The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins reclaimed the lead in the Atlantic Division Semifinals with a 4-3 overtime win against the Hershey Bears on Tuesday night at the GIANT Center. Prospect Rutger McGroarty secured the victory five minutes into the extra period, tipping in a point shot for his first professional playoff goal. The win gives the Penguins a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five series, with a chance to advance during Game 4 on Thursday night in Hershey.
The Penguins opened the scoring early in the first period with goals from captain Phil Kemp and Mikhail Ilyin to take a 2-0 lead. However, Hershey battled back with tallies from Ivan Miroshnichenko and Bogdan Trineyev to tie the game before the first intermission. The Bears took their first lead just 37 seconds into the second period on a goal by Brett Leason. The Penguins trailed until the final minutes of regulation when Avery Hayes scored with the goalie pulled to force overtime. Goaltender Sergei Murashov made 26 saves in the win, while Tristan Broz led the offense with three assists.
Fans can listen to Thursday night's crucial Game 4 on WILK Newsradio (103.1 FM, 980 AM, 910 AM), with the pre-game show starting at 6:35 p.m. followed by the puck drop at 7:05 p.m. The game is also available for online streaming at wilknewsradio.com or via the free Audacy app. Should the series require a decisive Game 5, the action will return to Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza on Saturday, May 9, at 6:05 p.m. Tickets for that potential home game can be purchased by calling the Penguins’ front office at (570) 208-7367 or by visiting wbspenguins.com.
