Chirps from Center Ice

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Other rejected headline was, “Tufte Luck” – as I think I have ran that a time or two before.

Two heavyweights battled it out in Wilkes-Barre Wednesday and in the second period on just five shots, three that went in, the Providence Bruins hand the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins their first loss of the season, a 3-1 result.

Look, I said In the Weekend Preview that nothing would be decided on a Wednesday in Wilkes-Barre and I still believe that but the Bruins are an elite team. The Penguins are too, but it was the Bruins that capitalized on the mistakes that the Penguins made and that’s your result.

Work night, so speed it along. Okay.

No scoring in the first period. In the second, the Bruins jumped out to a 2-0 lead when Brett Harrison floated to the slot and fired on over the blocker of Sergei Murashov that put the Bruins ahead 1-0. Less than nine minutes later, a puck hops over the stick of Avery Hayes to Riley Tufte who buries a breakaway goal for a 2-0 lead for Providence.

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Then Valtteri Puustinen answered 1:07 later that brought the Penguins back within one of the Bruins and gave them a bit of life.

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But then it was the Penguin killer known as Georgii Merkulov that scored back door and here’s your turning point of the night that gave the Bruins a 3-1 lead.

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Shots in the second were 13-5 Penguins in the second. Three goals for the P-Bruins in the period is not great!

In the third period the Penguins threw everything but the kitchen sink at Michael DiPietro in net but couldn’t get anything to go.

Both teams were 0/1 on the power play and I think that Mason Riley and Andrew Bell understood the assignment this evening and just stayed the hell out of the way and let the bulls fight it out on their own.

The 16 shots allowed by the Penguins is a season low. While Providence did win, it was not a very impressive one because the Penguins smothered them, but three of those 16 went in in a period where they took five, so if you argued for the impressiveness, I guess I won’t stop you.

Here’s how they lined up for posterity purposes.

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Divisionally, Hershey beat Bridgeport 3-1; Hartford beat Charlotte 4-1; Lehigh Valley was shutout in Laval 3-0 and Springfield had the night off on this busy Wednesday.

Wheeling was off as well.

Pens and Bruins are tied at 14 points at the top of the division. Lehigh Valley has 9 points, Charlotte and Hershey have 7, Hartford 6, Bridgeport 5 and Springfield 2.

Highlights since Coal Street posted them. Allie who runs the socials for the Penguins and I learned about the 6-7 thingy that all the kids are doing. You really do learn something new every day, I guess.

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More Friday after the Islanders visit.

Let’s Go Pens!

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I guess in keeping with the theme from last night where I gave you an accomplishment of feats that the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins have checked off in this young season one of the things left off was a tight game against a good opponent.

We can check that box now, as the Penguins roll into Charlotte and sweep the Checkers after a 3-2 overtime win Saturday night.

It’s hard to beat the Checkers on back too back nights in Charlotte and the Penguins managed to do that. Too soon to start printing the Calder Cup tickets but it’s a dream start. They are 7-0.

Attention now turns to a massive showdown with the equally undefeated Providence Bruins. The Bruins were idle Saturday and host the Bridgeport Islanders Sunday.

Here’s how they lined up:

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Lineup Notes: Valteri Puustinen out for Rafaël Harvey-Pinard up as the vet for vet swap, Gabe Klassen for a banged up per Hart on radio Atley Calvert. Scooter. Brickey for Finn Harding on defense.

First Period: Brian Pinho scored 2:19 when he took a nice behind the back pass from Sandis Vilmanis while streaking down the slot to give the Checkers an early 1-0 lead.

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Penguins would tie the game on a chip in of a rebound left by Cooper Black off of an Avery Hayes shot that made it 1-1.

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Both teams were 0/1 on the power play and the. Penguins survived a furious Charlotte rush in the final minute or so of action. Filip Larsson stopped 17 shots in the period.

Second Period: The theme of the Checkers scoring early in the period continued, with Colton Huard netting his first professional goal just 2:02 in.

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Cooper Black was tested by Gabe Klassen, when Klassen threw a changeup at Black but Black, all 6’8 of him, kept the puck out.

