In the AHL this season, it's hard to get worked up over any one lost point in the standings.
The league is unlikely to award a Calder Cup this season, and hasn't announced what postseason plans, if any, may take place as a substitute. More so than ever, the biggest focus this season is on development.
"To see where they're at at the starting point and then at the finish of the year is going to be really important," head coach J.D. Forrest said during training camp.
So while a 2-1 shootout loss to the Crunch at home on Wednesday isn't the ideal result, the positive takeaways outweigh the importance of the lost point in the standings toward a playoff race that might not even take place.
The biggest takeaway in this one was the strong defensive play of the team. The team allowed just 14 shots on goal (including two in the first period) through 60 minutes of regulation time, the fewest allowed all season.
"I think we're just coming together as a unit," defenseman Jon Lizotte said. "A lot of young guys, so sometimes it takes time to jell. I think we're all buying in to what we've got to do, and each of us has our role. We're all buying in, and it shows. Each night we come out usually pretty proud of how we played as a unit, and hopefully we can continue that way."
Lizotte, a second-year pro on an AHL contract, played a big part of that as one of the top-pairing defensemen. He broke up a 2-on-1 Crunch rush in the third period:
Lizotte scored the lone Penguins goal in the loss, an early second-period tally with assists from Felix Robert and Radim Zohorna that redirected in off of a Crunch player:
"It was a really good play by our forwards," he said. "The Big Z line was forechecking good, they got low to high, I just tried finding a stick at the net and got a lucky bounce off of a skate."
Lucky bounce or not, Lizotte finds a way to contribute each game, whether it's on the scoresheet or not,
"I can't say enough about what he does for us day in and day out," Forrest said of Lizotte. "It starts with practice. He takes his job seriously, as he should. Every time we're at the rink he's making the most of it and it translates to games, how hard he works and how hard he is to play against. Just his presence on the ice, on the back end for us is huge. He's really evolved to a leader on this team even though he's only a second-year guy. It's just because he does so many things the right way."
That second line of Robert, Zohorna, and Jan Drozg that was on the ice for the goal has been one of the strongest lines Wilkes-Barre has had since they've been put together.
"It's a good mix of size, speed, and tenacity," Forrest said. "We've seen what Zoho can do with his size and his speed, skill. Janny can fly out there and put some pressure on guys. And Felix just never stops. It's a good little mix there, and it's been giving some teams some trouble at times."
The 6-foot-6 Zohorna skates like a player half a foot shorter than he is, and the 5-foot-9 Robert plays a physical game like a player half a foot taller, like when he throws hits like these along the boards with a bang loud enough to be picked up on the broadcast:
Zohorna doesn't have to step in there to defend Robert after he throws a hit like that, because nobody remembered to tell Robert that he's undersized. He can handle himself.
The Crunch tied the game in the third period, the only goal Max Lagace would allow in regulation, when Cam Lee got caught as the only man back on an odd-man rush:
When a team allows so few shots like Wilkes-Barre did in this game, it can sometimes present a challenge to the team's goaltender when he does actually have to make a save, because he's been inactive for much of the game. Forrest thought that Lagace handled the challenge well, though.
"I thought he did a great job," Forrest said. "Even though overtime and into the shootout, he played a real strong game for us. ... He knows how to handle himself and keep himself in the game. Whether there's three shots in the first or 23, I think he knows how to go about his business back there."
Wilkes-Barre was impressive in the scoreless overtime period. Lizotte got called for boarding in the middle of the extra frame:
"It's not a good feeling," Lizotte said of being in the box in overtime. "It's never a good feeling in the box, especially being a killer myself. But it was awesome to see that they were locked down, they didn't give them anything."
Lagace and the penalty killers put on a strong performance in the ensuing kill, and the Penguins emerged unscathed. They outshot the Crunch 6-4 in the scoreless overtime period to force a shootout for the first time all season.
With this being the first shootout situation of the season, and so many new faces on the team, I asked Forrest after the game how he decided on his three shooters for the contest.
"We've got a little bit of background," Forrest said. "(Play-by-play broadcaster) Nick Hart does a nice job of getting us some statistics of prior leagues if they've played any pro. Also, in practice we do some shootouts and pay attention to see who might be a good option. We picked who we thought would pull it in."
Zohorna was up first, and sure enough, Hart noted on the broadcast that Zohorna went 1-for-3 in shootouts in the Czech league. Zohorna scored with this nifty backhand shot:
The Crunch tied things up in the shootout with Taylor Raddysh's goal. Cam Lee was up next for Wilkes-Barre, and he beat Syracuse's goaltender but hit the post. Syracuse's Otto Somppi scored on the next attempt to take the lead in the shootout. Freddy Gaudreau missed just wide on his attempt, giving the Crunch the win.
"We had a goal, a post, and Freddy just missed there," Forrest said. "They were good looks. Next time, I think we'll bury those."
Wilkes-Barre's three-game win streak comes to an end with the loss.
"We've got to find our consistency again," Lizotte said. "What made us successful for those three in a row was a hard 60. Today we just didn't have that. I think tomorrow at practice we'll get back to what got us success, and hopefully start another one."
MORE FROM THE GAME
• New boss Brian Burke was in town for the game. He took a picture with the coaching staff after the game, and they all untied their ties like Burke always does. So good:
Feeling good about our prospects in Wilkes-Barre and both the skill and style of our coaching staff there. pic.twitter.com/SO7p4jrPzb
— Brian Burke (@Burkie2020) March 4, 2021
THE ESSENTIALS
THE THREE STARS
As selected at Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza:
1. Spencer Martin, Crunch
2. Cole Schwindt, Crunch
3. Jon Lizotte, Penguins
THE INJURIES
• Defenseman Zach Trotman underwent right knee surgery Jan. 14 to repair a torn meniscus and is off of Pittsburgh's injured reserve and officially on Wilkes-Barre's roster. He's day-to-day.
• Defenseman Jesper Lindgren left the first preseason game after sliding into the boards and underwent successful shoulder surgery this week. He's out indefinitely for the rest of the season.
• Forward Justin Almeida was injured in practice and is week-to-week with a lower-body injury.
• Forward Luke Stevens is day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
THE LINEUPS
Forrest’s lines and pairings:
Tim Schaller-Freddy Gaudreau-Nick Schilkey
Felix Robert-Radim Zohorna-Jan Drozg
Sam Miletic-Jordy Bellerive-Kyle Olson
Jonathan Gruden-Chase Berger-Zach Nastasiuk
Jon Lizotte-Billy Sweezey
Cam Lee-Dylan MacPherson
Kevin Czuczman-Will Reilly
And for Benoit Groulx's Crunch:
Scott Wilson-Ryan Lohin-Taylor Raddysh
Boris Katchouk-Otto Somppi-Serron Noel
Gabe Fortier-Cole Schwindt-Peter Abbandonato
Jimmy Huntington-Nikita Pavlychev-Declan McDonnell
Devante Stephens-Ben Thomas
John Ludvig-Alex Green
Sean Day-Brady Keeper
THE SCHEDULE
The Penguins will play the Devils on the road on Saturday evening.
THE CONTENT
Visit our team page for everything.