Chirps from Center Ice

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Mike Vellucci hammered his team postgame Wednesday after they lost.

Needed more from his forwards, his defense and in goal. Hell, he traded one of his players to the opponent this afternoon. It was an unacceptable effort for a team who is slowly slipping away from a playoff berth here in January.

So when the WIlkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins were down 2-0 just 5:41 into the game, who does Vellucci turn to?

Emil Larmi.

Wait, the same Emil Larmi who the Penguins last saw trying to fight the Texas Stars back in Wilkes-Barre? The same Emil Larmi who couldn’t stop a nose bleed the last time he played in the AHL?

Yep, Emil Larmi.

The Texas Stars would win the game Friday 4-3 in a shootout, but not before the Penguins picked themselves off of the mat twice, overcoming a two goal deficit and then scoring a goal in the third to force overtime.

Probably Larmi’s best game in North America, given the level. He’s had some success playing in Wheeling with the ECHL affiliate and had a shutout, but Larmi needed a game like this to regain his confidence which was shattered the last time he suited up for the Penguins. Under the circumstances, with the Penguins circling the drain, Larmi put a stop on that with excellent saves after excellent saves.

Dustin Tokarski got the initial start and he opposed Jake Oettinger.

Lineup:

Lineup Notes: Shuffled again up front, Jan Drozg was in for Christopher Brown. Debutante John Nyberg was paired with Nicolas Almari on the second defensive pairing. Michael Kim was also in for Matt Abt paired with David Warsofsky. Emil Larmi backed up on the assumption to give DeSmith a night off and the further speculation that he starts Saturday in San Antonio.

Initially the first graphic had Andreas Martinsen on the fourth line but five minutes before the game, the team tweeted the above graphic stating that Devane was in.

First Period: Didn’t go well for Dustin Tokarski. Just 5:41 into the game, the Penguins were down 2-0 on goals scored by Nicholas Caamano and Ben Gleason.

Mike Vellucci didn’t waste any time going to backup Emil Larmi. Vellucci criticized the goaltending he got Wednesday, and he certainly could not be happy here, Tokarski just stopping two of four shots faced.

Larmi entering made Vellucci look like a genius. The Penguins goaltender calmed things down and the Penguins got a goal back after hard work from Kevin Roy from behind the net that made its way to Chase Berger who then found Adam Johnson in front for a goal.

Texas outshot the Penguins 12-7, including one of these shots which will end upon Larmi’s highlight reel.

Probably his best in the AHL. If he doesn’t make that save (the Penguins hadn’t scored yet) the game could have spiraled out of hand. Instead, he kept it 2-0 and you could see the confidence in him and the team in front of him building.

Second Period: Penguins came out with their tails up and ready to get the game tied. Emil Larmi made another fantastic save,this time going post to post to deny Tanner Kero.

The Penguins wouldn’t score on the first power play awarded them in the period, but they scored almost immediately after the first penalty expired when Kevin Roy scored to tied the game at two. Check this setup out:

But the Penguins would lose the lead when Texas replicated the same thing that saw the Penguins score; that is miss on the first power play attempt but score on the second. Anthony Louis with this snipe here to give the Stars the lead again.

Nothing Larmi could do on that one, that is just a dart.

Pens chased a bit but Larmi kept it a one goal lead heading to the…

Third Period: The Stars gift wrapped the Penguins back to back five on three power plays and David Warsofsky cashed on this sequence here to put the Penguins back on level terms:

Tyler noted the following:

All hail Jim Rutherford.

The Penguins killed a late Stars penalty but played great period with some timely saves by Larmi that got the game to …

Overtime: Bonkers, with Larmi making ten bell saves on ten bell saves. He was dialed in and determined not to lose in overtime. Pens had a few chances with Adam Johnson.

Shootout: Jason Robertson scored in the top of the first, Jordy Bellerive in the bottom of the second, Jan Drozg had a shot in the bottom of the third to win it but Nicholas Caamano scored in the top of the fourth and Kevin Roy missed on his chance immediately thereafter.

Three Stars: Jake Oettinger (27 saves 2) Anthony Louis (goal and 1) Nicholas Caamano (goal and shootout game winner)

The Good: The responseafter Larmi replaced Tokarski was a sight to behold. I thought personally the game was over at that point but Emil Larmi made a believer out of me this evening.

The Bad: What kind of message didn’t they get when the coach hammered every facet of the effort that they displayed Wednesday? To come out like they did and go behind like that doesn’t spell a good feeling that they can turn it around and make a playoff push.

Turning Point: In a game full of them, David Warsofsky’s power play goal in the third period guaranteed at least a point for Wilkes-Barre.

