Chirps from Center Ice

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Five wins win a row for the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins who win 4-1 over the hapless Lehigh Valley Phantoms Friday night. Jake Lucchini scored a pair of goals, Casey DeSmith stopped 29 of 30. More importantly, it was a favorable out of town scoreboard for the Penguins, who are now a playoff team by a point over fifth place Springfield and just two back of a very milquetoast Providence side. More on that in a bit.

The aforementioned Casey DeSmith opposed J-F Berube.

Lines were…

Lineup Notes: Anthony Angello and Andrew Agozzino were recalled to Pittsburgh Thursday. Coal Street recalled Brandon Hawkins but he didn’t play. Andreas Martinsen left to play overseas.

First Period: Hot start for the Penguins scoring :46 apart.

Jake Lucchini in behind the defense who lose their stick and he scores to make it 1-0.

Soon after, P-O Joseph fires a shot on that is kicked to Jan Drozg from a low angle. Drozg banks the shot off of Berube for a goal and it’s 2-0.

Pens nearly made it 3-0 with Drozg hitting a shot on the power play, but Lehigh Valley killed off the penalty and Andy Andreoff cherry picked for a goal and scored to make it 2-1 and Wilkes-Barre’s lead was cut in half.

The Phantoms started pushing back and actually got the better of the chances but the score stayed 2-1 heading to the…

Second Period: Penguins played the better of the two sides and extended their lead by two again. Jake Lucchini again, the guy loves scoring against the Phantoms.

How do you leave the net that wide open.

Six of Lucchini’s professional gold have come against the Phantoms.

Third Period: :53 in, Sam Lafferty drives the net and scores to give the Penguins a 4-1 lead.

That goal chased J-F Berube and Felix Sandstrom took over the net. Sandstrom cooled things down for the Phantoms and didn’t allow any goals, but the Penguins also may have backed off to preserve the lead.

Three Stars: 

The Good: They needed to keep the momentum going and the recipe was there with the Phantoms only winning four road games all season. Five wins in a row with another opportunity Saturday night against last place Bridgeport.

The Bad: Can’t really identify one. They stayed disciplined, taking just three penalties but got lax a bit on the Andreoff goal in the first and let off after their second goal. Can’t really do that or get into the habit of it. They did respond well in the second period on.

Turning Point: Sam Lafferty’s goal that made it a three goal contest :53 into the third was the punch in the gut that folded the Phantoms.

Around the Division: Favorable night for the Penguins. Providence loses 3-1 in Binghamton….Springfield loses 6-3 at home against Hartford and Charlotte gets trounced in the 6ix by the Marlies and lose 6-2. Hershey also beats Bridgeport 4-1.

Standings: Hartford and Hershey 61 — Providence 55 — Penguins 53 — Springfield 52 — Charlotte 51 — Lehigh Valley 42 — Bridgeport 35

Setting Up Saturday: Too soon for this, but I’ll do it anyway. Pens have a game in hand on Providence, who are in Syracuse….Springfield and Hartford rematch in Connecticut and so do Charlotte and Toronto. That game starts at 4. Pens have a game in hand on Springfield. Charlotte somehow has two games in hand on the Penguins.

Wheeling Update: Wheeling wins 3-2 at home against Orlando. Alex D’Orio stopped 34 for second star honors. Cam Brown scored a pair of goals.

Video Highlights: 

Gameday setup for Saturday’s matchup against Bridgeport is yours Saturday at 3.

Let’s Go Pens!

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An eight point weekend in Charlotte, seven of eight points on the road trip and the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins complete a sweep in Charlotte winning 4-2 Saturday evening.

Thomas DiPauli’s goal with 1:28 left in regulation guarantees such. Emil Larmi stopped 24 of 26 and turned in yet another solid performance in goal for Wilkes-Barre.

Larmi opposed Alex Nedeljkovic, who won eight straight games against the Penguins coming in.

Lineup:

Lineup Notes: There were none for the Penguins but for Larmi in goal.

First Period: :55 in, on the first shot of the game, Checkers all-star Julien Gauthier scored to give Charlotte a 1-0 lead.

