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By STEVE SEMBRAT steves@leader.net
Tuesday, March 18, 2003 Page: 1B
WILKES-BARRE TWP. – Believe it or not, things can get worse for
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
The frustration level for the Penguins reached a season high on Monday as
they suffered a 3-0 loss to Philadelphia in front of a St. Patrick’s Day crowd
of 8,261 at the First Union Arena.
Defenseman Brad Tiley scored twice and goalie Neil Little stopped all 21
shots he faced as the Phantoms handed Wilkes-Barre/Scranton its third
consecutive shutout loss on home ice.
The last Penguin to score a goal at home was Milan Kraft during the third
period of a 4-2 loss to Syracuse on March 10. Since then,
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton has gone 191 minutes, 43 seconds without a goal while
surrendering 12 in a row to opponents in games at the arena.
“It’s a bad time of year to be having a slump like this,” Penguins coach
Glenn Patrick said. “It’s better than having it three weeks from now.”
That is assuming that Wilkes-Barre/Scranton is still playing three weeks
from now. A Calder Cup playoff berth, something that seemed to be a sure thing
not so long ago, is in doubt. Missing the postseason with a lineup that
features six former first-round draft picks certainly qualifies as things
going from bad to worse.
“We’re going to have to stop thinking about talent and start talking about
hard work,” Patrick said. “We have to get it together.”
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (30-30-5-5, 70 points) remained in a tie for eighth
place in the American Hockey League’s Western Conference with Milwaukee and
Rochester. The top 10 teams from the conference make the playoffs, so the
Penguins are on the playoff bubble with 10 games left in their season.
Philadelphia could make that bubble burst. The Phantoms (28-29-5-6) moved
within three points of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in the standings. Philadelphia
has played two fewer games, giving them more opportunities to pick up points
down the stretch.
It wasn’t so long ago that the Penguins were talking about moving up in the
standings and getting home ice for the start of postseason play.
“We’re still looking to move up in the standings,” Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
forward Toby Petersen said. “We’re looking to make the playoffs. We’re trying
to think positive.”
Scoring a goal tomorrow, when the Penguins host Syracuse, would brighten
the outlook.
“We’re getting chances,” Petersen said. “We’re not capitalizing. It’s
very frustrating.”
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton squeezed off five shots in the first three minutes of
the game, then managed just 16 more in what turned into a tight defensive
game.
The Phantoms grabbed a 1-0 lead on a power-play goal by Tiley at 6:41 of
the first period. Tiley unleashed a slap shot that went through a forest of
legs, past Penguins goalie Jean-Sebastien Aubin, who was screened on the play,
and just inside the goalpost to the right of Aubin.
“We didn’t give up a lot of chances,” Patrick said. “We just have to
keep our heads up. We had a good effort. We just have to get the monkey off
our backs.”
There were shots that hit the goalpost, including one by Petersen, and
rebounds that the Penguins could reach before a Phantom would clear the puck
out of harm’s way.
“It was a step in the right direction,” Petersen said. “We were getting
chances.”
Philadelphia made it 2-0 with 7:17 left in the game. Ladislav Kohn skated
behind the net and then fed a pass to Kirby Law, who was left wide open in
front of the net about 15 feet from Aubin. Law rifled a shot into the upper
corner, triggering an exodus by Penguin fans.
Tiley added an empty net, short-handed goal with 1:37 left after
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton pulled Caron with the man advantage.
The Penguins went 0-for-3 on the power play, and this was the sixth
consecutive game they failed to score with the man advantage.
“We’re looking to turn things around,” Petersen said. “We’re going to
keep working. We hope to get there in the end.”