PENGUINS DELIVER GUTSY 3-1 WIN OVER PROVIDENCE

BOXSCORE

WILKES-BARRE, Pa. – The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins gutted out a 3-1 win over the Providence Bruins on Saturday night at Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza.

The Penguins (9-2-1-0, first in the Atlantic Division) spread their scoring across all three periods and got an excellent performance in net from Casey DeSmith to put them over the top in their second defeat of the Bruins this season.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton scored the game’s first goal when a pass from the corner by Sahir Gill pinballed off of Jean-Sébastien Dea and into the Providence net 7:01 into the contest.

At the expiration of a Penguins power play, Oskar Sundqvist knocked in a bounding puck and put his team into a 2-0 lead at 8:01 of the second period.

Late in the middle frame, DeSmith denied Providence’s Peter Mueller on back-to-back point blank chances. DeSmith’s big saves kept the Bruins off the scoresheet for the time being and helped the Penguins carry a 2-0 lead into the third period.

Providence finally got on the board thanks to a power play goal by Danton Heinen, coming at 9:02 of the third period.

From there, both DeSmith and Bruins netminder Malcolm Subban put forth a goaltending display at both sides of the ice, holding the two squads at bay. It wasn’t until Providence pulled Subban in favor of an extra attacker that Wilkes-Barre/Scranton found its insurance goal.

Jake Guentzel used his speed to blow past the Bruins defense and slide the puck into the empty net with 28.6 seconds left on the game clock for a 3-1 final score. Guentzel now leads all AHL rookies with six goals on the season.

DeSmith finished the game having made 28 saves and improved his record to 4-0-0 with a league-best 1.00 goals against average. Subban stopped 25 of 27 shots faces while manning the crease for Providence.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s next game is tomorrow, Sunday, Nov. 13, at XL Center against the Hartford Wolf Pack. Puck drop between the Penguins and Wolf Pack is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. in Hartford, Conn.

The Penguins’ next home game is Friday, Nov. 18, when they take on the Bridgeport Sound Tigers for the second time this season. In Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s first meeting with Bridgeport, the Penguins skated away with a 7-1 victory thanks to a four-point effort (2G-2A) by Guentzel.

Individual tickets for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton home games can be purchased at the Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza box office, through Ticketmaster.com, or by calling 800-745-3000.

Season ticket packages for the 2016-17 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.