Penguins fall in Hershey | Pro Hockey News

HERSHEY, Pa. – The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins ended their week of in-state rivalry games with a 6-2 loss to the Hershey Bears on Saturday night at Giant Center.

Saturday, November 29, 2025, the Hershey Bears vs the WBS Penguins. The Bears beat the Penguins by the score of 6-2.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (15-5-1-0) fell behind early, and despite several late-period surges, the team couldn’t maintain its momentum long enough to stage a comeback.

Hershey broke the ice at 5:42 of the first period, shortly after a successful penalty kill. Bears forward Graeme Clarke jumped out of the penalty box and joined the rush, took a pass from Brett Leason and tucked a backhand shot around Penguins goalie Joel Blomqvist.

Eighty-four seconds later Ilya Protas buried a power-play goal for the Bears, extending their lead to two.

The Penguins turned the tide in the second half of the first period and got on the scoreboard thanks to Jack St. Ivany with 3:41 left in the frame. Rutger McGroarty received an assist on the tally, establishing a career-best five-game point streak.

A quiet start to the second stanza quickly veered into a loud resurgence for Hershey, as the Bears received lamp-lighters from Sam Bitten and David Gucciardi three-and-a-half minutes apart.

Clay Stevenson conjured several sparkling saves as the Penguins put him under siege in the final shifts of the middle frame. He held Wilkes-Barre/Scranton at bay until Gabe Klassen tipped in a feed from Harrison Brunicke 36 seconds before the intermission.

The two clubs traded minor penalties back and forth until Hershey’s Ivan Miroshnichenko converted on a four-on-three man advantage at 4:34 of the third period, making it a 5-2 game.

Protas polished off an empty-net goal with 5:50 remaining to round out the offense.

Stevenson secured his sixth-straight win for Hershey with 35 saves. Blomqvist left the game after the second period, having stopped 12 of 16 shots faced. Sergei Murashov denied six of seven shots in relief.

The Penguins are back on home ice next Friday, Dec. 5, when the Phantoms return for a second-straight 28/22 News Fan Control Friday, with $2 beers on sale from 6:00-7:30 p.m., courtesy of Coors Light. There will also be postgame player autographs presented by Northeast Music Center. Puck drop against Lehigh Valley is set for 7:05 p.m. at Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza.

With Pens match report