The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins' (2-3-0-0) power play woes continue in a 4-0loss to the Albany Devils (3-0-1-0). The Penguins couldn't find the back of the net on any of their five power plays, and the Devils scored two power play goals of their own. The Devils added two late goals in the final minutes to complete the final score but special teams were the difference tonight.
Mike Sislso scored to put the Devils up 2-0 with a pair of power play goals before Tim Sestito added an empty net goal with 1:08 left. Reid Boucher scored a goal ten seconds later before tempers flared once again in a disappointing loss for the Penguins. Goaltender Keith Kinkaid pitched a 22-save shutout for the Devils.
More bad news for the Penguins as goaltender Jeff Zatkoff left the game after suffering an apparent leg injury with two minutes left in the 2nd period. Zatkoff stopped 8 of 10 shots before Matt Murray came on in relief and stopped 5 of 6.
The Penguins are now 0-for-19 with the man advantage on the season, an obvious concern five game into the season.
The Penguins and Devils skated to a scoreless, but physical first period that featured several post-whistle scrums and two official sets of fighting majors to Adam Payerl and Zach Torquato for the Pens and Raman Hrabarenka and Steve Bernier for the Devils.
The Devils had the decided edge in play early in the opening frame, benefitting from a Tom Kostopoulos holding minor on the opening shift of the game. The Penguins killed off the minor but the Devils controlled most of the play in the first 15 minutes or so.
The Penguins got some momentum at the end of the period, pressing the Devils in their defensive zone after defenseman Seth Helgeson lost his stick. The Pens evened the shots at 6-6 heading into the first intermission.
The Penguins got some early pressure in the second period but it was negated by a hooking minor assessed to Andrew Ebbett 1:41 into the middle frame. The Devils scored on the ensuing power play to take a 1-0 lead.
Mike Sislo took a pass on the left point from Brandon Burlon and blasted a one-timer past Jeff Zatkoff 2:09 into the middle period to break the scoreless tie for the Devils.
The Penguins had two chances shortly after the Devils goal with back-to-back power play chances of their own but were unable to get one past Kinkaid, who played very well making several key saves in the 2nd period.
It seemed any time the Penguins started it get pressure on the Devils in their defensive zone, they committed a penalty and lost their momentum. With about seven and a half minutes, an Adam Payerl goaltender interference penalty sent the Pens to the penalty kill for their fourth time of the night at the time.
Again it was Sislo scoring a power play goal on Zatkoff, with Joe Whitney and Scott Timmins getting assists on the play at the 13:33 mark of the 2nd period, putting the Penguins in a 2-0 hole against an organization that loves to trap and play defensive hockey.
Things went from bad to worse with 2:00 left in the period as Zatkoff left the game with an apparent lower body injury after stopping a mini breakaway from former Penguins forward Paul Thompson with a blocker save.
Zatkoff stopped 8 of the 10 shots he faced in 18 minutes of work. Rookie goaltender Matt Murray came on in relief of Zatkoff, making his first appearance of the 2014-15 season. Murray didn't look out of place in his lone AHL start in the Pens' regular season finale up in Utica last year
Zatkoff didn't return to the contest, but Murray came in and kept the Penguins in the game - making several big stops early in the third period to get acclimated to the play right away.
Ultimately the Pens' inability to cash in on the man advantage and timely saves from a talented goaltender in Kinkaid kept them from getting back in the game.
GAME SUMMARY
1st Period
0:39: WBS - (PP) Kostopoulos, minor (holding)
8:33: ALB - Hrabarenka, major (fighting)
8:33: WBS - Payerl, major (fighting)
11:47: ALB - Bernier, major (fighting)
11:47: ALB - (PP) Bernier, minor (roughing)
11:47: WBS - Torquato, major (fighting)
11:55: WBS - (PP) Wilson, minor (high-sticking)
2nd Period
1:41: WBS - (PP) Ebbett, minor (hooking)
2:09: ALB - PPG Sislo (1) - Burlon
2:28: ALB - (PP) Burlon, minor (interference)
7:18: ALB - (PP) Pelley, minor (hooking)
12:23: WBS - (PP) Payerl, minor (goaltender interference)
13:33: ALB - PPG Sislo (2) - Whitney, Timmins
3rd Period
3:24: WBS - (PP) Drazenovic, minor (slashing)
9:56: ALB - (PP) Zajac, minor ()
18:52: ALB - (EN) Sestitio (1) - unassisted
19:02: ALB Boucher (1) - Zajac
19:05: WBS - Farnham, minor (slashing)
19:05: WBS - Farnham, major (fighting)
19:05: WBS - Leblond, 10-min misconduct
19:05: WBS - McNeill, major (fighting)
19:05: WBS - McNeill, Game Misconduct
19:05: ALB - Zajac, minor (instigating)
19:05: ALB - Zajac, major (fighting)
19:05: ALB - McPherson, major (fighting)
ROSTER NOTES
- Jeff Zatkoff (8/10) got the start in net, having started all five games for the Penguins so far this season. Matt Murray backed him up in net as he has all season long, stopping 5 of 6 on 22:00 of relief.
- Derrick Pouliot, Scott Harrington and Andrew Ebbett all made their season debuts.
- A bit of a surprise that Anton Zlobin was a healthy scratch for the third straight game.
- Conor Sheary (lower body) and Josh Archibald (upper body) are still on the injured list.
Lines
Kostopoulos - Drazenovic - Rust
Wilson - Ebbett - Megna
Farnham - Marcantuoni - Uher
Leblond - Torquato - Payerl
Dumoulin - Chorney
McNeill - Harrington
Pouliot - Samuelsson
Zatkoff - Murray
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