Around the Division: Lehigh Valley ends Binghamton’s eight game win streak with a 4-1 win in Allentown. That’s the Phantoms fourth win in a row…Bridgeport beats Providence 2-1….Utica beats Hartford 6-3. Justin Bailey for the Comets bags a hat trick in back to back games, the first player to do so since Mark Mancari in 2011….Springfield beats Syracuse 4-1….Charlotte and Hershey were off.

Standings: Hartford 54 — Hershey 51 — Charlotte and Providence 47 — Springfield 46 — Penguins 43 — Lehigh Valley 39 — Bridgeport 35

Wheeling Update: The Nailers lose 5-4 in Kalamazoo. Cam Brown and Justin Almeida each had a goal and an assist in the loss.

Texas didn’t run any video highlights Wednesday so I doubt they will tonight. I’ll look anyway and if there are any, will run em in a later edit.

Pens travel to San Antonio for a date with the Rampage at 8 Saturday. Gameday setup is here Saturday afternoon at 4.

Let’s Go Pens!

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The Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins played a solid forty minutes in their first trip to Texas in over ten years. They got good goaltending and were tied heading into the third period.

Usually in these situations it’s the team that wants it more that wins the game in the third period. In a game where it was all Texas, it was the Stars who win 5-2 Wednesday night to end the Penguins short little winning streak. Texas outshot Wilkes-Barre 37-20.

Casey DeSmith opposed Jake Oettinger.

Lineup:

Lineup Notes: Was essentially Joseph Blandisi, back from Pittsburgh as of Tuesday, for Jamie Devane up front and Jon Lizotte for Michael Kim on defense. Lizotte only missed one game after his scare last Friday against the Hershey Bears.

Also of note, Wilkes-Barre recalled Emil Larmi for the long road trip. It’s my belief that this was a planned move.

Texas didn’t post any lines.

First Period: The Penguins were steamrolled from the drop of the puck, outshot 7-0 at one point when the Stars took a penalty. Just :12 into the power play, Kevin Roy struck to give the Penguins a 1-0 lead.

First shot of the game for WIlkes-Barre.

Texas would get it right back, on a power play of their own, when Tanner Kero walked through the Penguins defense and scored :20 into the power play.

Penguins were outshot 15-5 and Casey DeSmith was sharp, only getting beat five hole on the Kero power play goal. He tracked the puck well in the period.

Second Period: Texas took back to back penalties and while the Penguins looked good slinging the puck around on the power play, were not able to beat Oettinger.

Then, a strange sequence.

Reece Scarlett elbowed Joseph Blandisi in the face. But referee Beau Halkidis thought that the Penguins forward oversold the call and gave Blandisi an embellishing call. This upset Blandisi who took a second to pick himself off of the ice and get attention from the trainer on the bench to ensure that all of his teeth were firmly in place. When he finally got into the penalty box, the following happened.

He taps on the glass to advise the referee he is unhappy with his ruling. Some referees give you leeway on this and others don’t. I see it happen all the time and nothing happens. But Halkidis must have given Blandisi enough rope prior to the sequence and gave him a misconduct.

What happened after was inexcusable, you can’t shove an off ice official and you most certainly may not put your hands on any on ice official. The box had the penalties on Blandisi read 2+10. No game misconduct and Blandisi returned in the third, but the AHL may look at that anyway. I don’t know if anything comes of it, but you can lose your cool and slam your stick and call the referee all the four letter words you can think of, you can not under any circumstances get physical with on or off ice officials no matter how minor the contact may have been.

Back on the ice, Adam Johnson scored from a tight angle to give the Penguins a 2-1 lead at four on four.

Very nice pass by Roy there to set it up.

But a Casey DeSmith own goal would tie the game at two again.

Anthony Louis puts a shot on, Brad McClure in the area looking for a rebound but the puck gets by DeSmith. DeSmith dropped it, but instead of dropping it in front of him he drops it between his legs and it bounces into the net behind him. Hardly ideal.

Eventful period, to say the least.

Third Period: :38 in and Joel L’Esperance’s seemingly harmless shot hits DeSmith’s pad and blocker and goes into the net for a 3-2 Stars lead.

Strange play, but that kind of night.

Thomas DiPauli hit a post with a deflection attempt, that was about as close as Wilkes-Barre got to scoring in the third and that didn’t even count as a shot because it hit the post.

Tanner Kero scored his second of the night when he picked off a Jon Lizotte chip play off of the wall and scored to make it 4-2. It was like Texas had the playbook on the Penguins.

Penguins had a 6-on-4 power play with DeSmith vacated but didn’t have any luck scoring.

Kero would complete his hat trick with an empty net goal, the first hat trick against the Penguins this season.

Penguins head coach Mike Vellucci shortened his bench and Sam Miletic and Joseph Blandisi didn’t see much of, if any ice at all. Blandisi was benched for the third period.

Three Stars: 3) Joel L’Esperance (goal) 2) Anthony Louis (goal, assist) and 1) Tanner Kero (hat trick)

The Good: Casey DeSmith kept the Penguins in the game going into the third.

