The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins lost their second-to-last game of the season to the Hartford Wolf Pack, 3-2, on Friday night at XL Center.
Joel Blomqvist prevented Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (38-24-8-1) from falling too far behind after a slow start, and then Jack Rathbone (1G-1A) contributed two points in the third period to give the team new life. A long two-man advantage led to the deciding goal for the Wolf Pack.
Blomqvist performed exceptionally well from the beginning, keeping the Wolf Pack from scoring despite the Penguins being out-shot 12-3 in the first period and 9-6 in the second. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton also successfully defended against its first five penalties of the game, adding to Hartford’s frustration.
Hartford finally broke the tie on its 19th shot of the game. Bryan Yoon scored on a rebound with 2:34 remaining in the second period.
The Wolf Pack quickly increased their lead to two when Nikolas Brouillard scored in the top corner 43 seconds into the third period. However, the Penguins quickly tied the game.
First, Rathbone fired a shot from the slot past Louis Domingue’s blocker at 7:58 of the final frame. Just 39 seconds later, Austin Rueschhoff scored his new career-best 15th goal of the season by putting in a loose puck around the crease.
Hartford received a 65-second five-on-three power play later in the period, but only needed 33 seconds to score. Nic Petan scored a one-timer from the right circle through Blomqvist for a man-advantage goal that turned out to be the game-winner.
Blomqvist made 32 saves in the loss for the Penguins, while Domingue made 22 stops for the Wolf Pack.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton plays its last game of the regular season Saturday, one final bout with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. Game time is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at PPL Center.
