halkidis and Alex Lepkowski are the assignments Wednesday with Jud Ritter and John Rey on the lines.

David Elford and Jack Young are your referees scheduled for Saturday in Hershey with John Rey and Tommy George on the lines.

On Sunday, Elford and Young will be back with Jud Ritter and J.P. Waleski on the lines. I wonder if Elford and Young toss a coin after the game in Hershey to see who makes the drive up I-81.

Looking ahead…

Home against Hartford on Wednesday, the first trip of the season to Allentown to visit the Phantoms on Friday then home against Hershey.

Give us a bold prediction…

Four clean points against Providence and Hershey but then they are shutout against Springfield at home Sunday.

The Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins took 5 of 6 points out of their first three in three of the season.

Music to Set the Mood…

Wait a minute, didn’t Shrek make this song???? Didn’t Smash Mouth write this song???////

Anyway, I digress.

The Penguins are turning me into a believer. It’s all there. They are only two points off of second place in the division.

Counterpoint, they are only three points out of a playoff spot as well, but they have been playing better of late especially mining five out of six points out of divisional opponents and some really good teams.

A Quote…

Believe you can and you’re halfway there.
— Theodore Roosevelt

Like I said last week, I think I am fine with them the way they are. But that was before they traded away Rem Pitlick, their top scorer, and struggled on the power play this weekend including the 1:43 of two man advantage against Hartford on Sunday. They will need to score a power play goal at a key time at some point here in the foreseeable future. It’s how the coaching staff adjusts to this to make it work which remains the question.

Sam Poulin didn’t look out of place much on the top line Sunday, so that’s a start.

The Setup…

A trip to Providence Friday, then the first meeting with the last place Islanders Saturday, a Sunday off (woo hoo!) then a MLK Day matinee in Springfield.

The Pens handled the Thunderbirds on Friday, then had a two goal lead evaporate on them in the third period against Lehigh Valley and lost in overtime then won a gritty contest at home at the end of a three in three against a very snarly Hartford Wolf Pack team on Sunday.

Providence swept the Springfield Thunderbirds in a Saturday-Sunday home and home. On Saturday they beat the Thunderbirds in a shootout and on Sunday they beat them clean.

Bridgeport had an eventful week, keeping it close Thursday at home against Hartford, then took three of four points from Charlotte, winning and losing in overtime in a Saturday-Sunday series with the Checkers.

Fun fact about the Islanders schedule this month, they play nine games at home and the other three road contests are in Providence.

Springfield had a bad weekend. They took one point out of a possible six (the shootout loss against the Bruins on Saturday)

Bridgeport hosted Springfield Wednesday and coughed up a lead and lost 4-3 in overtime. Sound familiar?

The Thunderbirds are in Syracuse on Friday, then Utica on Saturday. So they have a very busy week.

Records

Providence is 19-12-2-2, good for 42 points and second in the Atlantic.

The Penguins are 18-12-4-0, good for 40 points and fourth in the Atlantic.

The Islanders are 10-19-4-0, good for 24 points and last in the Atlantic.

The Thunderbirds are 17-12-3-2, good for 39 points and fifth in the Atlantic.

Who’s Up? Who’s Down? Who’s Out?

Pittsburgh: Jansen Harkins, Ryan Shea and Valtteri Puustinen.

Up from Wheeling: Owen Headrick and Raivis Ansons.

Returned to Wheeling: Dillon Hamaliuk.

Injured: Avery Hayes, Sam Houde and Raivis Ansons. I saw Houde on a knee scooter with a walking boot on his left foot in the locker room video the team posted on social media on Sunday, for what it is worth.

What can we learn about the Penguins this week?

Do they have us fooled that they are actually good or are they actually decent? I think it could be a bit of both and the only reason I say that is because of the way they ran around like chickens with their heads cut off after they scored to make it 3-1 Saturday against Lehigh Valley. They go up two, then the Phantoms start throwing eephus pitches and curveballs at the Pens and they look like they have never held a bat before.

