The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins come back from the holiday break to finish out a two-game set against the rival Lehigh Valley Phantoms at Mohegan Sun Arena on Wednesday night at 7:05pm.
The Penguins (16-9-2-1, 35 pts, .625%) currently sit in fourth place in the American Hockey League’s Atlantic Division, while the Phantoms (19-9-2-2, 42 pts, .656%) rank one slot ahead of the Penguins in third place.
Wednesday’s game is the seventh of twelve meetings between the clubs this season.
TIME: 7:05 p.m.
PLACE: Mohegan Sun Arena
WATCH: AHLLive.com
LISTEN: WILK News Radio
TICKETS: 570-208-7367 or at the Mohegan Sun Arena Box Office
SEASON SERIES
| DATE | HOME | ROAD | TIME/RESULT |
| Friday, October 13 | WBS | Lehigh Valley | 5-0 WIN |
| Saturday, October 14 | Lehigh Valley | WBS | 3-2 Loss |
| Friday, November 3 | Lehigh Valley | WBS | 6-5 WIN |
| Friday, November 22 | WBS | Lehigh Valley | 4-2 WIN |
| Saturday, December 6 | Lehigh Valley | WBS | 5-0 Loss |
| Saturday, December 23 | WBS | Lehigh Valley | 3-2 Loss |
| Wednesday, December 27 | WBS | Lehigh Valley | 7:05pm |
| Wednesday, January 17 | Lehigh Valley | WBS | 7:05pm |
| Friday, January 26 | WBS | Lehigh Valley | 7:05pm |
| Saturday, February 3 | WBS | Lehigh Valley | 7:05pm |
| Sunday, February 18 | Lehigh Valley | WBS | 5:05pm |
| Saturday, April 14 | Lehigh Valley | WBS | 7:05pm |
RECENT ACTION
The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and Lehigh Valley Phantoms engaged in a tightly contested affair in both teams’ final game before the holiday break, with the Phantoms narrowly pulling off a 3-2 victory at Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza. Teddy Blueger scored for the third time on the weekend and Ryan Haggerty netted his 11th goal of the season. But Oskar Lindblom, Chris Conner, and Corban Knight all posted multi-point nights for the Phantoms en route to the victory. Casey DeSmith was solid in net stopping 29 of 32 shots for the Penguins, while Dustin Tokarski turned away 39 of 41 on the other side.
PENGUINS NOTES
Teddy Blueger notched his third goal of the weekend in the last matchup and now has a career-best nine goals this season.
Zach Aston-Reese also grabbed an assist on Saturday night, to continue his climb up the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton assist leader board. He now ranks second among active AHL Penguins in helpers this season with 11.
Michael Leighton is the all time shutout leader in the AHL with 50. He recorded his first win as a Penguin against Binghamton last Friday night.
PHANTOMS NOTES
With a three-point night against the Penguins on Saturday, Oskar Lindblom vaulted himself into third on the Phantoms in points this year with 23.
Chris Conner has scored six goals this season, with two of them coming against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
The Phantoms have players represented in the top three of goals, assists and points so far, this season. Danick Martel (17) and Greg Carey (16) sit at second and third respectively for goals, Phil Varone is tied for the lead for assists (25) and in second for points (34).
CONNECTIONS
Phantoms left winger Chris Conner played 87 games with Wilkes-Bare/Scranton from 2009-2011 and 2013-14 registering 76 points (28+48) during his tenure.
Phantoms right winger Colin McDonald played 68 games in a Wilkes-Barre/Scranton uniform in 2011-12, recording 49 points (14+35) with the Penguins.
Phantoms defender Will O’Neill also played for the Penguins for one season, tallying 50 points (8+42) in 2015-16.
Penguins left winger Tom Sestito played in 46 games for the Phantoms from 2010-2013, when the team was located in Glens Falls, NY. He accumulated 20 points (11+9) during that time.
Penguins goaltender Michael Leighton also played for the Adirondack Phantoms from 2010-2013, appearing in 88 games and recording seven of his AHL career record 50 shutouts there.