PENGUINS HOLD ON FOR 1-0 SHOOTOUT WIN OVER BEARS
WILKES-BARRE, Pa. – In a tight, defensive struggle, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins survived the Hershey Bears and earned a 1-0 shootout win on Wednesday night at Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (8-5-1-1) posted a shutout for the second game in a row, with Casey DeSmith recording 28 saves in regulation and overtime for back-to-back clean sheets. DeSmith tacked on three denials in the shootout to secure the Penguins a three-game winning streak.
The Penguins came out of the gate flying, but couldn’t solve Bears goaltender Pheonix Copley despite out-shooting their opponent by a 14-5 margin. Hershey flipped the script in the second period, amassing 10 shots and several grade-A scoring chances in the middle frame, only to be turned away by DeSmith.
With both teams desperate entering the third period tied 0-0, pace began to pick up. The Penguins and Bears traded end-to-end rushes and flurries of scoring opportunities, but were stymied by stellar saves, brave shot blocks, or even the post. Three-on-three overtime provided similar thrills, but never a deciding goal.
With the score still knotted at zeroes at the end of 65 minutes, the game was forced to go into a shootout. Stefan Noesen was the only player to score, improving his shootout conversion rate to four-for-four on the year and bringing the Penguins another win.
Copley was handed the tough-luck loss for Hershey, despite fending off 29 shots in regulation and overtime, as well as stopping two of three shots faced in the shootout.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s next game is Friday, Nov. 15 against Springfield Thunderbirds at Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza. The T-Birds’ first visit to Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza this season is also an Eyewitness News Fan Friday with lower-bowl seating available for $15 and select draught brews on sale for $2 from 6:00 – 7:30 p.m. Puck drop between the Penguins and T-Birds is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.
Individual tickets to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton home games are on sale now and can be purchased at the Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza box office, Ticketmaster.com, or by contacting the Penguins offices at (570) 208-7367. Season ticket packages for the Penguins’ 2019-20 regular season, including Full Season, 22-game, 12-game, Flexbook and Premium Seating plans, are available by reaching out to the Penguins directly at (570) 208-7367.
Fans can also keep up with the Penguins through the AHL’s state-of-the-art, high-definition streaming service, AHLTV. Subscriptions for AHLTV are available now. Fans can visit theahl.com/AHLTV now to register for a free AHLTV account and purchase 2019-20 subscriptions.