You can’t have that. If you want to be a playoff team, you have to be able to react to anything. You can’t go into a shell and expect to win, not against a rival you play the most on the schedule.

But that’s in the past and hopefully coached out of them and in reality, it was the worst period of the nine that they played this past weekend. Providence worries me because that team is mercurial. Do the Pens catch them on a bad week? They should beat Bridgeport, but the Islanders are playing better of late. Thunderbirds are there to be ran over. They will have played three games in a week before the Monday afternoon game. That two points is there for the taking.

It should be expected that they can amass all six points. You can also make the same argument that they struggle with Providence, underestimate against Bridgeport and sleepwalk in Springfield and walk away with three or less points. It’s all possible.

Who’s in Goal?

This is Joel Blomqvist’s team, full stop. He turned the page after some shaky play and has only allowed one goal in each of the five games he has played. All that is left is a shutout. He will get the start in Providence. Magnus Hellberg will go for the Pens in Bridgeport and Blomqvist will get the nod Monday in Springfield.

Michael DiPietro, Jakub Skarek and Malcolm Subban for the opponents if you made me guess. But for Brandon Bussi who went up to Boston for Providence Thursday, all of the number one goaltenders are ready for the Penguins this week. You should expect every ones best.

Wait, didn’t Smash Mouth from above write All-Star?

Where I’m going with this is that on Wednesday, the AHL announced the All-Star rosters for San Jose on February 4. Joel Blomqvist was the lone Wilkes-Barre representative.

I said on Twitter that there are lot of guys in prior years I would get legit mad they don’t get recognized and not get named for All-Stars. Blomqvist, had he not been named, would have been one of them. I’m happy for the kid. I think he’s by and far the best prospect in the organization.

Who’s Running the Show?

Jordan Deckard and Casey Terreri get the Friday assignment with Matt Heinen and Kenneth Gates on the lines.

Deckard makes the trip south to Bridgeport Saturday to meet up with Tanner Doiron and those two will be joined on the lines by Cameron Carlson and Dylan Lewis.

On Monday, Riley Brace and Amanda Tassoni get the assignment with Trevor Disbennett and Matt Heinen again on the lines.

Looking ahead…

Wednesday at home against Providence, a Friday off, Saturday in Hershey then home against Springfield on Sunday.

Give us a bold prediction…

Power play goal scored in every game, they get five out of possible six points again and are second in the division when they wake up Tuesday morning.

Somehow, the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins have not played their closest rival yet in the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in the 2023-24 schedule.

They have played just about every other team in the Eastern Conference save for Toronto in the North and Bridgeport in the Atlantic, but haven’t played the Phantoms, a team they will play 12 times, so far this season.

That changes Saturday.

Music to Set the Mood…

The Phantoms? They are who we thought they are, a team playing below the Penguins in the standings with a coach that some say (like Wilkes-Barre) has overstayed his welcome behind the bench.

Listen, I don’t think anyone will catch Hershey in the division, so it’s a bunch of other teams playing for the five remaining playoff spots in the division. These are very important games for the Penguins and Phantoms coming up here.

A Quote…

Inconsistency is the only thing in which men are consistent.
– Horace Smith

Again, I think I am fine with them the way they are. I think they are good. Inconsistency befalls them. Inconsistency befalls every team in the division unless you are Hershey. Moreso (Bridgeport) than others (Hartford, for now) So I think it is OK for them to be inconsistent. It means that they are sometimes consistent, but often inconsistent.

The Setup

The first three in three of the season. Road trip to Springfield Friday, Lehigh Valley at home Saturday then an afternoon Sunday game against Hartford.

The Penguins lost in a mistake filled game in Hershey last Wednesday, then split with the Checkers at home Friday and Saturday.

Springfield beat Hartford last Wednesday, lost to Bridgeport in OT Friday then got smoked at home last Saturday against Providence.

Lehigh Valley beat Utica in an up and down game Wednesday, were shutout at home against Hershey Saturday and lost to Charlotte at home on New Years Eve.

