PENGUINS TAKE CONTROL OF SERIES WITH 5-1 WIN ON SUNDAY

POST-GAME AUDIO TODD RICHARDS | JOHN CURRY

WILKES-BARRE, PA – Three games to none leads are not something the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins are familiar with.  You’d have to go all the way back to the 2001 Western Conference Finals to find the last time they held such and advantage in a series.

It just so happens the opponent that time around was none other than the Hershey Bears.

Seven years later, and the Penguins once agian find themselves with a 3-0 series lead, following a 5-1 thumping of the Bears on Sunday evening at the Wachovia Arena at Casey Plaza.  The Penguins can close out their opening round series this coming Wednesday at the Giant Center.

Sunday night saw the Penguins jump out to a quick 3-0 lead in the game, and they never looked back.

“I think what benefited us tonight was we got on the power play early and we were able to score goals,” said head coach Todd Richards.  “It’s great in this building when you get the crowd into it, because it creates a lot of energy.  And I know it’s tough on opposing teams when they come in here.

“The identity of our team is how well we defend, and when we get up 3-0 in a game, that’s a big mountain for teams to climb.”

The Penguins entered Game Three sporting a big goose-egg on the power play, having gone zero for eight during the first two contests.  But they used the first three Hershey infractions to their advantage to take the commanding lead.

Steve Pinizzotto gave the Pens their first crack at the power play with a hooking penalty 41 seconds into the game.  Just over a minute later, Alain Nasreddine picked up a deflected puck in the Hershey zone and slipped a shot between Daren Machesney’s pads from an odd angle for this first tally of the postseason.

Francois Bouchard and Tyler Sloan were then sent off, giving Wilkes-Barre/Scranton a five-on-three power play for a span of 18 seconds.  And 15 ticks into the two-man advantage was when Mark Ardelan found pay dirt with a shot from the left side of the ice.

Tim Brent followed suite, dinging a shot off both posts with a half minute left on Sloan’s infraction, bringing Machesney’s night to a premature end.

Andrew Gordon, who notched both of the Bears’ goals on Saturday night, once again got his team on the board, punching in a rebound while Hershey skated with a two-man advantage midway through the opening frame.

But that was to be the only blemish on John Curry’s stat sheet, as the rookie netminder would go on to turn aside 23 shots to keep his playoff record perfect.

“Tonight I felt really good.  [Saturday] night I was kicking out rebounds, I didn’t feel my best, it was kind of a battle.  I had my feet under me tonight and felt confident,” he said.  “But it’s pretty easy to feel like that when you’re playing with a lead, and defensemen are clearing the puck out of our zone.”

Tim Wallace snatched his first of the playoffs by following up a Dave Gove shot that hit Frederic Cassivi’s left pad and stopped dead on the doorstep, allowing an easy tap in at 1:30 of the second period.

And by the time Nathan Smith closed out the scoring at 14:29 of the third, the night’s result had long been decided.

So for just the third time in team history, the Penguins have taken a 3-0 lead in a playoff series.  But Richards knows that Wednesday night’s affair will be anything but easy.

“The fourth game is always the toughest.  They’re backed into a corner right now, and they’re fighting for their lives,” he said.  “We were in that position last year versus this same team.  The guys that were here last year will know what they’re thinking about.  I think if we go down and are able to play our game, go in with some energy and get in on the forecheck, and if we’re able to get that first goal, hopefully we’re able to create some doubt in their minds.”

NOTES:  The Penguins took 3-0 leads in both the 2001 Western Conference Semifinals against the Philadelphia Phantoms and the 2001 Western Conference Finals against the Bears.  They won the first round, four games to two, and swept Hershey in the conference finals…Only two teams have come back from 3-0 deficits to win playoff series in AHL history (1960 AHL Semifinals – Rochester over Cleveland; 1989 Southern Division Finals – Adirondack over Hershey)…Dennis Bonvie appeared in his 99th career AHL playoff contest on Sunday, and his 100th overall.  He suited up for one postseason contest as a member of the Boston Bruins in 2002…The Penguins made two changes to their lineup on Sunday, sitting Jonathan Filewich and Jean-Michel Daoust and inserting Mark Letestu and Paul Bissonnette.