The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins waited until the third period to find their punch, then turned a tense Saturday night into a 3-2 win over the Hartford Wolf Pack at Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza.
It was the Penguins’ first home win of the season, and they did it by leaning hard on Finn Harding and Owen Pickering. Harding had a hand in all three Wilkes-Barre/Scranton goals in the final period, finishing with a goal and two assists, while Pickering delivered the last word with the game-winner with just 80 seconds left in regulation.
Hartford had controlled the scoreboard for most of the night. Glenn Gawdin broke the deadlock five minutes into the second period, burying a centering pass through Taylor Gauthier’s five-hole to give the Wolf Pack a 1-0 edge.
That lead survived into the third, and Hartford nearly doubled it early in the period on the power play. Marc Del Gaizo’s slapshot crossed the line, but the Penguins challenged the play for offside. Video review wiped the goal away, leaving the game at 1-0 and opening the door for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s late surge.
The comeback started midway through the third when Daniel Russell delivered a hard shoulder to force a neutral-zone turnover and kick off the counterattack. Hugh McGing then slid the puck to Harding, who snapped home a one-timer to make it 1-1.
Just four minutes later, the Penguins were in front. Harding fired a shot from the point that Tristan Broz tipped in, giving Wilkes-Barre/Scranton a 2-1 lead and extending Broz’s point streak to five games, the longest of his AHL career.
Hartford wasn’t done. After Wilkes-Barre/Scranton was whistled for a penalty kill with 2:48 remaining, the Wolf Pack called timeout and pulled their goalie for a six-on-four advantage. That setup paid off when Justin Dowling found Juuso Pärssinen on the back post for a tap-in with 2:08 left, leveling the score at 2-2.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton answered almost immediately. McGing set up Pickering for a booming slap shot that beat Hartford goalie Callum Tung and restored the Penguins’ lead for good.
Gauthier finished with 25 saves to earn the win, while Tung stopped 27 shots in the loss.
The Penguins head to Utica next, visiting the Comets on Friday, Oct. 30 at 7:00 p.m. at Adirondack Bank Center. Their next home game comes Tuesday, Nov. 10 against the Comets, the team’s first Winning Weekday of the season, with puck drop set for 6:35 p.m. at Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza. If the Penguins win, fans in attendance will receive a free ticket to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s next mid-week home game.
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