Hartford lost in Springfield last Wednesday and beat Bridgeport this past Saturday and yesterday, Thursday.

Records

Penguins are 16-12-3-0, with 35 points and fifth in the Atlantic.

Springfield is 16-10-3-1, with 36 points and fourth in the Atlantic.

Lehigh Valley is 13-13-4-1 with 31 points and seventh in the Atlantic.

Hartford is 17-7-5-0, with 39 points and second in the Atlantic.

Who’s Up? Who’s Down? Who’s Out?

Pittsburgh: Jansen Harkins, Ryan Shea and Valtteri Puustinen.

John Ludvig, who Ryan Shea was recalled for, had knee surgery and is out 6-8 weeks. It’s honestly refreshing to see a detailed injury detail, treatment and estimated length of disability.

Returned from Pittsburgh: Vinnie Hinostroza (was at practice on Coal Street Thursday)

Signed to PTO: Jesse Puljujärvi. Fourth overall pick in 2016 NHL Draft. Should help, provided he is healthy and in shape.

Up from Wheeling: Owen Headrick, Raivis Ansons and Dillon Hamaliuk.

Returned to Wheeling: Taylor Gauthier.

Injured: Avery Hayes, Sam Houde and Raivis Ansons.

What can we learn about the Penguins this week?

How do they play against equally inconsistent teams.

Springfield will be looking to wash off that 8-2 ass kicking Providence laid on them Saturday. The Pens can run with the Thunderbirds.

The Pens will look to get the series with Lehigh Valley off to a good start with a big win Saturday. There are 24 points at stake in this 12 game series. You must figure that the Pens and Phantoms may be in a battle for the 4-5-6 seed as the season starts to wind down. Phantoms have been playing right around .500 all season, so you gotta make these points count.

Catch Hartford, who looked like a contender who can run with Hershey but have skidded as of late, and get all points available.

The question again is will they? Can they? I think yeah. The only team which worries me is Springfield really. I’d buy more stock in the Thunderbirds then I would in the Pens or Phantoms or Hartford. But again, they are a team in a long list of teams, who are battling inconsistency.

Don’t know anything about the Phantoms head to head because they haven’t met yet. They should handle Hartford.

Six points is a strong possibility. So are zero.

Who’s in Goal? 

I’m hoping the sickness that necessitated the Gauthier recall is out of the room and Hellberg can play again. I don’t pin everything on Gauthier in Saturday’s loss, but it did look at times like he was out of his depth but in his defense, so did the five guys playing in front of him. He’ll continue honing his craft with the Nailers in the ECHL.

Hellberg, Blomqvist, Hellberg is what I would do if I was Penguins head coach J.D. Forrest.

Malcolm Subban for Springfield, Felix Sandstrom for the Phantoms and Louis Domingue for the Wolf Pack if you made me bet a penny.

Who’s Running the Show?

Stephen Hiff and Chad Ingalls are the referee crew Friday in Springfield with Matt Heinen and Michael Tarquinio on the lines.

Austin O’Rourke and Chris Rumble are here Saturday with Spencer Knox and Patrick Dapuzzo on the lines.

And on Sunday Philip Kasko and Liam Maaskant are the referees with Spencer Knox again and J.P. Waleski on the lines.

Looking Ahead…

Ooh, who put that 3:05 Monday start in Springfield on the schedule? Before that, a trip to Providence on Friday, the first meeting with Bridgeport in Connecticut on Saturday then the afternoon contest in Springfield.

Give us a bold prediction…

They will sweep the weekend and sit second in the division behind Hershey as we sink our teeth into January.

So they are 6-3-1 in their last ten but lost their last game in Laval in what I called a scheduled loss, but now the doubt starts to creep back in as the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins are now going back into divisional play with a game in Hershey on Wednesday before hosting Charlotte for a weekend set of games Friday and Saturday.

The Bears are a machine. It looks like they will get stronger. Their coach is already headed to All-Stars. Do you smell that? It’s the scent of a repeat.