Chances picked up in a big way for the Penguins after that, they had a 2-on-1, Blandisi had a breakaway and P-O Joseph hit a post. They weren’t able to score, but they had the majority of the chances as compared to the Checkers.

Second Period: Slow start, crazy finish.

Charlotte easily disposed of a Penguin power play and Jake Bean came out of the penalty box and was denied on a 2-on-0 by Larmi. Later, Freddy Claesson hit the post on a wide open net.

Jordy Bellerive would score when he crashed the net and Kevin Czuczman threw a pass at him. It went in legally and the Penguins tied the game at one.

Three minutes later, Bellerive would do it again. This time on a one timer.

Larmi was settled in to this point, but then he found himself in trouble. Here, let my tweet explain:

Charlotte would continue to pressure, but time expired in the period and they were off to the…

Third Period: Emil Larmi is the type of goaltender who you can see very early if he is dialed in or not. You saw it last week in Texas against the Stars and you saw it here Saturday against the Checkers.

The period flew by after a slow start, Charlotte started to come in waves and through everything they could at Larmi, but the Penguins rookie netminder didn’t crack.

With it looking with each passing minute that the game would head to overtime, Thomas DiPauli breaks in and scores with 1:28 to play to give the Penguins a 3-2 lead.

DiPauli would also add an empty netter to seal it. I didn’t get a video of that. He shot the puck from center ice and it went in. Use your imagination.

Three Stars: 3) Emil Larmi (24 saves) 2) Jordy Bellerive (two goals) 1) Thomas DiPauli (game winning goal and an empty netter)

The Good: They didn’t take a single penalty and got a hell of a game from their rookie goaltender.

The Bad: The power play looks like an abject disaster. They were better in a lot of other areas so it didn’t affect them as much, but you want that to come around as you continue to push here.

Turning Point: The DiPauli goal with 1:28 gets the nod here. If the game gets into overtime, the Pens don’t tie the Checkers in points and who knows what happens with the point lost as it goes down the line. DiPauli’s clutch goal in the moment guarantees that they maxed points in Charlotte against a foe.

Around the Division: The Lehigh Valley Phantoms went up 2-0 in Hartford but lose 4-2….Hershey gets a late goal to force overtime and go on to win in a shootout 3-2….Springfield wins 6-2 at home against Bridgeport.

Standings: Hartford and Hershey 59 — Providence 55 — Springfield 52 — Charlotte 51 — Penguins 51 — Lehigh Valley 42 — Bridgeport 35

Wheeling Update: Nailers win at home 4-1 against the Cincinnati Cyclones. Brandon Hawkins had three assists, Michael Kim had a goal and an assist. Alex D’Dori stopped 28.

Video Highlights:

They are off now till next Friday when they finally return home against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, so news may be scarce between now and then. All-Star Classic is Sunday and Monday, but that’s the same stuff every year and it doesn’t count. Enjoy it if you are heading to California.

Let’s Go Pens!

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When a player is traded to the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins, I usually start thinking of how I can use that players name in a pun in a headline for a postgame recap.

From January 4, the day that the Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Penguins acquired Cole Cassels.

The Penguins win 5-4 in Charlotte Friday night and Cole Cassels figured into every single goal. Cassels had a pair for goals to go with three assists.

Other rejected headlines include, “Four-Sofsky” for David Warsofsky’s four point night (2-2)

All jokes aside, this was a gritty, greasy, messy win for the Penguins over the Charlotte Checkers. You take them how you get them but it’s the kind of win you look for out of a team battling for a playoff berth. With the influx of players from Pittsburgh down from the all-star break, you need to maximize points against a team you are chasing for said playoff berth. So far, so good.

Casey DeSmith opposed Anton Forsberg.

Lineup: 

Lineup Notes: Friday morning, the Penguins assigned Matt Abt, Michael Kim and Christopher Brown to Wheeling. With the cadre of players sent down from Pittsburgh coupled with the fact that the Nailers have a boatload of home games in the next week or so, it made sense to get Abt, Kim and Brown back down to Wheeling for reps. Also, announced Thursday, Sam Miletic will replace Andrew Agozzino at the All-Star Classic later this weekend.

