WILKES-BARRE, Pa. – The first two-goal game of Beau Bennett’s pro career helped lead the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins to a 2-1 win over the Springfield Falcons on Wednesday at Mohegan Sun Arena.
 
With neither team able to find the back of the net in the first, the Penguins rookie winger was responsible for all the scoring that made it 2-0 for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton heading into the second intermission.    
 
Skating down the left wing of the Springfield zone, Bennett winged a pass to the top of the near circle for Riley Holzapfel.  Holzapfel waited for the Falcons defense to pass by before returning the puck to Bennett, who whistled a shot past goaltender Curtis McElhinney at 8:20.
 
Holzapfel and Bennett clicked again with 4:32 left in the second after a nice keep-in at the point by defenseman Dylan Reese.  Holzapfel quickly slapped a shot from the right sidewall that McElhinney turned away with his blocker.  The rebound came to a wide-open Bennett for the easy put-back and his third goal of the season. 
 
The Falcons’ Tomas Kubalik foiled Jeff Zatkoff’s shutout effort when he deflected in Nick Holden’s point shot with 1:43 left in regulation.  Zatkoff otherwise made 25 saves for his fourth win in five starts.
 
Bennett’s first goal ended a shutout streak of 167:00 for McElhinney that stretched back to Nov. 4 and spanned four games.
 
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton has won seven of its last nine contests and is above .500 for the first time this season (7-6-0-0).  
 
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WILKES-BARRE, Pa. – The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins scored a 1-0 shootout victory over the Binghamton Senators at the Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza to pick up their third straight win and fourth in five games. 
 
It took 65 minutes of play and eight rounds of the shootout to register the contest’s only goal, but rookie Tom Kuhnhackl notched the game-winner when he sent a wrist shot through the five-hole of Senators goalie Robin Lehner.
 
Jeff Zatkoff, in net for the Penguins, stopped defenseman Tyler Eckford in the bottom half of round eight to seal the win and pick up the second shutout in his last three starts.  The fifth-year goaltender made 32 saves through overtime and was 6-of-8 in the shootout for his fourth win of the year.
 
The Penguins generated countless chances against Lehner thanks to eight power play chances that included an extended 5-on-3 in the second period, but could not convert on the man-advantage. 
 
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton did ita part in stymieing Binghamton’s power play as the penalty kill units were perfect in seven opportunities to extend their streak to 34 straight.
 
The Senators almost found the decisive marker with less than five seconds remaining in regulation, but Zatkoff sprawled in the crease to deny two point-blank shots and force overtime.
 
Lehner turned aside 34 shots to also earn the shutout and went 5-of-8 in the shootout.
 
It was the Penguins’ first 1-0 shootout game since Oct. 9, 2011 when they fell to the Connecticut Whale. 
 
The Penguins take on the Hershey Bears on Fri, Nov. 9 at 7:05PM
 
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BRIDGEPORT, Conn. – Paul Thompson’s natural hat-trick in the second period earned the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins a 5-3 victory over the Bridgeport Sound Tigers at the Webster Bank Arena.
 
The was score tied at one at the eight-minute mark of the middle frame when Thompson began his three-goal streak on a bullet wrist shot from the far circle that beat Bridgeport goalie Kevin Poulin over the glove hand.  He struck again from the slot almost five minutes later on a give-and-go play with Brian Gibbons that helped Wilkes-Barre/Scranton to a 3-1 cushion. 
 
With 37 seconds left until the intermission, Thompson finished off his feat, throwing a wrister between the legs of the Sound Tiger goaltender.  Kenny Reiter would step in between the pipes for the Sound Tigers to start the third in relief of Poulin.  Poulin allowed four goals on 25 shots.
 
After John Persson found the back of net early in the third for Bridgeport, Brian Gibbons would put the Penguins up, 5-3, with a breakaway goal through five-hole of Reiter. 
 
Brock Nelson would add one late for the Sound Tigers to round out the scoring.
 
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton went ahead five minutes into the contest on their first power play of the game.  Philippe Dupuis sent a cross-rink pass through the Sound Tigers penalty killers that a pinching Dylan Reese lifted over the shoulder of Poulin.
 
Nino Niederreiter tied the game up with his fifth goal of the year after receiving a lead pass from Casey Cizikas at center ice.  On the mini breakaway, Niederreiter went forehand-backhand and slid the puck past Jeff Zatkoff.  The Penguins’ goalie made 36 saves on 39 shots for his second straight win.
 
The Penguins will be in action on Nov. 7 as they take on the Binghamton Senators. 
 
