WBS Penguins Gameday: Penguins vs. River Rats

Last Game Recap:
Providence built up a 3-1 lead in the second period, but the “Cardiac Penguins” came back and defeated the Bruins by a score of 5-3 on Friday night.

Twelve seconds after Jordan Knackstedt made the score 3-1 on a second period power play goal, Zach Sill responded with his fourth goal of the season off a pass from Chris Lee. Then, at 7:07 Brian Strait put home his second professional goal with help from Dustin Jeffrey and Nick Johnson.

In the third period, the Penguins took over the game and outshot the Bruins 11-9. Tim Wallace was the hero scoring his 20th and 21st goals of the season ten minutes apart. His second goal was on a shorthanded chance with Chris Lee off for holding. The established 5-3 lead held up through the end of the game as the team won their second game in a row. Brad Thiessen was the winning goaltender with 26 saves on 29 shots.

Three Stars of the Game:
3. Brian Strait (WBS): two points; +2
2. Trent Whitfield (Providence): two points (1+1)
1. Tim Wallace (WBS): two goals, +1

Scratches:
Konstantin Pushkarev
Steve Wagner
Eric Tangradi
Ryan Bayda
Keven Veilleux

WBS Current Record: 33-29-1-2 (69 points; fourth in East Division)

Next Matchup:
Who: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins vs. Albany River Rats
When: Saturday, March 13, 2010 at 3:00 p.m.
Where: Times Union Center (Albany, NY)

Last Meeting:
The Penguins took a 4-3 shootout win from the River Rats on Wednesday night in Wilkes-Barre. Nick Johnson led the way for the Penguins with a second period goal to erase a 2-1 Albany lead and the winning goal in the shootout. John Curry stopped 31 shots for his 22nd win of the season and became 10-5 in shootouts in his career.

About the River Rats:

NHL Affiliation: Carolina Hurricanes
ECHL Affiliation: Florida Everblades

Key Statistics/Rank in AHL:
Record: 35-24-3-5 (78 points; second in East Division)
Power Play Home: 18.7% (18th)
Power Play Overall: 16.7% (19th)
Penalty Kill Home: 83.3% (17th)
Penalty Kill Overall: 81.5% (18th)
Goals For/Against: 199/195

Last Game: 4-3 win over Rochester on Friday night. Oskar Osala had two goals for the River Rats, while Jamie McBain chipped in two assists. Bryan Rodney (1+1) also had a two point night.

River Rats to Watch:
Jamie McBain has six points (1+5) in Albany’s last four games. He is third on Albany with 38 points (6+32) and has a +10 rating.

Bryan Rodney has five points in his last four games and has a +6 rating. He has 34 points this season (7+27) with four of his goals coming on the power play.

Ali’s Analysis:
While it is nice to see the Cardiac Penguins come back from behind and earn two points that cannot always be the case. Today, the Penguins will have to be the ones to get the lead and make sure the River Rats don’t turn their comeback on them. The unlikely scorers such as Tim Wallace and Zach Sill will have to contribute once again to ensure a win against a team that is significantly ahead of them in the standings.

Posted in: AHL,game day,pregame,WBS Penguins