ALLENTOWN, Pa. – The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins ended their three-in-three weekend with a 3-1 win over the Lehigh Valley Phantoms at PPL Center on Sunday afternoon.
A 34-save masterpiece from Joel Blomqvist and offense from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s (32-22-8-1) leadership group proved pivotal in ending the weekend with a win over their in-state rival.
Lehigh Valley struck first with 2:20 remaining in the first period. Tanner Laczynski intercepted a breakout pass by the Penguins and found Adam Brooks open on the back door for a tap in.
The Penguins responded quickly with Taylor Fedun potting his first of the season 76 seconds later. Fedun took a pass from Jack Rathbone, walked in near the right circle, and then fired a wrister through traffic that beat Parker Gahagan blocker side.
A bomb from Xavier Ouellet 44 seconds into the third period put the Penguins ahead, 2-1.
The Phantoms stepped on the gas after the Penguins took their first lead of the day, but were stonewalled by Blomqvist. One chance saw the Phantoms thread a perfect pass to the backdoor for Helge Grans, only for the glorious opportunity to be turned away by a quick right pad from Blomqvist.
On the Penguins first power play of the game, Vinnie Hinostroza and Radim Zohorna beautifully executed a two-on-one rush that resulted in a goal for Hinostroza. The tally pushed their lead to 3-1 at the 11-minute mark of the third.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton was perfect on the special teams front, scoring on its only power play of the game and neutralizing all three Phantoms power plays. Gahagan finished the game with 21 saves for Lehigh Valley.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton is back in action against Lehigh Valley next Saturday when the two teams return to Mohegan Sun Arena on Mar. 30. Opening puck drop between the Penguins and Phantoms is slated for 6:05 p.m.
Season-ticket packages for the Penguins’ 25th season of hockey 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.
