Goaltender Filip Lindberg is coming off of an outstanding month of October.
Lindberg, 22, posted a 4-0 record, a 1.71 goals-against average and a .942 save percentage through the first four starts of his professional career this season with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, and was named the AHL's top goaltender for all of October.
Lindberg got his first start of the month of November on Friday, and it didn't last very long. He was pulled shortly into the second period after allowing four goals on 20 shots, and was credited with the loss in a 6-2 loss to the Providence Bruins.
"It had nothing to do with Lindy," head coach J.D. Forrest said about the decision to switch goaltenders. "It's more about having respect for Lindy than anything else. Maybe we get a little bit of a different feel, wake the guys up somewhat and just commit more to the defensive side of things, which usually leads to good offense. I felt like we hung him out there and it was time to take him off just for his own sake, to kind of snap our team out of it."
Of the four goals Lindberg allowed, it's hard to fault him for any, really. The first goal went in off of the skates of one of his own defensemen, Cam Lee. The next three were all power play goals by the Bruins, an uncharacteristic thing to see given that Wilkes-Barre's penalty kill has been one of its bigger strengths this season.
"Those shots from the point with tips, we just weren't in the lanes," Forrest said. "We didn't prevent them from taking the shots they wanted up top. Those are dangerous shots from the midpoint and they've got guys at the net-front tipping. It's no fault to to Lindy. The other one was an entry that we just lost coverage on, should have been an easy two-on-two and we just kind of drifted away, and they get a back-door play. I thought we left our goalie out to dry. He's been so solid for us all year, and when you've got guys at the back door by themselves, guys at the net, free lanes to shoot from up top, tips right in front of him, that's tough on him."
Louis Domingue finished the game for the Penguins, stopping 15 of 16 shots faced.
Wilkes-Barre was outshot 16-4 in the first period, and had a better showing in the second period, outshooting the Bruins 13-7. They had a lengthy five-on-three and another power play opportunity that failed to produce any goals, but gave the Penguins some momentum.
"It'd be really disappointing if there was no response," Forrest said. "But I think we still had more to give there, it was an alright response. We did play much better, but it's tough to get behind the eight ball like that and try to battle back."
Nathan Legare finally got the Penguins on the scoresheet late in the second period when Jordy Bellerive's backhand attempt popped high into the air and over to Legare on the other side of the net. Legare was able to put it in before Bruins goaltender Jon Gillies recovered:
Kyle Olson got his first goal of the year early in the third period, off of a great setup from Jonathan Gruden:
The fourth line of Olson, Gruden and Felix Robert has been together for several games now, and has looked like a solid, physical, energy line.
"That line has been really strong, consistent," Forrest said. "They have an identity and they play to it. (Gruden) had a great pickup off the wall on that rim, and then he wins basically a one-on-two battle down low, finds (Olson) coming down the pipe and it was a nice finish, great setup. Those are things we're looking for from our guys up and down the lineup and we need it consistently. I would say that's one line that's brought that kind of edge and work every single night, plays to their strengths."
A Bruins goal midway through the third period made it a three-goal game once again. The Penguins pulled Domingue for the extra attacker early, with over four minutes remaining in the game, and had a six-on-four advantage after a Bruins hooking penalty. They had extended offensive zone time and some good scoring chances on the six-on-four and then six-on-five, but were unable to convert. A Bruins empty-net goal with 1:28 remaining capped off the loss.
The Penguins have a quick turnaround before their next game, traveling to Hartford after the game ended for Saturday's game against the Wolf Pack.
"All you can do is hit the bus, get to Harford," Forrest said. "You try to respond the next day with a much better start and a much better 60. And I've got a feeling with this team that that's going to be the case tomorrow. But it's not just going to happen for us, it starts with the work and then goes from there."
MORE FROM THE GAME
• Wilkes-Barre is now 5-3-0-1, ranking fourth in the eight-team Atlantic Division in terms of points percentage.
• Wilkes-Barre typically carries one captain (Taylor Fedun) and three alternates (Matt Bartkowski, Michael Chaput, Bellerive). When one of the alternates has been unavailable, P.O Joseph has been the next guy to get an 'A' this season. With both Fedun and Joseph up in Pittsburgh, the fourth alternate captain in this game was Kasper Bjorkqvist.
• Anthony Angello remains day-to-day with a lower-body injury, a status he's had since the start of the season. Forrest gave me a little more insight on his status after Thursday's practice.
"It's probably another week at least," Forrest said. "He's progressing in a positive way. Right on schedule, if not just a tad ahead of it. You know, we weren't really sure what we were really dealing with at the very beginning, and we kind of learned more as we went. So that's why the timeline kept getting pushed back, but we're hoping to have him back soon, as soon as he gets healthy enough to get out there."
