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Facing one of the toughest opponents left on the schedule, the Penguins couldn’t come up with enough to knock off the Atlantic Division leaders.
First-place Charlotte scored early and led the rest of the way, holding off Wilkes-Barre/Scranton for a 4-1 win Wednesday night at Mohgean Sun Arena.
The Penguins remained holding onto a playoff spot in the Atlantic despite the loss and were helped by a loss by Hartford on Wednesday. The Penguins are in fifth place, narrowly ahead of Hartford and Bridgeport in points percentage, needing to finish ahead of just one of them to reach the postseason.
Charlotte jumped on top early as Zac Dalpe scored his division-leading 29th goal of the season just 1:56 into the game. German Rubtsov made it 2-0 midway through the frame.
Some hard work in the second period got the Penguins back into the game.
With klling a penalty, Will Reilly helped chip the puck out of the zone and Drew O’Connor overpowered a defender for the puck at the other end. He found the trailer in Filip Hallander, who fired it home from the left circle for a shorthanded goal.
Connor Bunnaman made it 3-1 for the Checkers with 7:07 left before Alexander True scored an empty-netter.
Penguins goalie Louis Domingue finished with 25 saves on 28 shots.