We will get to that in a minute.

Music to set the Mood…

Happy New Year, one and all.

A Quote…

What are little boys made of?
What are little boys made of?
  Snips, snails
  And puppy-dogs’ tails
That’s what little boys are made of

What are little girls made of?
What are little girls made of?
  Sugar and spice
  And everything nice 
That’s what little girls are made of
— Nursery Rhyme

The Setup

So getting back to Hershey, they have been destroying everything in their path. They are 24-6. No OT losses. No shootout losses. They have 48 points, an .800 winning percentage and a machine. A wagon. An absolute beast of a hockey team. You need to be perfect, as in, you cannot make any mistakes, in order to beat this team.

And it just isn’t the Penguins. They beat everybody. Everybody.

So is it a measuring stick if you are the Penguins and can compete with the Bears? If you beat them are they crowning you the next Calder Cup Champions? Hardly. Go in with low expectations. Hope for the best, expect the worst, especially coming off of a Christmas break and after an ugly loss in Laval.

Charlotte is the other team on the schedule this week for the Pens. They hosted Bridgeport two weeks ago and split, a shutout win and an OT loss then split with Lehigh Valley with an OT loss and a shootout win.

Seems like they spill points all over the place and play fast and loose. I think the bigger tell on what type of team the Penguins are is told against Charlotte then it is against Hershey.

Records

The Penguins are 15-10-3 and have 33 points and sit third in the Atlantic with 33 points, two off Hartford for the two spot, but also two points out of a playoff spot altogether. It’s razor thin.

The Bears are in their own stratosphere. 24-6, 48 points and the number one team in the AHL.

Charlotte is 14-10-3, 31 points and in sixth in the Atlantic.

Who’s Up? Who’s Down? Who’s Out?

Pittsburgh: Jansen Harkins, Vinnie Hinostroza (he cleared waivers last week, was assigned but is still with Pittsburgh?) and Valtteri Puustinen.

Up from Wheeling: Owen Headrick, Raivis Ansons.

Injured: Avery Hayes and Sam Houde.

What can we learn about the Penguins this week?

If they want to get anywhere, they have to go through Hershey. Are they going to play well enough to just be a playoff team only to be obliterated by Hershey en route to back to back Calder Cups? The Penguins are one of the few teams to have beaten Hershey. It was frustrating watching them play Hershey the last time out. But, it’s still December (January soon) and there is still a lot to figure out. Are the Penguins a team playing two points out of second place or two points from out of a playoff spot? Depends on who you ask.

Personally I think they will be fine. I think.

They should beat Charlotte. Charlotte plays like an average to above average North Division team, in my opinion, for comparison sake. They should beat Charlotte, but I have a feeling that the Checkers lull you into playing fast and loose and then all of a sudden you find yourself in overtime or in a shootout.

Who’s in Goal? 

Interesting conundrum in my opinion. I think they were shifting away from Joel Blomqvist as the stone cold lock number one but I don’t know now. I think it’s Blomqvist Wednesday and Saturday with Magnus Hellberg going Friday.

I don’t think it matters for Hershey. Clay Stevenson and Hunter Shepard are the Bears 1A-1B. If the Bears have a weakness, it isn’t in goal. Either one of these two goaltenders will be tough nuts to crack.

Toss a coin for Spencer Knight and Ludovic Waeber Friday or Saturday for the Checkers.

Who is running the show?

Mason Riley and Peter Schlittenhardt are the referees Wednesday with John Rey and Bill Lyons on the lines.

Friday sees referees Beau Halkidis and Laura White and linesmen Jud Ritter and Chandler Yakimowicz.

Saturday sees Casey Terreri and Adam Tobias in orange, black and white with Bill Lyons from Wednesday and Jud Ritter from the night before on icings, offsides and face-offs.

Looking Ahead…

A trip to Springfield next Friday, then a Saturday and Sunday (💆‍♂️) home game against Lehigh Valley for the first time all season on Saturday and then Hartford at 3:05 on Sunday. It’s the first three in three of the season.