• Radim Zohorna returned from an upper-body injury and Filip Hallander returned from a non-COVID illness. Both only missed one game. Sam Houde and Matt Alfaro sat at forward as a result.
• Defenseman Chris Ortiz made his AHL debut. The Penguins signed Ortiz out of the QMJHL to a two-year AHL contract over the summer, and he attended the Penguins' development camp and training camp. He started the year in Wheeling, where he scored one goal in four games, and earned a recall to Wilkes-Barre after Fedun was recalled from Wilkes-Barre to Pittsburgh. He debuted on the left side of the third pairing alongside Will Reilly, and recorded no shots, no points, and a even plus/minus in the loss.
"I liked what he showed," Forrest said of Ortiz. "He's got some real poise with the puck. He's slick, he's not afraid to to get into the hard areas of the ice to defend. You know, there's clearly some mistakes there, but it's his first regular-season game with us. I thought he was solid. There's some small areas of the game that he can improve on like everybody else. But for his first game, it was good to see him out there."
• Back in the NHL preseason, Mike Sullivan had heavy praise for Valtteri Puustinen's offensive abilities and pure skill in that area, but said that his defensive game needed some work. Forrest spoke on the progress in Puustinen's defensive game this week.
"He might have to do it a different way, just by using his brain and being positionally sound, and just understanding the value that it brings the whole team," Forrest said. "I think he gets that. He certainly is a competitive player, and I know he wants to do the right things out there. I've seen it improve already. Everything, from how he is on faceoffs in the D-zone faceoff, which maybe before didn't mean a whole lot to him and now he understands that it means a lot for this team, how we are on our D-zone faceoffs, He's been improving daily here, and we'll just try to keep that going."
• Forrest also offered a good assessment of Jan Drozg, who has been inconsistent and streaky at times during his time in the organization. He's a skilled player offensively, but has gone through some rough stretches, like when he finished last season with 14 games without a single point. He had a strong preseason for WBS, including one game with two goals on 11 shots. He's spent some time earlier this season as a healthy scratch, and is currently scoreless through four games this season.
"We ask him to use his speed, which is his main asset," Forrest said. "He doesn't have to try to stickhandle through guys when he can put the puck into a spot and just go get it before anyone else can. He understands that, it's just the consistency in which he does it. Sometimes it's fun to try to beat somebody one-on-one, it doesn't mean it's the right thing to do. He knows that. He has games where he plays to his strengths, and those are the games usually where he ends up with a lot of shots, scoring chances. He helps us on the forecheck through the neutral zone, all areas of the ice because his speed is really dangerous and he's got a shot that he could finish if he gets opportunities. It's when he overcomplicate things, he plays a game that is suited to his opponent's strengths, that kind of bog them down. And then you don't see the speed and he doesn't have the opportunities that he has on other nights. So for him, it's playing with that mindset consistently."
• Per Legare, the best costume at the team's Halloween party was equipment manager Jared Mycyk.
"He was one of the soldiers in Toy Story, and he was all green," Legare said. "He painted everything green, his face, his boots. It was pretty funny to see him like that."
THE ESSENTIALS
• Boxscore
• Scoreboard
• Standings
• Statistics
THE THREE STARS
As selected at Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza:
1. Zach Senyshyn, Bruins
2. John Moore, Bruins
3. Samuel Asselin, Bruins
THE HIGHLIGHTS
THE INJURIES
• Forward Anthony Angello is day-to-day with a lower-body injury, and has been since the start of the season. He's out likely another week at least.
• Forward Jamie Devane is out "longer-term" with a lower-body injury. It's not clear how he was injured.
THE LINEUPS
Forrest's lines and pairings:
Kasper Bjorkqvist - Radim Zohorna - Valtteri Puustinen
Sam Poulin - Michael Chaput - Jan Drozg
Filip Hallander - Jordy Bellerive - Nathan Legare
Felix Robert - Jonathan Gruden - Kyle Olson
Matt Bartkowski - Cam Lee
Niclas Almari - Mitch Reinke
Chris Ortiz - Will Reilly
And for Ryan Mougenel's Bruins:
Jesper Froden - Steven Fogarty - Oskar Steen
Jakub Lauko - Cameron Hughes - Chris Wagner
Matt Filipe - Samuel Asselin - Zach Senyshyn
Eduards Tralmaks - Joona Koppanen - Curtis Hall
Jack Ahcan - John Moore
Nick Wolff - Urho Vaakanainen
Ness Ness - Tyler Lewington
THE SCHEDULE
The Penguins will play the Wolf Pack in Hartford on Saturday at 7 p.m.
THE CONTENT
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