Chirps from Center Ice

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3                             4

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I think I found the weakness with this team.

It’s the shootout.

Another shootout loss, this time to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on Sunday afternoon. The Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins get a point, but fall in the shootout round 2-0 and lose the game 4-3 via shootout.

They were tenacious all day, but the lack of leveraged scoring like you saw Saturday against Hershey wasn’t there. They get a pair of goals from Rafaël Harvey-Pinard and David Breazeale gets his first AHL goal, and Lehigh Valley chips away and gets the game to a shootout and wins.

Them’s the brakes sometimes. You want to get points when you are giving away games in hand to Providence, who now has five games and will have six after Tuesday.

Here’s how they lined up ⬇️

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Lineup Notes: I am just going to leave this here…

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Partridge in a pear tree.

Coal Street recalled Tommy Budnick and Brent Johnson, who both slotted in for Laatsch and Aho.

Good news? Danton Heinen is on waivers again and if no one claims him he should get re-assigned back to Wilkes-Barre which could help Tuesday against Charlotte.

First Period: I mean you can break all of the defensemen really, it doesn’t matter. The structure is there and the goaltender’s are otherworldly. I tried to watch specially in the period to see if there were any holes and didn’t see any. Anything that made it through was stopped by Joel Blomqvist.

Rafaël Harvey-Pinard scored off a very nice pass from Valtteri Puustinen to give the Penguins a quick 1-0 lead.

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Gabe Klassen dropped to Harvey-Pinard who passed to Puustinen and went straight back to Harvey-Pinard for the goal.

I am telling you this is a guy I am dying to see break out.

With the assist, Puustinen passes Kris Beech in assist and makes it to 5th place and is 11 points away from 2nd in team franchise points.

Shots were 10-10 after the first period.

Second Period: Ask, and you will receive…

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They kind of needed it, because they fell into penalty trouble again. Despite getting away clean Saturday at home against Hershey, Lehigh Valley nipped them twice on the power play.

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Lane Pederson there. Nice play, drawing the attention away from Pederson. Pass needs to be true and it was. Great goal.

The Penguins lost Aidan McDonough to injury after he took a shoulder / elbow from Devin Kaplan. No call on the play and McDonough didn’t return.

Tucker Robertsson tied the game on a nice shot that tied the game on the power play in the final minute of the period.

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Third Period: Lehigh Valley didn’t wait long before taking the lead on an Oscar Eklind goal.

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Unfortunate series here. Blomqvist drops a saves me makes 99 times out of a 100 and there’s Eklind waiting like a rat looking for the loose crumbs.

The Penguins didn’t wait long for an instant response off of the stick of David Breazeale, for his first AHL goal that tied the game :31 later….

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No other scoring and it was off to…

Overtime: Penguins had the games last 1:09 of overtime on the power play and failed to score after a timeout.

Shootout: Tucker Robertson and Cooper Marody scored in the top of the first and second, Valtteri Puustinen hit the post and Phil Tomasino was not successful in the bottom of the first and second and that was it.

Three Stars: 3) Rafaël Harvey-Pinard (two goals, assist) 2) Tucker Robertson (goal, shootout goal) 1) Lane Pederson (goal, assist)

The Good: I can’t complain about the point, in the scope of things. But they left a lot out there, I thought.

The Bad: Besides losing another player to possible injury, the lack of any kind of guaranteed scoring is a problem here. Tomasino and Broz have been quiet, and you can’t rely on Calvert, Klassen and Ansons lighting up the score sheet like they have been. Getting Heinen through waivers and here Tuesday would be a decent offensive boost. You hope!

Turning Point: The failure to score on the power play in overtime gets it here.

Around the Division: Springfield beats Bridgeport in overtime 4-3. Hershey is hosting Charlotte in a game that started at 5. That box is here.

Standings: Penguins 47 – Providence 43 – the rest of the standings are here. Check this out if you want after the Bears / Checkers game goes final.

Wheeling Update: Nailers were off.

Video Highlights: AHL VideoCenter is your best bet.

More Tuesday after the Penguins host the Checkers in their last game of 2025.

Let’s Go Pens!

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2                              5

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A pair of goals from Gabe Klassen, one from Raivis Ansons and Nolan Renwick plus a power play goal from Phil Tomasino, all in the first period, is enough to stand up and defeat the Hershey Bears 5-2 on Saturday night in Wilkes-Barre.

With Sam Poulin a distant memory and the offense sputtering at times, it’s nice to see depth take over and pull this team to another victory.

Here’s how they lined up…

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Lineup Notes: Nolan Renwick for Avery Hayes, Hayes was reported as injured. Sebastian Aho returned from injury, David Breazeale was recalled from Wheeling and replaced Matt Dumba and Scooter Brickey.

First Period: Talk about starting on time. They score five goals, every player on the fourth line scored and led Hershey 5-1 at the end of the first period where they outshoot the Bears 13-3 in the period.

