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AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins

First-Period Barrage Lifts Pens Over Phantoms, 4-3

October 18, 2024 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins News Release


WILKES-BARRE, Pa. - The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins raced ahead in the first period and built enough of a cushion to secure a 4-3 win over the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on Friday night at Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (2-1-0-0) unloaded four goals in 8:15 of game time in the first period to build a commanding lead on their turnpike rival. Although Lehigh Valley eventually climbed back into the game, the Penguins rode a strong performance from goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic across the finish line.

Boris Katchouk potted a pair of goals in the opening frame, the first of which was a bar-down rifle on the power play at 7:43. Five minutes later, Sam Poulin slipped a pass from below the goal line into the slot for a Katchouk one-timer to make it 2-0.

Tristan Broz buried a rebound on the Penguins' second man-advantage opportunity of the game, running his team's lead to three at 14:52.

Lehigh Valley elected to take its timeout after Broz's tally, but things continued to come unglued as goalie Alexei Kolosov played the puck right to Boko Imama, who accepted turnover and promptly scored his first goal as a Penguin.

Nedeljkovic had to be sharp late in the first period, making several post-to-post saves to prevent Lehigh Valley from cutting into Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's four-goal lead. However, the Phantoms solved Nedeljkovic not once, but twice in the first two minutes of the second period. Oskar Eklind and Jacob Gaucher scored 16 seconds apart to suddenly slice Lehigh Valley's deficit down to two.

All was calm until late in regulation, when the Phantoms pulled Kolosov for a six-on-four power play. Ethan Samson wired a shot through traffic and made it 4-3 with 51.8 seconds left, but Nedeljkovic and the Penguins ultimately held on for the win.

Nedeljkovic, assigned on a conditioning loan from the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday, stopped 33 shots. Kolosov recorded 29 saves for the Phantoms, but his first-period gaffe proved costly and turned out to be the game-winner.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's next game is a rematch with Lehigh Valley tomorrow, Saturday, Oct. 19. Game time for the second faceoff in this home-and-home set is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at PPL Center.

The Penguins' next home game is also part of a home-and-home weekend, the second of two meetings with the Syracuse Crunch on Saturday, Oct. 26. The Penguins and Crunch will drop the puck at 6:05 p.m. at Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza.

Season-ticket packages for the Penguins' 2024-25 season 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.

Every minute of Penguins 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.

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