Megna, Sylvester Lead #WBSPens Past Rochester

The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins came into Rochester looking to play a sound defensive hockey game, a typical road game style. They nailed it to a tee tonight in a 3-1 victory over the Rochester Americans.

The Penguins came out ready to play and had several point blank chances on Amerks goaltender Matt Hackett, but the Rochester goalie managed to keep the puck out of his net until a late first period penalty to Colton Gillies gave the Pens a chance on the power play.

The Pens didn't score on the power play, but found the back of the net shortly after Gillies left the penalty box. Tom Kostopoulos tipped home the point shot of Scott Harrington to give WBS a 1-0 lead with 3.9 seconds left in the opening frame.



Cody Sylvester made his AHL debut tonight and scored his first AHL goal after intercepting a pass in the offensive zone and firing a well-placed wrist shot past Hackett to give WBS a 2-0 lead early in the second period.

Rochester came back to cut the lead in half while on a power play when Jamie Tardif fed a pass across the top of the crease to Kevin Porter, who beat Desaluriers to bring the game to 2-1.

The Penguins defense continued to stymie the Amerks in the third period, and they added an insurance empty net goal courtesy Jayson Megna in the final minute to seal the deal for WBS. The goal was Megna's third in as many games since his return from Pittsburgh.

More on Megna: The empty net goal tonight was his 6th goal of the season and in nine games, he surpasses his goal total from his 56-game rookie campaign last season. The WBS Penguins are also a perfect 9-0-0-0 when Megna is in the lineup.


ROSTER NOTES

• Jeff Deslauriers got the start in net, stopping 23 of 24 shots en route to his 10th win of the season.

• Forwards Nick Drazenovic and Pierre-Luc Leblond didn't take the warmup skate and remain out of the lineup. Peter Merth is also rehabbing an injury and didn't take warmups either.

• Bobby Farnham served his one-game suspension tonight for an illegal check to the head of Syracuse Crunch defenseman J.P. Cote during Friday night's game.

• Nick D'Agostino was the seventh defenseman and healthy scratch, as Dustin Stevenson made his WBS debut.

• Also making their WBS and AHL debuts were recently recalled forwards Cody Sylvester and Dustin Manderson.

Lines:

Zolnierczyk - Megna - Conner

Kuhnhackl - Ebbett - Kostopoulos 

Uher - Carman - Thompson

Sylvester - Manderson - Payerl

Despres - Samuelsson

Harrington - Dumoulin

Mikkelson - Stevenson