Then Avery Hayes was thrown out of the game for kneeing Jack Studnika. In the ensuing major power play for Charlotte, the Penguins managed to find themselves on a power play.

Enter the Cheat Code.

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Even when the Penguins are down, they are still up, if that make sense.

Third Period: Flew by with no penalties but chances a plenty. Cooper Black and Filip. Larsson traded some good saves.

Overtime: Possession fest for the Penguins who didn’t do anything with the puck to start. When Charlotte had it they tested fate but never managed a shot on Larsson.

Then Owen Pickering dove to keep in a Charlotte exit bid and found Ville Koivunen and the rest is history….

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Ballgame.

Three Stars: 3) Wilmer Skoog (two assists) 2) Brian Pinho (goal, assist) 1) Ville Koivunen (overtime game winning goal, assist)

The Good: I don’t want to say they found a way to win the game, but it certainly seemed that way.

The Bad: My arms are sore from raking leaves today.

Turning Point: Thought we were going to see it in the third period but it’s the Koivunen overtime goal that gets it here.

Around the Division: Hartford doubles up Springfield 6-3….Lehigh Valley and Hershey started at 7, so they are still going as this goes up. Box here.

Standings: Will be incomplete pending that Bears / Phantoms game. The Penguins have 14 points and lead the division and the AHL, that’s call you care about, right?

Wheeling Update: I hope some of the Nailers stopped at DiMillo’s. I miss Portland, Maine where they are lost 7-3 to the Mariners. Nolan Renwick had a goal.

Video Highlights: AHL VideoCenter is your best bet.

Back Wednesday for the Weeknd Preview setting up a huge matchup with the Bruins later that evening, as well as some ramblings on Bridgeport and Utica.

Let’s Go Pens!

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So they are checking all the boxes.

First place in the AHL? Check.

Lead the league in offense? Check.

One of the stingiest teams in the league? Check.

Top ten in power play and penalty kill? Check and check.

Two of your players in the top three in AHL scoring? Check and check.

You get the idea.

The only thing they were missing in this young season was a shutout from one of their goaltenders.

Sergei Murashov checked that box, as the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins shutout the Charlotte Checkers 4-0 with a 25 save from their goaltender.

This team is firing on all cylinders, so just buy the ticket and take the ride.

These two teams rematch Saturday in Charlotte. Charlotte is notoriously hard to sweep at home. We will see how tomorrow goes.

Here’s how they lined up…

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Lineup Notes: Aidan McDonough for Rafaël Harvey-Pinard on the top line; Raivis Ansons and Aaron Huglen for Gabe Klassen and Mathieu De StPhalle on the fourth line and Alex Alexeyev in for Scooter Brickey on defense.

First Period: Alexeyev made his presence felt immediately, throwing a puck at the net which pinball off of all 6’8 of Cooper Black and into the net that gave the Penguins an early 1-0 lead.

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Penguins had to kill what was essentially back to back penalties, at the expiration of the second penalty, Danton Heinen busts up a lazy D to D pass by Charlotte and bumps the puck to a just exiting the box Ville Koivunen who scores on a breakaway to make it 2-0.

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You know that when it rains it pours, that can also go the other way when things are going good, like they seem to be now.

Second Period: Penguins were making short work of the Checkers power play and getting some shorthanded bids in them with no success. Wilkes-Barre lost Ryan Graves for the second period when he was hit and busted open by a high stick.

Later, Danton Heinen scored a power play goal with seconds remaining that made it 3-0.

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Heinen leads the AHL in points at this juncture.

Danton Heinen is also a cheat code.

Third Period: Graves returned for the third period with a face mask and either Finn Harding scored his first AHL goal or Joona Koppanen tipped in the shot, nevertheless it was a 4-0 Penguins lead and Harding’s first pro point.

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One thing about the Charlotte power play tonight was that every time the Penguins were shorthanded, they had a Grade A big on Cooper Black. Black was up to every challenge handed to him, however.

Charlotte never really mounted anything that could be considered a comeback with how poorly they were with a man advantage so the only question in the back of the mind was if Murashov would get his shutout.

