WILKES-BARRE, Pa. – The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins secured a berth in the 2024 Calder Cup Playoffs by defeating the Cleveland Monsters in overtime, 3-2, on Friday night at Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza.
Radim Zohorna punched Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (34-22-8-1) its ticket to the postseason by delivering the game-winner 35 seconds into overtime with a stellar individual effort.
Zohorna surfed across the high ice in the offensive zone, and after being given a window of space on a subtle pick by teammate Ty Smith, he charged towards the net and executed an off-balance deke to his forehand for the win.
The Penguins struck first 11 minutes into the first period with Evan Vierling’s first AHL goal. Lukas Svejkovsky laid a seeing-eye pass to the blue paint from the left circle that deflected off of Jagger Joshua and Vierling before rolling behind Monsters netminder Pavel Čajan.
Cleveland titled the ice early in the second period and got on the board 130 seconds into the middle frame. Roman Ahcan tipped Jake Christiansen’s point shot, evening the game at one goal apiece.
A snipe from Avery Hayes at the six-minute mark of the third period put the Penguins back ahead, 2-1. Hayes, taking a pass in the high slot from Vierling, rifled one high-blocker on Čajan for his second goal in as many games.
Just when it looked like the postseason berth was wrapped up, Stanislav Svozil blasted in a slap shot from the blue line with one minute left in regulation. The play went under review for goalie interference, but was eventually upheld and sent the game to overtime, 2-2.
Zohorna made quick work in the extra session, whipping the home crowd into a frenzy.
Joel Blomqvist stopped 28 of 30 shots in a winning effort, while Čajan turned away 29 of 32 shots at the other end.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s next game is tomorrow, Saturday, Apr. 6, against the Bridgeport Islanders. Opening puck drop is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. at Total Mortgage Arena.
The Penguins return home the next day, Sunday, Apr. 7, to wrap up their three-in-three in a tilt with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. Sunday’s game is also a Kids Free Sunday presented by Knoebels. Children aged 14 and under can attend the game for free with the purchase of an adult ticket. The first 1,000 children through the doors will also receive a $5 ride book from Knoebels.
Game time for Sunday is 3:05 p.m. at Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza.
Individual-game tickets for the remaining contests in the Penguins’ 25th season as well as season-ticket packages for the 2024-25 campaign are on sale now. Full-Season, 22-game, 12-game, Flexbook and Premium Seating plans are available by reaching out to the Penguins directly at (570) 208-7367. Individual-game tickets are also available by visiting Ticketmaster.com, the Mohegan Sun Arena Box Office or calling the Penguins’ front office at (570) 208-7367.