The Bad: The Penguins weren’t able to adjust from the first into the second period and surely from the second into the third period.

Turning Point: L’Esperance’s goal :38 into the third period gave the Stars the lead they desperately sought and they played with more panache from there and got a second goal from Kero before his third to complete his hat trick.

Around the Division: Hershey is swept in Charlotte and lose 5-4….Hartford overcomes a huge deficit in Utica to force overtime but lose there 6-5…Lehigh Valley beats Syracuse 5-4.

Standings: Hartford 54 — Hershey 51 — Charlotte and Providence 47 — Springfield 44 — Penguins 42 — Lehigh Valley 37 — Bridgeport 33

Wheeling Update: Nailers were off.

Video Highlights: I will check to see if Texas has them in a morning update and if they do will add in the edit here.

They get a day to regroup for Friday which should be interesting. How to they respond? Expect Tokarski in net. You can’t allow 35+ shots and expect to beat this Stars team.

But for anything breaking between here and there, Gameday setup for Friday’s rematch hits the blog Friday at 4.

Let’s Go Pens!

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You saw it Friday if you watched them lose 2-1 to the Hershey Bears in a shootout. They only allowed one regulation goal and but for the goofy rules of, “no ties” these days, lost in a shootout.

I said then that if they played the same way that the wins would come.

Well, we didn’t have to wait long. Just the next night, actually.

A 25 save shutout by Casey DeSmith, his third of the season  and the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins win 3-0 over the first place Hartford Wolf Pack. DeSmith’s first win since November and the teams first win in 2020.

DeSmith opposed Tom McCollum.

Lineup: They didn’t post them, neither side did. Macoy Erkamps for Jon Lizotte on defense. Mike told Tyler postgame the following:

Good sign, going on the long road trip.

First Period: Zipped by. One power play chance for the Penguins and a 9-8 shot advantage. McCollum had a hell of a save to deny Anthony Angello with a pad and then again in the same play Matt Abt fired wide from behind center ice with McCollum out of the net.

Second Period: Same as the first, only Hartford went on the power play and didn’t score.

Then, Kevin Roy scored his first in a Penguin sweater capitalizing on this turnover by the Wolf Pack.

Third Period: Pens thought they scored again when Anthony Angello’s shot was smothered but not covered by Tom McCollum. McCollum went into the snow angel to cover but never fully contacted the puck to the ice and it came loose. Referee Ted Anstett comes out of the corner, loses sight of the puck because of the mass of bodies in the pile, has intent to blow his whistle all while Angello finds the puck and flips it into the net with McCollum prone. No goal on account of intent to blow the whistle.

In the final ten minutes, that’s when Casey DeSmith shined. He flicked out the pad on a quick Hartford shot off the rush, then stopped a puck in a pile of bodies to preserve the lead. To this point, Hartford was never a threat to score.

Finally with time dwindling, Wolf Pack Head Coach Kris Knoblauch pulls McCollum and David Warsofsky and Anthony Angello both hit empty net goals.

Don’t normally post empty netters, but it’s been so long since I have been able to do this too, please forgive me.

(If you don’t follow me on Twitter, it’s a thing I do after every home win. The etiology of the term, “Bang Biscuit” can be found here. I do love me some Danny Patrick)

Three Stars: 

The Good: Nice way to shutout the Atlantic’s top team in Hartford. The Wolf Pack have now lost their ninth game of the season in regulation. I think the Penguins may have exposed some flaws tonight as well because the Wolf Pack looked flat and very pedestrian.

The Bad: Nitpicking a 3-0 shutout win, but the power play went 0-for-2 and on a night where a lot of things went right, the power play needs work because they never looked like a threat tonight or on Friday.

Turning Point: Going to throw in a few of those DeSmith saves in the third here. They get by him and obviously it’s a different result.

Around the Division: Providence beats Springfield 5-2….Lehigh Valley shuts out Laval 2-0….Hershey doubles up Cleveland 4-2….Charlotte thumps Bridgeport 5-2.

Standings: Hartford 53 — Hershey 51 — Providence 45 — Springfield 44 — Charlotte 43 — Penguins 42 — Lehigh Valley 33 — Bridgeport 31

Wheeling Update: Nothing went right for the Nailers tonight, losing 6-1 to Fort Wayne. Yushi Hirano had the only goal for the Nailers in the loss and Alex D’Orio stopped 28 of 34. Fort Wayne scored twice on the power play.

Video Highlights: 

They are off Sunday, then hit the road for a while and spend a week in Austin, Texas for Wednesday and Friday’s games against the Texas Stars. But for anything breaking between now and then, talk to you Wednesday for the 8 p.m. start for the Penguins / Stars game. Gameday setup hits the blog Wednesday at 4.

Let’s Go Pens!