Three Stars: 3) Ville Koivunen (goal, two assists) 2) Danton Heinen (goal, two assists) 1) Sergei Murashov (25 save shutout)

The Good: Lots to like. How long is it sustainable is the question? Heinen is a cheat code, Graves makes the power play go, Koivunen is a point monster and the rest of them are all pulling in the right direction. Alex Alexeyev looked like a weak link last Saturday in Bridgeport he was very good Friday. Just keep piling points up.

The Bad: I put the heat on in my office this week for the first time. You win, Fall lovers. You win.

Turning Point: The Heinen goal that made it 3-0 seemed like an insurmountable lead for Charlotte.

Around the Division: Bridgeport shuts out Hartford 3-0….Lehigh Valley wins a nine goal thriller at home against the Hershey Bears 5-4….Providence gets a late goal and then an empty netter to beat Springfield 5-3 to stay on pace with the Penguins. The Bruins are undefeated as well.

Standings: Penguins 12 – Providence 10 – Charlotte and Lehigh Valley 6 – Bridgeport and Hershey 3 – Hartford and Springfield 2.

Wheeling Update: Nailers get cracking in a weekend series in Maine against the Mariners. I miss Portland. Long live the Pirates!

Video Highlights: AHL VideoCenter is your best bet.

These two teams rematch tomorrow an hour early at 6 p.m. Don’t be late.

Let’s Go Pens!

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The dream start continues after a 4-1 win against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms Wednesday night at home. The Penguins are the first team to 10 points in the AHL this season.

Let’s get slamming here, some of us have work in the morning.

Here’s how they lined up:

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Lineup Notes: One defensemen comes off injury (Brickey) and another goes on (Sebastian Aho) but that eases up the veteran logjam they have for a bit. Aaron Huglen and Aiden McDonough came out for Boko Imama and Joona Koppanen up front and Finn Harding and the aforementioned Scooter Brickey drew in for Alex Alexeyev and Aho.

First Period: :19 into a power play Danton Heinen continues his hot play with a rebound goal that puts the Penguins ahead 1-0.

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Avery Hayes followed with a rebound goal of his own, this time at even strength when a Chase Pietila shot was stopped ad pinball in front and finally put home by Hayes that made it 2-0.

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Second Period: Alexis Gendron slams home a rebound on a power play that puts the Phantoms on the board at just :56 of the period and made it a one goal game.

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What’s with all the rebounds? Oh, yeah, the NBA is back this week, I forgot.

I think that goal woke them up a bit because they accelerated and tightened things up. Atley Calvert stuffed home a pass from Tristan Broz on a power play that made it 3-1 and then Ville Koivunen scored a pretty penalty shot goal that made it 4-1.

I wonder if the saves that Sergei Murashov made in this period made the highlight package below because ehe was dialed in after getting scored on.

Anyway here are the goals.

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Third Period: Breezed by and there was nothing to report. Referees Liam Maaskant and Rob Hennessey understood the assignment.

Three Stars: 3) Atley Calvert (goal, assist) 2) Ville Koivunen (goal, assist) 1) Sergei Murashov (26 saves)

The Good: I hesitate to use the term “wagon” here but the Penguins were in control of the game from the drop, and when they were scored on they got mad and scored more. Big test coming in the form of Charlotte and Providence so ask me in a week round this time if it is okay to start using the term “wagon.”

But it’s okay if you do it and it’s fun to see. Oh, and they were 2/2 on the power play.

The Bad: Can’t think of anything off the top of my head so let’s just move on.

Turning Point: The Koivunen penalty shot goal gets it here. A three goal lead seems insurmountable for opponents against this team at this time.

Around the Division: Hartford is in the win column with a 3-0 shutout of the Springfield Thunderbirds in the only other divisional action in the Atlantic on this Wednesday.

Standings: Penguins 10 – Providence 8 – Charlotte and Lehigh Valley 6 – Bridgeport and Hershey 3 – Hartford and Springfield 2.

Wheeling Update: Nailers are off until Saturday. They will be in Maine to take on the Mariners.