There was other news today around noon. Andreas Martinsen was placed on unconditional waivers for the purposes of contract termination. What it basically means is that Pittsburgh wants to shred his NHL contract so he can go to Europe. 24 games with Wilkes-Barre, a goal and two assists and takes up a vet spot. Thanks for the fish.

Current lineup wise, all the reinforcements were in, Jamie Devane and Andreas Martinsen were out and Chris Brown too, but he was sent to Wheeling. On defense, Zach Trotman returned from injury and, with Kevin Czuczman, replaced John Nyberg and Macoy Erkamps.

First Period: On a power play, Kevin Czuczman went to center to Anthony Angello. The pass never got there. Instead, a Checkers defender Steven Lorentz’s stick got in the way but deflected the puck into his net.

You take them any way you can get them.

Later, Cole Cassels finished off a two on one with Adam Johnson. It was all setup by a big save by Casey DeSmith on Lorentz that was setup by P-O Joseph falling over giving Lorentz and the Checkers a breakaway. Here it is:

Not a very good period by the Checkers Steven Lorentz there.

100th AHL point for Adam Johnson with that assist.

Second Period: You had a lot going on in this period.

First, David Warsofsky’s third attempt at a goal in one sequence goes in and the Penguins have a 3-0 lead.

But then Charlotte dug in and went to work.

Julien Gauthier was in front and collected a rebound off DeSmith and swept it past him on a power play that put the Checkers on the board.

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Then Eetu Luostarinen with a tip in front. 3-2 Penguins.

Charlotte hit a post on a dangerous power play after their second goal, but the Penguins got out of that unscathed.

Charlotte continued to buzz and fire, Casey DeSmith had a ten bell save, but Thomas DiPauli lost his stick and Gustav Forsling scored to tie the game at three.

(Charlotte didn’t post a GIF here)

Hardly ideal from the Penguins perspective. They were getting run over and hadn’t had a significant scoring chance since the Warsofsky goal. Until…

On a power play, Warsofsky connects with a looooong pass to Cole Cassels who stays onside and breaks in to beat Forsberg that gave the Penguins a 4-3 lead.

Big goal. Big, big goal for the Penguins who crack Charlotte’s power play.

Third Period: Hit the drop!

:08 in, Sam Lafferty finishes off a power play goal, the Penguins third of the night, to give the Penguins a 5-3 lead.

But Charlotte would respond in kind with another power play of their own when Dave Gust would punch in a goal that brought the Checkers within one again.

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Wilkes-Barre would find itself in penalty trouble off of the whistle from referee Corey Syvret, who bagged Andrew Agozzino for soft hook and then P-O Joseph for an even softer hook. The Penguins would navigate the rough waters fine, Chase Berger would block three shots in the kill and then with the time dwindling, Charlotte pulled their goaltender but never found the equalizer.

Three Stars: 3) Eetu Luostarinen (goal, assist) 2) Cole Cassels (two goals, three assists) 1) David Warsofsky (two goals, two assists)

The Good: They stepped up and took one from the defending champs. Noted in the lede, it wasn’t pretty, but necessary.

The Bad: Penalty kill wasn’t great, I didn’t like what I saw late from the Joseph – Lizotte pairing, but they got the two points.

Turning Point: I am going to go with that kill late when the Checkers were up two men. They score there and who knows what ends up with this one.

Around the Division: Providence beats Lehigh Valley 4-3….Hershey thumps Springfield 5-2….Hartford beats Bridgeport 4-1.

Standings: Hartford and Hershey 57 — Providence 54 — Charlotte 51 — Springfield 50 — Penguins 49 — Lehigh Valley 42 — Bridgeport 35

Wheeling Update: Nailers lose in overtime at home to Cincinnati 3-2. Matt Abt had an assist and was a +2.

Video Highlights: 

They rematch Saturday at 6, so that means the Gameday setup is here at 2 p.m. If things break the right way, Wilkes-Barre can tie the Checkers in points and depending on other out of town scores, could be a fourth place team at the break.

Let’s Go Pens!