Nolan Renwick started early with a goal at 2:04. Phil Kemp crashes the net and here’s Renwick picking up the loose change.

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First AHL goal of the season for Renwick.

Raivis Ansons off the face-off at 3:36 and it started to get the feel of a runaway train…

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But hold on, Bogdan Trineyev scored in the slot to cut the deficit to one.

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But that just pissed off the Penguins.

Gabe Klassen would score back to back goals of the highlight reel variety.

A snipe at 10:58 at the expiration of a Hershey power play….

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…and then this backhand shot that beats Garin Bjorklund for good, enter Clay Stevenson.

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Stevenson would get scored on with a Phil Tomasino power play goal here that pushes the score to 5-1.

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Whew. That’s a lot of goals. You would expect more in the second period right?

Second Period: Wrong. It devolved into a penalty slop fest. Some of the penalties I thought sucked on both sides of the whistle by refs Austin O’Rourke and Chris Conway. I thought the Bears were victimized more by some terrible calls.

Third Period: Ivan Miroshnichenko scores just 1:12 in and here’s where you think the Bears start mounting their comeback, right?

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Uh-uh, brother. More penalty slop from O’Rourke / Conway and that was it.

Sadly, the Bears are just the offensive output of Miroshnichenko, Trineyev and sometimes Ilya Protas. That’s it. I really don’t know any of the names on the roster save for Louie Belpedio and a few others. Gone are the days where they had every day, lethal scorers.

Here’s a tweet from Mark Divver who covers the Providence Bruins that I think word for word you can apply to the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins.

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The Penguins outworked the Bears tonight, and outwork a lot of opponents every night.

Three Stars: 3) Nolan Renwick (goal) 2) Raivis Ansons (goal, assist) 1) Gabe Klassen (two goals)

The Good: That first period was something, wasn’t it?

The Bad: They did nothing in the second and third period and took a boatload of unnecessary penalties.

Turning Point: The first Klassen goal, right after the Penguins killed the penalty after Hershey had scored back in the first gets it here. Hershey scoring to tie it at. two and I think it’s a different outcome.

Around the Division: Lehigh Valley / Charlotte was postponed because the Checkers had travel issues. Charlotte will end up playing a three in three with Hershey Sunday, making up the game they were supposed to play with the Phantoms on Monday and then seeing the Penguins Tuesday.

With that out of the way, Providence pounds the Springfield Thunderbirds 7-1…Hartford beats Bridgeport 5-2.

Standings: Penguins 46 – Providence 43 – Charlotte 32 – Lehigh Valley 31 – Hershey 29 – Hartford 25 – Springfield and Bridgeport 24

Wheeling Update: The ECHL is on strike, but I think we are back.

It should be noted that any Penguins player on contact to either Wilkes-Barre or Pittsburgh was recalled to Wilkes-Barre. Not every AHL team did that for their ECHL affiliate.

Video Highlights: 

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Back at it Sunday with the Phantoms. More then.

Let’s Go Pens!

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1                               3

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A goal by Matt Dumba and then an empty net power play goal from Owen Pickering iced the Sunday afternoon contest away for the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins against the Hershey Bears. Penguins win 3-1 to go into the Christmas break three points clear of the Providence Bruins for first in the division.

Where’s the punch line, you ask? I’m not exactly fond of the body of work or effort for Matt Dumba and have soured on Owen Pickering’s work. That both guys get on the score sheet (Dumba had an assist) makes me feel silly right?

Get out of here with that. I cheer for the logo on the front and not the names on the back. Lovejoy. Brookbank. DeSmith. That’s it. That’s my list of favorite Penguins players. The rest? They help my favorite team win and I like that.

Anyway, enough about me. Here’s how they lined up…

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Lineup Notes: Phil Tomasino was back after missing a game with injury and Nolan Renwick came out. On defense, Daniel Laatsch was in for Finn Harding.

First Period: No scoring. Like last night, two penalties overlapped for each team.

Second Period: Zach Gallant gets a goal with a low shot that beat Clay Stevenson somehow and it was 1-0 Penguins.

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Oh, Sergei Murashov stole the show in this game, making some impressive saves throughout. He stopped all 14 he faced in the first period and 26 overall.

Third Period: Even though I thought that referees Ben Betker and Koletrane Wilson had an okay game, the Bears bench were hot at them along with J.P. Waleski and Dylan Blujus all game and rightfully so in some circumstances with icings and some non-calls (and calls) on both sides.

Bears head coach Derek King wasn’t thrilled with the explanations throughout as well.

Matt Dumba gets a goal that makes it 2-0.

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In contrast to Gallant in the first, Dumba showed no emotion. I don’t know if he thinks he’s beneath playing at this level or if he thinks the game just comes easy to him or what. Perplexing player.