Video Highlights: 

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Back at it Friday from Charlotte, talk to you then.

Let’s Go Pens!

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Six unanswered goals from six different players see the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins storm back in a big way over the Bridgeport Islanders and win 6-3 to start the 2025-26 season 4-0.

They looked completely out of sorts to open the game, falling down 3-0 in a span of 6:17 and looked out to lunch. But a Ryan Graves goal late in the second period kickstarted a third period comeback for the ages.

I don’t know what it means yet, but if you made me guess, usually a ton of good. Bridgeport had the look of a team that would give the Penguins fits that they will see eight times this season but the Penguins swatted them away in the third period like flies. A lot to like in these first four games.

Here’s how they lined up, the Islanders didn’t post a lines graphic. Where have you gone, Mike Fornabaio?

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Lineup Notes: But for the shuffling of bodies in and out, Sam Poulin moved up from 2LW to 3C, Danton Heinen and Avery Hayes to second line with Atley Calvert; Valtteri Puustinen in at 3RW. Sebastian Aho made his debut on defense for Finn Harding.

First Period: Could not have gone worse.

First power play of the game, Sam Poulin tries to force a pass at Ryan Graves and Adam Jeffries starts a two on none and scores to open the scoring for the Islanders.

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Adam Beckman scored on the backdoor and that was followed by Hunter Drew with Alex Alevyev standing by and watching. Oof.

Three goals in 6:17. Not good!

Ville Koivunen was denied by Parker Gahagen, who still had his Phantoms goalie mask on from last year when he stymied Wilkes-Barre in the Calder Cup Playoffs and then a late little push for the Penguins at the end of the period.

Second Period: The Islanders didn’t score any goals and the Penguins had a lot of chances to get back into the game, including a two man advantage for 1:26 but weren’t able to score. They looked like a team that didn’t have it.

But Ryan Graves put them on the board with this screaming shot over the teams of Gahagen.

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Third Period: How’s the saying go? A 1,000 mile journey begins with a single step?

Step 1. Rafaël Harvey-Pinard.

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Hell of a setup here. Harbinger of things to come.

Step 2. Sam Poulin.

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Initial Owen Pickering shot but Poulin there following the rebound.

Step 3. Ville Koivunen for the lead!

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Just spilling pucks in front of the Penguins is not going to end well for teams in the Atlantic Division.

Step 4. I think you get the point here, but Danton Heinen.

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I mean the Penguins weren’t putting any bodies on the Islanders in the first period, and Bridgeport was reciprocating the effort in the third.

Step 5. Shorthanded Atley Calvert.

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With a release like that you are crazy if you consider taking him out of the lineup or even think of sending him back to Wheeling.

Comeback complete.

Three Stars: 3) Adam Beckman (goal, assist) 2) Sam Poulin (goal, assist) 1) Danton Heinen (goal, two assists)

The Good: Never out of it, they finally woke up and took care of business.

The Bad: These starts aren’t sustainable once teams get film on you. Kirk MacDonald can’t be happy with that start but has to be thrilled with the finish.

Turning Point: Boy it seemed like the game chased it all night, but let’s give it to Ville Koivunen for the lead. Bridgeport was on tilt at that point and this goal here sealed their fate.

Around the Division: Charlotte beats the still winless Iowa Wild 4-1….Hershey gets their first win of the season with a 5-1 throttling of the Springfield Thunderbirds….Providence is still undefeated with a 5-2 thrashing of the still winless Hartford Wolf Pack. Lehigh Valley sweeps the Cleveland Monsters out in Ohio with a 3-2 shootout win.

Standings: Penguins and Providence 8….Charlotte 6, Lehigh Valley 5, Hershey and Bridgeport 3 and Springfield and Hartford 0.

Wheeling Update: I am actually typing up the recap while watching the Nailers and Cincinnati Cyclones on Flo. It’s 3-3 late in the third but probably over by the time you read this. Box here.

Video Highlights: AHL Video Center is normally your best bet in these road games.

Back at it Wednesday when they return home to take on the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, then hit the road again for a weekend series in Charlotte.

Let’s Go Pens!