PENGUINS LOSE GAME 1 TO MARLIES, 4-2

BOXSCORE

WILKES-BARRE, Pa. – The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins fell in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final to the Toronto Marlies, 4-2, on Wednesday night at Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton out-shot Toronto 36-16 throughout the contest, but Marlies goalie Artur Akhtyamov kept the contest close with his 34 saves. With a tie score late into the third period, Toronto scored twice in final two minutes of action to seize the lead in the best-of-seven series.

After a feeling out process to start things out, the Penguins gradually turned up the heat. That growing pressure eventually resulted in the opening goal of the contest. Alex Alexeyev’s seeing-eye shot navigated its way through traffic and to the back of the net with 3:12 left in the first frame.

The Marlies responded early in the second period, as Easton Cowan ripped one home from the high slot 1:38 in.

The Penguins got right back to their pace from the latter half of the first period, peppering Akhtyamov only to be thwarted at every turn.

William Villeneuve put Toronto ahead with a power-play goal with 3:06 remaining in the second period.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton pulled even, 2-2, when Rutger McGroarty banked a second-chance opportunity off of Akhtyamov from below the goal line six minutes into the final stanza.

The Marlies snatched back the lead with only 1:36 left to play, as Michael Pezzetta’s drive from the slot floated through a line of bodies and into the top corner. An empty netter that deflected off of Logan Shaw and in sealed the win for Toronto.

Sergei Murashov made 12 saves on 15 shots faced for the Penguins.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton will stay on home ice for Game 2 of the series, Friday, May 29. Puck drop between the Penguins and Marlies is set for 7:05 p.m. at Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza.

Individual playoff game tickets can be purchased by calling the Penguins’ front office at (570) 208-7367 or at wbspenguins.com. Penguins Playoff Packages are also available only by reaching out to the Penguins directly.

Playoff packages, which are billed on a pay-as-we-play basis, include tickets to every confirmed home game during the postseason. Each package also comes with an $8 voucher for every home game, which can be redeemed at Savor concession stands or at the Penguins Igloo Team Store located inside Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza on each designated game date.

Every minute of Penguins playoff hockey can be watched online with the league’s streaming service, AHLTV on FloHockey. AHLTV on FloHockey provides its subscribers access to not just every regular-season and Calder Cup Playoff game for all 32 AHL teams, but also more than 21,000 hockey contests from other professional and junior leagues on FloHockey, as well as access to all other live event streams and replays across FloSports.