3/6- St. John's 5 WBS Penguins 2
By: Phil Schoener
Updated: March 7, 2012
WILKES-BARRE, Pa. - The St. John's IceCaps scored twice while shorthanded and once on the power play to down the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, 5-2, on Tuesday at Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza.
The Penguins trailed, 3-1, late in the second period, but pulled within one with 1:42 until the intermission on Brian Gibbons' tenth goal of the season. The rookie center gathered a puck at center ice and weaved through the St. John's defense before beating goaltender Eddie Pasquale to the blocker side.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton had chance to tie the game less than three minutes into the third on their sixth power play chance of the game. Instead a turnover in the offensive zone by the Penguins led to a shorthanded break for defenseman Arturs Kulda that he roofed over the left shoulder of Patrick Killen that put St. John's ahead, 4-2.
The IceCaps' Ray Sawada completed the scoring with a rebound goal at 5:47 of the final period.
St. John's stunned the home team in the opening period, scoring on their first three shots of the game.
With Wilkes-Barre/Scranton skating 5-on-4, it was St. John's jumping out to a 1-0 lead. Garth Murray led a 2-on-1 shorthanded rush and sent a pass to the right circle that John Albert one-timed past Scott Munroe at 4:48.
The IceCaps went up, 2-0, eight minutes later on their own power play as Carl Klingberg redirected Paul Postma's shot from the blueline. Jason DeSantis made it a three-goal cushion 48 seconds after Klingberg's tally on a long wrist shot that found its way past a screened Munroe.
Munroe would exit the game after the tally in favor of Patrick Killeen and the Penguins would get on the board 32 seconds before the first intermission. Geoff Walker set up defenseman Simon Despres for a center point slapshot that sneaked inside the near post for his fourth goal of the season.
Munroe took the loss for the Penguins, while Killeen made 14 saves on 16 shots in 46:30 of relief. Pasquale stopped 28-of-30 for St. John's. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton was 0-for-6 on the man-advantage and 2-for-3 on the penalty kill.
The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins begin a four-game road stretch as the face the Providence Bruins on Friday, March 9 at 7:0 5PM. For more information, call the Penguins at (570) 208-PENS or visit www.wbspenguins.com.
