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WILKES-BARRE TWP. — The Hartford Wolf Pack found the key to defeating the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins: Put them on the power play.
Once again the Penguins struggled with the man-advantage — highlighted by an 0-4 effort in the second period — to lose to Hartford, 4-1 on Saturday. Daniel Sprong registered the lone goal for the Penguins while Hartford netminder Chris Nell stopped 30 shots.
The Penguins (36-18-4-2) are now 3-for-36 on the power play in the last 10 games and a league-worst 13.3 percent on the season.
“This group is over-thinking. They have to simplify and shoot the puck. We had a little trouble getting in the zone, but simplify,” head coach Clark Donatelli said. “Shoot the puck, win battles, get it back and do it all over again. We’re not doing a good job of it.”
The Penguins stumbled from the start against Hartford, allowing the Wolf Pack to strike twice with goals 34 seconds apart in the opening period.
After Anthony Peters bailed the Penguins out during the opening minutes as Hartford generated several chances, his teammates in front didn’t do much to return the favor later in the frame.
With four minutes left in the period, a Cole Schneider shot resulting from a lengthy Hartford forecheck made it through traffic and snuck by Peters to put the Penguins down 1-0.
Less than a minute later, a Hartford shot bounced in front of the crease and was tipped by Hartford’s Dan DeSalvo to make it 2-0.
“They could’ve had a lot more,” Donatelli said. “Awful first period. Probably one of our worst periods of the year.”
The Penguins tried to get to their game in the second period, but their own power play worked against them. Despite out-shooting the Wolf Pack 18-3, the Penguins blanked on four power play chances. Hartford actually generated more scoring chances while on the penalty kill, adding to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s frustration.
Even a spirited scrap from Joseph Cramarossa, who threw a flurry of punches against Brandon Crawley, couldn’t fire up the Penguins.
On the chances they did manage, Wolf Pack netminder Chris Nell came up big. He stuffed Jean-Sebastien Dea’s backhander on a breakaway, and closed the pads to deny Cramarossa on an odd-man rush.
The Penguins got to Nell in the third period when Sprong and Gage Quinney went on a two-on-one rush. Sprong held the puck and looked at Quinney, then took a shot that beat Nell through the five-hole to cut Hartford’s lead to 2-1.
The goal was Sprong’s first tally since Feb. 23, and first even strength score since Jan. 26, but it wouldn’t be enough.
After relentless pressure in the offensive zone, the closest the Penguins came was a shot from Kevin Czuczman that hit a post.
Hartford scored in the next shift after Steven Fogarty walked in and flipped a shot under the crossbar. Less than a minute later the Wolf Pack put the game out of reach with another goal to make it 4-1 with less than five minutes remaining.
Still, Donatelli said it was a poor first period that ultimately doomed the Penguins.
“The first two goals — we were bad defensively and we lost all of our one-on-one battles all over the ice in the first,” he said.
NOTES
– The Penguins stay at home to host the Hershey Bears on Sunday at 3:05 p.m.
– Donatelli said he hasn’t decided on a netminder for Sunday’s game. He also said Tom Sestito and Christian Thomas weren’t injured and were healthy scratches on Saturday.