Murashov gets beat when a puck caroms off of Daniel Laatsch’s stick and in and the Bears were on the board with about six minutes left.

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That’s Andrew Cristall’s goal there and a point in his ninth straight for the Bears.

Late, Spencer Smallman slashes a Penguins going to the net and Owen Pickering scores into the empty net as Derek King got desperate and pulled Stevenson.

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King’s team was late for the ensuing face-off which drew the ire of referee Koletrane Wilson, capping off a frustrating night for the Bears with the AHL Officiating Department.

Three Stars: 3) Sergei Murashov (26 saves) 2) Zach Gallant (goal) 1) Matt Dumba (goal, assist)

The Good: I thought that both Murashov and Joona Koppanen were outstanding all weekend. Koppanen had an assist today to go with a five point weekend. (two goals and an assist Friday, a goal Saturday) – he probably could and should get AHL Player of the Week honors.

The Bad: Would have liked to see Sergei Murashov get a shutout here, but those are the brakes.

Turning Point: The Dumba goal that made it two tipped this razor thin game on the side of the home team.

Around the Division: Charlotte beats Springfield 4-3 in overtime. The rest of the division is off until after Christmas.

Standings: Penguins 44 — Providence 41 — Charlotte 32 — Lehigh Valley 31 — Hershey 29 — Springfield 24 — Bridgeport 24 — Hartford 23

Wheeling Update: Nailers were off.

Video Highlights: 

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Have a good Christmas and we will be back here Friday setting up Saturday – Sunday and Tuesday for you as we head into New Year’s.

Let’s Go Pens!

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3                                2

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A goal from Cam Squires and Josh Filmon, their first goals of the season for their Utica Comets, are enough to push the game into overtime and then a shootout and then a Lenni Hämeenaho shootout goal, the only during the period is enough to give the visiting Comets a 3-2 shootout win.

Joel Blomqvist’s nickname should be The Bondsman, as he was bailing his Penguins team out time after time. The Penguins earned this point, but the way they played the full 60, didn’t nor should have earned the two points.

Here’s how they lined up….

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Lineup Notes: Scooter Brickey for Daniel Laatsch on defense, Raivis Ansons for Phil Tomasino who was added to the injured list with Aho, Huglen and Alexeyev. I didn’t listen to Nick Hart pregame so don’t know the extent of the injury, if they even disclosed that.

First Period: No scoring. Penguins had a power play snuffed out on a Tristan Broz hooking call.

Second Period: Cam Squires gets his first goal of the season on a shot that Phil Kemp tried to block, which redirected high and into the net for a 1-0 Comets lead.

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I don’t know what a ‘snizz’ is. Usually I ‘snizz’ when I am ill, or when I use too much pepper.

Joona Koppanen scored another goal this weekend through traffic that tied the game at one.

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Late, a pin balling puck finds its way past Blomqvist and it was Josh Filmon getting his first of the season that pushed the Comets ahead 2-1.

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Third Period: Penguins knocking and knocking, sometimes they look away and Blomqvist has to bail them out again, finally Avery Hayes gets a puck to squirt across the line and it’s tied again.

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No scoring the rest of regulation.

Overtime: Matt Dumba took a lot of dumb penalties in the game, none more dumber when the Penguins had possession of the puck in overtime and he takes an interference penalty.

Penguins kill it, survive a scare where the puck dinks off the back of Blomqvist but stays out, and it’s off to…

Shootout: Lenni Hämeenaho in the bottom of the second…

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Jákub Małek stopped Tristan Broz, Rafäel Harvey-Pinard and Gabe Klassen in that order.

Three Stars: 3) Cam Squires (goal) 2) Josh Filmon (goal) 1) Lenni Hämeenaho (shootout game winning goal)

The Good: Managed to steal a point.

The Bad: Where are the Christmas jerseys? They always wear Christmas jerseys. They auctioned off replicas via their app. Are we not doing Christmas jerseys anymore?

Also, Matt Dumba has done nothing to impress me other than taking stupid penalties.

Turning Point: The Hayes goal that got them the point gets it here.

Around the Division: The Charlotte Checkers look like world beaters when they play teams better then they are like the Penguins but when they play last place teams like Springfield they lose 3-1….Providence beats a tough Syracuse team 3-1…Hershey wins 4-1 against Bridgeport. The Leigh Valley / Hartford box is here. It’s not my fault you can’t start on time but I like that you televise all your home games.

Standings: Penguins 42 — Providence 41 – Charlotte 30 – Hershey and Lehigh Valley 29 (add points if LV wins) – Bridgeport 24 – Springfield 23 – Hartford 22 (add if HFD gets a point)

Wheeling Update: Nailers win 3-2 in OT down in Greensboro on a Matty De St. Phalle goal

Video Highlights: I think everything you need to see if shown above.

More Sunday as they close their first three in three weekend against the Hershey Bears at 3.

Let’s Go Pens!