WILKES-BARRE, Pa. – The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins scored a season-high seven goals as they trounced the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, 7-2, on Saturday night at Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (15-8-1-0) saw seven different players find the net during its penalty-filled affair with an in-state rival. The Penguins and Phantoms combined for 132 penalty minutes by the end of the Black & Gold’s lopsided victory.
The Penguins opened the scoring with a pair of first-period, power-play goals. Emil Bemström cranked a one-timer past Phantoms goalie Parker Gahagen midway through the first period. Five minutes later, the Penguins zipped the puck back and forth until Tristan Broz buried a chance in the slot.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton went to the penalty kill early in the middle frame, but Boris Katchouk scored on a shorthanded breakaway to put the Penguins ahead by three. However, Lehigh Valley’s Massimo Rizzo scored on the power-play time remaining to pull his team back within one.
Marc Johnstone scored the first even-strength goal of the night at 13:26 of the second period, diving through the air to sweep a loose puck across the goal line. One minute and 40 seconds later, Corey Andonovski redirected a point shot to the top corner for a commanding 5-1 lead.
The Phantoms tried to turn the momentum in their favor with a shorthanded goal of their own at 7:48 of the third period, but Avery Hayes’ reestablished the Penguins’ four-goal edge 64 seconds later.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton buried its season-high seventh goal during another power play with 3:30 remaining in regulation. Ville Koivunen swatted in a rebound to give him his second point of the night in his 200th pro game. Bemström and Katchouk both finished with three-point outings (1G-2A).
During the third period, the two teams racked up 110 of their 132 total penalty minutes. The feisty final frame included 10-minute misconducts given out to Penguins Filip Král, Mac Hollowell and Rutger McGroarty, as well as Phantoms Garrett Wilson, Louie Belpedio and Zayde Wisdom. Both Penguins head coach Kirk MacDonald and Phantoms head coach Ian Laperrière were dealt game misconducts after Koivunen’s final goal.
Penguins netminder Joel Blomqvist recorded 29 saves in the win, while Gahagen was credited with 23 stops.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s next game is tomorrow, Sunday, Dec. 22, when the team squares off against the Hershey Bears. Game time from Giant Center will be 5:00 p.m.
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