Give us a bold prediction…

No complaining about Sunday home games in 2024.

The Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins head to Canada for a Thursday and Friday pair of games against more North division foes in Belleville and Laval before breaking for Christmas.

Music to set the mood…

From me and the cats, Merry Christmas!

A Quote…

Consistency is what transfers average into excellence.
— Unknown

The Penguins are 6-3-1 in their last ten, winning more than losing and finally, just maybe, settling into a consistent winner. You want to see this continue this week with more North Division opponents on the plate.

The Setup

Trip to the Bay of Quinte on Thursday for a visit with the Belleville Senators and then a Friday in Laval to take on the Rocket.

Last week, the Penguins swept all three games, beating the Syracuse Crunch, Utica Comets and Rochester Americans. Rem Pitlick is red hot with nine points in his last eight games. Alex Nylander is scoring goals and they got a goal from a returning Sam Poulin on Saturday.

The Belleville Senators last played on Friday in Cleveland and were swept by the Monsters. They have not won in three games.

The Laval Rocket got pasted in Hershey 7-1 on Saturday. They beat Lehigh Valley the night before on Friday. They played Syracuse yesterday in Syracuse and won 3-2.

Records

The Penguins are 14-9-3-0, good for 31 points and third in the Atlantic Division.

Belleville is 10-10-2-2, good for 22 points and fifth in the North Division.

Laval is 8-13-3-2, good for 21 points and in last place in the North Division.

Who’s Up? Who’s Down? Who’s Out?

Pittsburgh: Jansen Harkins, Vinnie Hinostroza (he cleared waivers over the weekend but was not immediately assigned) and Valtteri Puustinen.

Back from Pittsburgh: Marc Johnstone and Jonathan Gruden. Also assigned was Ryan Shea.

Justin Addamo was returned to Wheeling on Friday. Lukas Svejkovsky and Tanner Laderoute followed suit on Tuesday.

The Pens recalled Owen Headrick from Wheeling. Headrick was acquired in the Peter Abbodonato trade.

Sam Poulin returned from injury and played Saturday.

The Libor Hajek experiment is over, the Penguins released him from his PTO and he returned to his native Czechia.

Still up from Wheeling: Raivis Ansons.

Injured: Avery Hayes and Sam Houde.

What can we learn about the Penguins this week?

They should easily beat a slipping Belleville and a last place Laval team. But if they start to wallow in their past successes, they can and likely will get caught and lose to Belleville in a tight 2-1 game or get caught already into the egg nog and lose by five in Laval. It can happen. It shouldn’t if you are a believer in J.D. Forrest and his coaching staff.

Looks like they may be shifting away from Joel Blomqvist as their rock solid #1 and going more and more to Magnus Hellberg, who started two games last week.

Also they look like they are getting healthier, with just Avery Hayes (who I have to assume is close to a return) and Sam Houde out with injuries.

Finally these points they are accumulating have them ascending the Atlantic Division. Hershey and Hartford look like the class of the field right now. It’s a dogfight between the three through six seeds.

Who’s in Goal? 

I’d go Hellberg Thursday and Blomqvist Friday. I’m hoping to see leviathan Mads Sogaard, all 6’7 of him, for Belleville on Thursday and maybe more towers of power with 6’5 Jakub Dobeš for the Rocket on Friday.

Who’s Running the Show?

Dre Barone and Mathieu Menniti have the referral duties on Thursday with Justin Johnson and Dustin McCrank on the lines. On Friday, Dre Barone will follow the team to Laval and be joined by Alex Normandin with Antoine Bujold-Roux and Anthony Lapointe on the lines.

Looking Ahead…

We will see if there is any lessons learned with this little win streak when the Hershey Bears come back calling and the Pens travel there next Wednesday. The Penguins close out 2023 with a pair of games against the Charlotte Checkers Friday and Saturday.

Give us a bold prediction…

They will finish out the year without a regulation loss.