10/13- WBS Penguins 5 Rochester 1
By: Phil Schoener
Updated: October 14, 2011
ROCHESTER, N.Y. - The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins crashed the Rochester Americans' home opener and gathered their first win of the season - a 5-1 triumph on Thursday at Blue Cross Arena. Bryan Lerg and Eric Tangradi each notched a goal and an assist to lead the offense, while rookie Brian Gibbons added a pair of helpers.
Five minutes into the contest, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton was able to take its first lead of the season on Tangradi's unassisted effort. The Penguins forward gained control of the puck in the corner, walked to the front of the net and found paydirt to make it 1-0.
Two minutes before the intermission, Brian Strait put the Penguins up by a pair when he deked around a Rochester defenseman and tossed a wrist shot into the top corner of the net.
The Americans dominated the second period with the help of four power plays and an 18-6 shot advantage, but would find themselves in a deeper hole thanks to some timely Penguins scoring.
Colin McDonald opened things up at 2:20, completing a tic-tac-toe play from Philip Samuelson and Lerg to give Wilkes-Barre/Scranton a 3-0 cushion.
Lerg then got into the scoring act himself and dealt the Amerks a gut shot with 1:12 left in the frame. With the Penguins skating on a 5-on-3 penalty kill, Lerg stole the puck in his own end and went coast-to-coast before slapping the puck past Drew MacIntyre.
Niko Dimitrakos completed the scoring for the Penguins 3:17 into the third with his second goal on the season.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton goalie Brad Thiessen was less than four minutes from registering his first shutout of the season, but Marcus Foligno broke things up with his first goal as a professional. Thiessen instead settled for his victory of the year with a stellar 29-save effort.
MacIntyre stopped 16-of-21 shots for Rochester, while Wilkes-Barre/Scranton went 0-for-2 on the power play and 5-for-6 on the penalty kill.
The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins return home to host the Springfield Falcons on Friday, October 14 at 7:05 PM. Bryan Lerg and Eric Tangradi each notched a goal and an assist to lead the offense, while rookie Brian Gibbons added a pair of helpers.
Five minutes into the contest, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton was able to take its first lead of the season on Tangradi's unassisted effort. The Penguins forward gained control of the puck in the corner, walked to the front of the net and found paydirt to make it 1-0.
Two minutes before the intermission, Brian Strait put the Penguins up by a pair when he deked around a Rochester defenseman and tossed a wrist shot into the top corner of the net.
The Americans dominated the second period with the help of four power plays and an 18-6 shot advantage, but would find themselves in a deeper hole thanks to some timely Penguins scoring.
Colin McDonald opened things up at 2:20, completing a tic-tac-toe play from Philip Samuelson and Lerg to give Wilkes-Barre/Scranton a 3-0 cushion.
Lerg then got into the scoring act himself and dealt the Amerks a gut shot with 1:12 left in the frame. With the Penguins skating on a 5-on-3 penalty kill, Lerg stole the puck in his own end and went coast-to-coast before slapping the puck past Drew MacIntyre.
Niko Dimitrakos completed the scoring for the Penguins 3:17 into the third with his second goal on the season.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton goalie Brad Thiessen was less than four minutes from registering his first shutout of the season, but Marcus Foligno broke things up with his first goal as a professional. Thiessen instead settled for his victory of the year with a stellar 29-save effort.
MacIntyre stopped 16-of-21 shots for Rochester, while Wilkes-Barre/Scranton went 0-for-2 on the power play and 5-for-6 on the penalty kill.
The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins return home to host the Springfield Falcons on Friday, October 14 at 7:05 PM.
