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WILKES-BARRE TWP. — When asked about the longest goal-scoring slump of his career, Danny Kristo predicted earlier in the week that when he breaks out of it, the goals will be big.
He was right.
Kristo broke an 11-game drought with a two-goal performance as the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins defeated the Binghamton Senators, 5-4, on Saturday.
Ryan Haggerty scored the game winner and Tom Sestito tallied his third goal in two games. Doug Carr, who was recently recalled from Wheeling, stopped 33 of 37 shots in his first start with the Penguins. The win was the third straight for the Penguins (24-7-3-0).
The Penguins overcame some adversity when Binghamton erased a two-goal deficit with three unanswered tallies to take a 3-2 lead. Head coach Clark Donatelli was happy with the way his team fought back after taking a 3-3 tie into the final frame.
“We were in a good spot. We just had to win the third period, win the hockey game,” he said. “We have 20 minutes to go, at home. We’ll take that.”
The Penguins jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period with a pair of goals 44 seconds apart. Dominik Simon set up a Tom Kostopoulos one-timer, followed by a wrister from the slot by Kristo.
Kristo’s goal was his second in 15 games as a Penguins and snapped an 11-game scoreless drought.
“It felt great,” Kristo said. “I finally got it to go in. I felt about 10 pounds lighter after that.”
For as quickly as the Penguins established a lead, it vanished almost just as fast.
Binghamton chipped away when Carr couldn’t corral a rebound and Binghamton’s Jack Rodewald slammed it home to make it 2-1.
In the second period, it took Binghamton just 12 seconds to even the score when Nick Paul was open down low and beat Carr to make it 2-2. Three minutes later, Binghamton’s Phil Varone deflected a shot over Carr for a 3-2 lead. The Penguins hit a wall after that.
The only spark came with five minutes left as Sestito skated across the crease to tip a David Warsofsky point shot under Senators goaltender Chris Driedger to send a 3-3 tie into the third period.
“It was a big goal at the end of the second,” Kristo said. “It gave us momentum and a little jump in our step. Everyone just said ‘Win the period, win the game.’”
It took another set of quick strikes by the Penguins to break things open in the final frame when Kristo got the puck at the corner, stickhandled to the front and placed a shot inside the far post for a 4-3 lead.
Thirty-nine seconds later, Haggerty tucked a shot under Driedger to give the Penguins some space, 5-3. The goal was Haggerty’s first in his last six games and third on the season.
“Especially in a tight game like that, it kind of sinks their ship,” Kristo said of the back-to-back goals. “Our team did a good job of keeping our foot on the gas pedal and that’s why we got the win.”
Binghamton went on the power play with under two minutes remaining and connected to make it 5-4, but the Penguins minimized the damage to hold onto the win.
NOTES
– The Penguins wrap up their three-in-three and look to make it a perfect six-point weekend on the road Sunday against Hershey.
