Penguins Rout Phantoms 5-1, Extend Winning Streak to Four Games
Tanner Howe's four-point night powered a three-goal first period as Wilkes-Barre/Scranton rolled past Lehigh Valley 5-1 to win four straight.
Tanner Howe ran up a four-point night and the top line of Howe, Joona Koppanen and Rafaël Harvey-Pinard created all three first-period goals as the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins closed out March with a 5-1 dismantling of the Lehigh Valley Phantoms at Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza on Sunday.
The win pushed Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's record to 41-16-6-2 and stretched their winning streak to four games.
The Penguins' first period was the story. After staving off two early penalties, the Howe-Koppanen-Harvey-Pinard line took over. An odd-man rush midway through the opening frame had all three linemates touching the puck before Koppanen elevated a shot under the crossbar for the opener. Howe then snapped a pass from low to high for Chase Pietila, whose drive navigated through traffic and past Carson Bjarnason at 13:13. Fewer than five minutes later, Howe slammed in a backdoor feed from Harvey-Pinard to push the lead to 3-0 before the intermission, capping a three-point first period for the 20-year-old forward.
Aidan McDonough extended the margin in the second period, collecting his 20th goal of the season with a power-play strike with 1:36 remaining in the stanza. Harvey-Pinard added a rebound goal at 4:20 of the third, with Howe picking up his fourth point of the afternoon on the assist to make it 5-0.
Zayde Wisdom's late redirect with 78 seconds left in regulation denied Joel Blomqvist a shutout, but the Penguins goaltender still finished with 30 saves and improved his personal record to 13-5-4. Carson Bjarnason made 29 stops for Lehigh Valley in a losing effort.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton hosts the Phantoms again Friday, April 3, at Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza, with puck drop set for 7:05 p.m.
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