Penguins Battle Hard, But Lose to Monsters in OT, 4-3
AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins

Penguins Battle Hard, But Lose to Monsters in OT, 4-3

Published on February 15, 2026 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins News Release


WILKES-BARRE, Pa. - The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins lost in overtime to the Cleveland Monsters, 4-3, on Sunday afternoon at Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (32-13-3-2) fought tooth and nail in a punch, counterpunch bout, but couldn't muster a knockout blow in the extra session. Monsters captain Brendan Gaunce pushed his team across the finish line with three points (1G-2A), including the winning goal in OT.

It didn't take long for Cleveland to strike first, as Max McCue rifled in his first goal of the season less than two minutes into the game.

The Penguins clapped back when Rutger McGroarty knifed a loose puck out of a net-front scramble and behind Monsters goalie Zach Sawchenko in the dying embers of a power play, tying the game at 5:29

Cleveland regained the lead on a power-play goal of its own courtesy of Owen Sillinger at 13:46 of the first period. However, the Penguins battled back again and Ville Koivunen provided an equalizer 62 seconds before the first intermission.

Mikael Pyyhtiä wired a shot past the glove of Joel Blomqvist to reestablish the Monsters' one-goal edge midway through the second period. At this point, Penguins head coach Kirk MacDonald elected to replace Blomqvist with backup Sergei Murashov, who started Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's game fewer than 24 hours before on Saturday night.

Emil Pieniniemi launched in the first goal of his AHL career 43 seconds into the third frame, pulling the Penguins back into a 3-3 tie. The two clubs traded chances throughout regulation, but a league-high 18th overtime for Cleveland followed.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton had several prime looks in the sudden-death session, but Sawchenko stymied the Penguins every time. Gaunce crashed the crease and tipped in the winner 2:45 into OT.

Blomqvist exited the game after denying 13 of 16 shots faced. Murashov took the overtime loss with 14 saves. Sawchenko emerged victorious for Cleveland by making 29 saves.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's next game is Wednesday, Feb. 18 against the Springfield Thunderbirds. Game time between the Pens and T-Birds is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at MassMutual Center.

The Penguins return to home ice on Saturday, Feb. 21 for Military Appreciation Night presented by MetLife. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton will take on the Bridgeport Islanders at 6:05 p.m. at Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza.

Season-ticket packages for the Penguins' 2025-26 season, including 12-game, Flexbook and Premium Seating plans, as well as Corporate Partnership opportunities 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 Arena at Casey Plaza Box Office or calling the Penguins' front office 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.

Check out the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins Statistics

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American Hockey League Stories from February 15, 2026


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