The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins came out firing again on Sunday night, but the second half of their opening weekend ended the same way the first one did: with no win to show for 40 shots.
Hartford edged the Penguins 3-2 at Mohegan Arena, handing Wilkes-Barre/Scranton a split in the sense of effort, not results. The Penguins opened the scoring in the first 89 seconds and closed the gap again in the final minute, but the Wolf Pack answered in between and held on through a frantic finish.
Jake Livanavage gave Wilkes-Barre/Scranton a quick jolt with his first AHL goal, putting the Penguins up 1-0 just 89 seconds in. That early strike matched the energy of a first period in which Wilkes-Barre/Scranton controlled play and outshot Hartford 13-6, yet couldn’t stretch the lead beyond a single goal.
Hartford settled in from there. Marc Del Gaizo tied the game early in the second period with a power-play goal, and Taylor Raddysh put the Wolf Pack in front 2-1 at 14:44 when he hammered a one-time blast from the left hashmark.
That score held until the final minutes, when Hartford added an insurance goal on another power play. Nathan Aspinall jammed in a rebound at 17:23 for his first AHL tally to make it 3-1.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton still had one push left. Avery Hayes kept the game alive with a power-play, extra-attacker goal, chopping a loose puck underneath Callum Tung with 1:14 remaining for his first goal of the season. The Penguins earned another power play and turned it into a six-on-four chance for the final half-minute, but Tung and Hartford survived the pressure.
Tung finished with 38 saves. Taylor Gauthier made 20 stops for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
The Penguins are right back at it against Hartford next, with the Wolf Pack set for their home opener on Saturday at PeoplesBank Arena. Puck drop is scheduled for 6 p.m.
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