Joel Blomqvist made sure the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins left preseason on a high note Tuesday night, blanking the Lehigh Valley Phantoms 3-0 at PPL Center in Allentown.
Blomqvist stopped all 17 shots he saw and gave the Penguins a clean finish in a game where their special teams did plenty of the heavy lifting. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton cashed in twice on three power-play chances and killed all three Lehigh Valley opportunities, including a five-minute major.
The Penguins’ goalie was tested right away, turning away two close-range looks on the first shift. He also shut down Phantoms newcomer Jack Studnicka on a mini-breakaway later in the opening period to keep the game scoreless.
The breakthrough came at 6:45 of the second period, when Tanner Howe sent a stretch pass to Daniel Russell, who blew past the defense and beat Aleksei Kolosov.
Lehigh Valley then made its planned goalie switch, bringing in Carson Bjarnason. His night got difficult quickly, as Jake Livanavage blasted a slap shot into the top corner on a Penguins power play to make it 2-0.
The second period also got chippy. Max Graham and Andrew Perrott fought at center ice, and Finn Harding and Noah Powell twice dropped the gloves in separate scraps.
Mikhail Ilyin added the Penguins’ second power-play goal of the night at 6:40 of the third period. It was his fourth point of the preseason, with 2G-2A.
From there, Blomqvist finished the job, shutting the door the rest of the way and extending Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s preseason winning streak against Lehigh Valley to six games.
Kolosov finished with 10 saves on 11 shots, while Bjarnason stopped nine of 11.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton now turns to its 2026-27 season opener against the Springfield Thunderbirds on Saturday, Oct. 3. Puck drop for Opening Night presented by AMP Global Strategies is set for 6:05 p.m., with a pregame party beginning at 3:00 p.m. outside Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza.
That party will feature outdoor games, inflatables, face painters, concessions and live music, and Penguins players will come into the arena through the event with a gold-carpet, “March of the Penguins” greeting from fans.
Season-ticket packages for the Penguins’ 2026-27 regular season, including Full-Season, 22-game, 12-game, Flexbook and Premium Seating plans, along with Corporate Partnership opportunities, are available by contacting the Penguins at (570) 208-7367.
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