web1_Luzerne_County-logo-use-this-one.jpg

Luzerne County loses one finalist for top manager job

web1_circusEditorial.jpg

Our Opinion: Make room for dissent at Mohegan Sun Arena

<p>It&#8217;s been 15 years since Tom Kostopoulos faced the Hershey Bears in the postseason.</p><p>That was in 2001 - his second season with the Penguins, and the road games were played in the old Hersheypark Arena, before the Giant Center opened.</p><p>A lot has changed for both the Penguins and the Bears in the last 15 years, but one constant remains as the two teams prepare for their Atlantic Division Finals series on Wednesday.</p><p>The rivalry.</p><p>&#8220;The more you play someone the more it builds,&#8221; Kostopoulos said. &#8220;It&#8217;s fun for us and the fans.&#8221;</p><p>And it&#8217;s something the Penguins have been preparing for throughout the regular season, long before the second round playoff matchup became a reality.</p><p>In 12 regular season contests, the Penguins and Bears each won six. Three of the last four meetings were decided by one goal and the close games were almost by design.</p><p>&#8220;We&#8217;ve been focusing on trying to play them as an opponent that we&#8217;re going to see in playoffs,&#8221; Steve Oleksy said. &#8220;That&#8217;s why most of our games throughout the season had a playoff feel to them. You can expect more of what went on throughout the regular season.&#8221;</p><p>The Hershey series will mark the second time this postseason that the Penguins have faced an higher-seeded opponent. Against Providence the Penguins embraced the &#8220;underdog&#8221; mentality and went on to sweep the Bruins, but now that&#8217;s changed a bit.</p><p>Kostopoulos said the underdog mentality may exist slightly against a Hershey team that won the Atlantic Division and finished second in the AHL with 259 goals.</p><p>&#8220;We have a lot of respect for them and they certainly have the offensive guys,&#8221; he said. &#8220;They&#8217;re a good mix of skill, grit and goaltending.&#8221;</p><p>But Oleksy feels the &#8220;underdog&#8221; and &#8220;favorite&#8221; labels carry more importance outside of the locker room. For the Penguins, they&#8217;re not focused on labels.</p><p>&#8220;It doesn&#8217;t really matter who we play. This time of year you treat and respect every opponent the same, regardless of what team it is,&#8221; Oleksy said. &#8220;I&#8217;m just focused on what we have to do and not so much who we&#8217;re playing or where.&#8221;</p><p>NOTES</p><p>- Head coach Clark Donatelli said the Penguins began preparing for a matchup against Hershey on Sunday, before the Bears eliminated Portland in Game 5 later that evening. The decision was made knowing if the Bears won the Penguins would have only two days to get ready. If Portland won the series, the Penguins would have until Friday before Game 1 so they would&#8217;ve adjusted accordingly, Donatelli said.</p><p>- Donatelli said he hasn&#8217;t decided if Casey DeSmith or Tristan Jarry would start in goal for Game 1. DeSmith played all three games of the Providence series, posting a 1.94 goals against average and a .925 save percentage.</p><p>- When the Penguins and Bears begin their series on Wednesday, it will mark the second time that the parent clubs of both teams (Pittsburgh and Washington) faced each other in the playoffs at the same time. The last time it occurred was 2009, when Pittsburgh beat Washington four games to three, and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton lost to Hershey in seven games.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><strong>Atlantic Division Finals schedule</strong></p><p><strong>Game 1:</strong> Wednesday, Penguins at Hershey, 7 p.m.</p><p><strong>Game 2:</strong> Friday, Penguins at Hershey, 7 p.m.</p><p><strong>Game 3:</strong> Saturday, Hershey at Penguins, 7:05 p.m.</p><p><strong>Game 4:</strong> May 9, Hershey at Penguins, 7:05 p.m.</p><p><strong>*Game 5:</strong> May 11, Penguins at Hershey, 7 p.m.</p><p><strong>*Game 6:</strong> May 13, Hershey at Penguins, 7:05 p.m.</p><p><strong>*Game 7:</strong> May 15, Penguins at Hershey, 5 p.m.</p><p>*if necessary</p><style>
.neFileBlock {
	margin-bottom: 20px;
}
.neFileBlock p {
	margin: 0px 0px 0px 0px;
}
.neFileBlock .neFile {
	border-bottom: 1px dotted #aaa;
	padding-bottom: 5px;
	padding-top: 10px;
}
.neFileBlock .neCaption {
	font-size: 85%;
}
</style>
<div class='neFileBlock'>
<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/web1_WBS-Penguins.jpg">
<div class="neCaption"></div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/web1_WBS-Penguins.jpg</photo0><caption0></caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/web1_Oleksy.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Penguins defenseman Steve Oleksy will be facing his former team, the Hershey Bears, for the first time in the postseason. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/web1_Oleksy.jpg</photo1><caption1>Penguins defenseman Steve Oleksy will be facing his former team, the Hershey Bears, for the first time in the postseason. </caption1><photoCredit1>Fred Adams|for Times Leader </photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Tom Venesky</p><p>tvenesky@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Tom Venesky at 570-991-6395 or on Twitter @TLTomVenesky</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins ready to renew rivalry against Hershey Bears