The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins returned to Mohegan Arena for the first time in a week, taking on cross-state rival Hershey Bears. Friday’s contest was the first leg in a weekend three-in-three for the Penguins as the playoff race begins to heat up.
Each side came into tonight’s contest looking to return to winning ways after dropping their past three contests played.
The first period was as evenly matched as a hockey game could possibly be. Both the Penguins and Bears had their fair share of scoring opportunities. At the end of the opening frame, shots on goal were even at eight apiece. Sergei Murashov and Mitch Gibson each made eight saves for the Penguins and Hershey respectively.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton opened the first few minutes of the second period with a stockpile of scoring opportunities. A break from the Bears would prove costly as Andrew Cristall netted his 14th goal of the season at 6:01 into the period.
Sonny Milano was credited with a goal at 10:32 when his attempted pass in front of the Penguins’ net took a bounce off the skate of Jack St. Ivany and through the legs of Murashov, pushing the Hershey lead to two.
Ryan Chelsey scored a minute later with a snap shot, rifling the puck past Murashov to give the visitors from Chocolatetown a three-goal advantage.
The Penguins needed a spark in the third period to get back in the contest, and they got that spark. Aidan McDonough scored early on in the period, tucking the puck through Gibson’s arm and the post, making it a 3-1 game.
With just over 11 minutes left in the contest, Rafael Harvey-Pinard lit the lamp on the power play with a blistering wrist shot that had no chance of being saved.
Throughout the rest of the period, it was all Penguins as they took shot after shot in their quest for the equalizer. However, the Bears would strike with Bogdan Trineyev scoring an empty-net goal, securing a 4-2 win for the visitors.
The Penguins fall to 36-15-5-2 on the season, remaining 10 points behind first-place Providence in the Atlantic Division.
Murashov made 20 saves in the loss, while Gibson made 30 stops between the pipes to help Hershey grab the win away from home.
Melvin Fernstrom assisted on both of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s goals, earning himself the third star of the game. Cristall and Ilya Protas were named the first and second stars.
Penguins head coach Kirk MacDonald said belief is a big factor as the team goes into the rest of the weekend’s slate of games.
“There’s a reason we are where we are. It’s not an accident, and things have gone, not in our favor over the last four games,” he said.
“And we got to find a way to get back and get some…start getting points again.
Like I said, I have no doubt we will, but sometimes you’re fighting it, you kind of maybe lose sight of it sometimes, the process. But I think we’re gonna do a great job.”
The Penguins return to the ice tomorrow, March 14 against their other Keystone rival, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. Puck drop is slated for 6:05 p.m. from Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza.