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MANCHESTER, N.H. – Wilkes-Barre/Scranton goaltender Jeff Zatkoff made 33 saves in his first start against his former team as the Penguins blanked the Manchester Monarchs, 3-0, at Verizon Wireless Arena.
 
After a scoreless first period, Eric Tangradi extended his goal-scoring streak to five games in putting the Penguins ahead, 1-0.  Working on the power play, Trevor Smith was denied on a chance in close, but Tangradi stuffed the rebound through the five-hole of Manchester goalie Martin Jones at 3:42 of the second. 
 
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton used the man-advantage again to make the score 2-0 at 8:41 of the same period as defenseman Dylan Reese snapped an angle shot to the back of the net.   The Penguins’ power play unit would go 2-for-6 on the night.
 
New Hampshire-native Paul Thompson completed the scoring when he notched an empty-net goal with 40.7 seconds left in regulation. 
 
With the win, Zatkoff raised his record to 2-4-0 on the season and picked up his ninth career shutout.  Wilkes-Barre/Scranton held Manchester’s power play scoreless over five opportunities and has now killed off 26 in a row. 
 
The Penguins wrap up their four-game road stretch when they skate against the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Sunday, Nov. 4 at 3:00PM
 
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HERSHEY, Pa. – The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins could not make it three consecutive wins as they were edged by the Hershey Bears, 3-2, on Sunday at GIANT Center. 
 
Trailing 2-1 after the second period of play, the Penguins thought they had tied the game when Phil Dupuis put back a loose puck in the crease.  The goal was disallowed after video replay showed that the puck had been kicked into the net.
 
Hershey used the break to their advantage as Ryan Stoa put the Bears ahead by two at 4:39 of the third, getting loose in the slot and sending a one-timer past Penguins goalie Jeff Zatkoff. 
 
Eric Tangradi continued his big weekend when he got Wilkes-Barre/Scranton within striking distance, tucking in a power play goal under sprawled-out netminder Dany Sabourin with 5:26 to play. The tally was Tangradi’s fourth in three contests and his team-leading fifth of the season.
 
After a scoreless first period, the Bears went ahead 14 seconds into the second when Zatkoff stopped Cameron Schilling’s turnaround shot, but Mike Carman lifted the rebound into the top corner.
 
Hershey then doubled its lead at 13:29 of the same period with Wilke-Barre/Scranton on the penalty kill.  Zach Hamill gathered a loose puck at Bears’ blueline and outraced the defense before ripping home a slapshot from the far dot.
 
Just after that same man-advantage expired, Adam Payerl scored his first pro goal to cut the Hershey lead in half.  The Penguins center fluttered a wrist shot from the near circle under the arm of Sabourin and made the score 2-1 with 4:40 remaining until the intermission.   
 
Zatkoff took the loss as he made 13 saves on 16 shots.  Sabourin turned aside 20 shots for the Bears.
 
The Penguins are back on the ice on Friday, Nov. 2 as they face the Manchester Monarchs at 7:00PM.
 
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WILKES-BARRE, Pa. – The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins could not cap off a third-period rally as they were defeated by the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, 3-2, at Mohegan Sun Arena.  Riley Holzapfel and Eric Tangradi were the goal scorers for the Penguins.
 
Down 2-0 after the first period, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton got on the board at 7:48 thanks to Holzapfel’s first goal of the season.  Sound Tigers goaltender Kevin Poulin stopped Paul Thompson’s shot from the slot, but Holzapfel drove to the net to knock the loose puck home.
 
Bridgeport restored its two-goal edge as Johan Sundstrom gathered a turnover in the offensive zone and led a 3-on-1 rush that John Persson finished with 3:28 to go until the second intermission.
 
The Penguins created some late-game drama after Tangradi potted a rebound goal with four minutes to play and soon after were awarded a power play, but Poulin kept the puck out of the net to preserve the Sound Tigers’ win. 
 
The Sound Tigers jumped ahead 1-0 at the 12:00 mark of the first period when Ty Wishart banged a slapshot off the back glass and Sundtrom put the rebound past goaltender Brad Thiessen as he dived across the net-mouth. 
 
Nino Neiderreiter then gave Bridgeport a two-goal lead with 1:46 until the intermission when he had Casey Cizikas’ dump-in carom off the dasher to the crease and poked the loose puck inside the near post.
 
In his first start of the season, Thiessen took the loss with 19 saves on 22 shots.  Poulin helped Bridgeport raise its record to 3-0-0-0 with 34 saves.  
 
The Penguins complete their weekend with a match-up against the Syracuse Crunch on Sunday, Oct. 21 at 5:05PM. 
 
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