PENGUINS OPEN PRESEASON WITH 5-1 LOSS TO BEARS

BOXSCORE

WILKES-BARRE, Pa. – The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins’ introduction to the exhibition schedule ended in a 5-1 loss to the Hershey Bears at Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza on Wednesday night.

Tom Mele scored Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s lone goal of the contest late in regulation, spoiling a shutout bid by Bears goaltender Parker Milner.

Hershey cashed in on an early power play to go up 1-0 with a Dustin Gazley goal at the 2:50 mark of the first period.

The Bears extended their lead to 2-0 after Andrew Cherniwchan threw the puck at the Penguins’ net and Hampus Gustafsson knocked in the rebound. Gustafsson’s tally came at 7:18 of the middle frame.

Jeremy Langlois was left unattended atop the Penguins’ crease and slammed a one-timer across the goal line, making it 3-0 Bears at with 3:20 left in the second period. Gazley’s second of the night expanded the scored to 4-0 shortly thereafter.

The Bears went up 5-0 in the third period on another power play goal from Stephen Collins before Mele finally solved Milner with 3:16 remaining in regulation. Mele’s may have put the Penguins on the board, but they never pulled any closer to the Bears.

Milner may not have earned the clean sheet, but he registered 17 saves in the win. Colin Stevens stopped 18 of the 22 shots he faced in net for the Penguins during the first and second periods. Will King denied the Bears on eight of their nine bids in the third.

The Penguins next preseason game is at home on Friday, Sept. 29 when they take on the newly minted Binghamton Devils. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton opens up the regular season on Saturday, Oct. 7 at Mohegan Sun Arena against the Charlotte Checkers. Individual tickets for all Penguins home games are available at the Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza box office, online at TicketMaster.com, or by calling 800-745-3000.

Season ticket packages for the 19^th season of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins hockey, including full season, 22-game, 12-game and Flexbook plans, are available by contacting the Penguins directly at (570) 208-7367.