AHL: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins Punches Playoff Ticket

The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins clinched a playoff spot with their 4-3 overtime win over the Hartford Wolf Pack tonight. All they needed to do was secure a point in tonight’s game. It’s the second straight playoff berth for the Penguins who have never won the Calder Cup. Their last Calder Cup Finals appearance was in 2008 when they lost in six games to the Chicago Wolves.

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Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins vs. Hartford Wolf Pack

The Penguins jumped out to an early 1-0 lead as Valtteri Puustinen scored his 14th of the season. The Wolf Pack tied the game up with under five minutes left as Alex Bezile tied it up. The Penguins took the lead back less than a minute later as Avery Hayes scored his 20th of the season.

In the second period, Hartford tied things up and took the lead. First Jaroslav Chmelar scored his tenth of the year just under two minutes in. With under three minutes left Hartford took the lead with Brendan Brisson scoring his sixth of the season. 

In the third period, the Penguins tied things back up as Ville Koivunen scored his 21st of the season. The game would go to overtime with the Penguins already securing a point and clinching their playoff spot. Avery Hayes scored the game-winner with 12 seconds left in overtime. 

Sergei Murashov stopped 35 of the 38 shots he faced for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton while Dylan Garand stopped 37 of the 41 shots he faced.