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Orthopedic lecture attracts large gathering

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College Corner: WVC track alums making a postseason push

The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and Hershey Bears each won 43 games during the regular season. They split their season series 6-6 and they were each 4-2 in their home rink.So what does it take to break such a stalemate when the two teams face each other in the postseason?Grit.&#8220;We showed a willingness against Providence to play a grinding game,&#8221; said Dustin Jeffrey, who is one of two Penguins to ever face Hershey in the postseason (Tom Kostopoulos is the other). &#8220;Against a team like Hershey you have to test their will to play in games like that. That&#8217;s going to be the key to the series &#8212; who&#8217;s willing to grind it out longer.&#8221;Winger Kael Mouillierat agreed, adding that against Providence the Penguins did a good job of playing physical against the Bruins&#8217; skilled forwards. Playing with grit against the Bears may hamper some of their top scorers as well.But in order for physical play to be effective, Mouillierat said, everyone has to buy into the concept.&#8220;Grit is always big, especially with two teams that don&#8217;t like each other,&#8221; Mouillierat said. &#8220;But the biggest difference in the playoffs is it&#8217;s not just the third- and fourth-line guys doing it. It&#8217;s everyone, and that makes a big difference in a long series.&#8221;Penguins coach Clark Donatelli said there are going to be other factors as well if the Penguins are to eliminate the Bears. Hershey is very good off the rush, he said, and their power play is deadly.&#8220;Manage the puck and stay out of the box. Special teams will be a big thing,&#8221; Donatelli said. &#8220;We don&#8217;t want to beat ourselves.&#8221;NOTES&#8226; Hershey&#8217;s top five scorers in the regular season - Chris Bourque, Riley Barber, Travis Boyd, Nathan Walker and Sean Collins, each were held to one goal in five games in their first round series against Portland. The Penguins know they can heat up at any time, and Jeffrey said the key is to not feed into the Hershey offensive attack. He cited Bourque as an example.&#8220;What makes Chris Bourque really good is his ability to turn pucks the other way and create odd-man rushes and use his speed,&#8221; Jeffrey said. &#8220;We have to make sure we&#8217;re not letting him get the wheels going.&#8221;SERIES BREAKDOWNFORWARDSHershey: The Bears scored 259 goals in the regular season, second only to Toronto&#8217;s 294. Veteran and AHL Most Valuable Player Chris Bourque leads the way with 30 goals and 80 points that led the AHL, the Bears have plenty of offensive depth from rookies Riley Barber (26-29-55) and Travis Boyd (21-32-53). Not to be outdone, fellow rookie Jakub Vrana leads Hershey in postseason scoring with two goals and five points. Carter Camper, Garrett Mitchell and Sean Collins are veterans who can alos put the puck in the net, and former Penguin Zach Sill always brings grit and he registered eight points in 11 games against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton this season.Penguins: The Penguins offense received an enormous boost when prospect Daniel Sprong arrived from juniors and scored three goals in three games against Providence. Fellow rookie Jake Guentzel is tied at the top of the AHL playoff scoring race with seven points, and he also has three goals. The familiar faces are also getting it done as captain Tom Kostopoulos has a goal and two assists while Carter Rowney has five points. Dustin Jeffrey led the team in scoring during the regular season and in 11 games against the Bears he has six goals and 14 points. Rookie Dominik Simon has a goal and could heat up, while veteran Tom Sestito has two assists and has been a vocal leader on and off the ice.Advantage: Tie. If it wasn&#8217;t for the addition of Sprong, the Bears would edge the Penguins.DEFENSEMENHershey: In the first round the Bears went with three rookies in their top six. Of the group, Tyler Lewington had three points and plays an agitating style. Rookie Madison Bowey led the team&#8217;s defensemen in scoring in the regular season with 29 points, followed by Aaron Ness with 27. Erik Burgdoerfer, Ryan Stanton, Lewington and Bowey all bring a physical side, which is crucial in the postseason.Penguins: With the exception of Tim Erixon, scoring from the blueline fizzled in the Providence series. Erixon had two goals and four points in three games, but no other blueliner scored a goal or registered more than a point. Look for Will O&#8217;Neill to get back on track to the style of play that produced 50 points in the regular season, while Steve Oleksy can chip in as well to compliment his physical play. Ryan Parent, Barry Goers and Niclas Andersen are as steady as they come in their own zone.Advantage: Penguins. If Erixon keeps it going and O&#8217;Neill picks it up offensively, the Penguins have the perfect blend of points and strong defensive play from their blueliners.GOALTENDINGHershey: Dan Ellis opened the postseason as the starter and was hit hard, giving up six goals in a 6-4 loss. Fellow veteran Justin Peters took over after that and was lights out. He won three of the next four games while producing a minuscule .85 goals against average and a .966 save percentage. But in the regular season, Peters was mediocre against the Penguins &#8212; 3.45 and .884 in seven games.Penguins: Head coach Clark Donatelli wasn&#8217;t saying if Tristan Jarry or Casey DeSmith would start in net, but the numbers clearly favor the latter. DeSmith saw his first AHL action in Hershey on Dec. 26 and promptly killed off a Bears power play. He took over the starting job when Jarry went up to Pittsburgh and was stellar to end the regular season and in the Providence series. In limited action against Hershey, DeSmith has a 2.31 GAA and a .902 save percentage. Jarry&#8217;s numbers are 3.57 and .863, although he did win three of five starts against the Bears.Advantage: Penguins. If Donatelli keeps rolling with DeSmith, the rookie will continue to build the confidence he created after winning three overtime games against the Bruins.PIVOTAL PLAYERHershey: Zach Sill. Throughout the regular season Sill has haunted his former team, and his style is custom-built for physical playoff hockey. Arguably one of the toughest players on the ice, Sill can create space for himself and teammates.Penguins: Daniel Sprong has proven he can thrive in the AHL postseason, and his dangerous shot would go along way toward silencing a boisterous crowd in Hershey and swinging the momentum.PREDICTIONPenguins in seven. Sprong is lighting the lamp, Kostopoulos, Rowney and Jeffrey and a formidable veteran trio, Simon still hasn&#8217;t hit his ceiling, Sestito is a physical leader and Oleksy has motivation against his former team. If DeSmith maintains his steady play against the Hershey offense, all of the elements are there for the Penguins to advance.<style>
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<div class="neCaption">Tom Kostopoulos fights Hershey defenseman Tyler Lewington on April 10. The Penguins-Bears rivalry is sure to get heated as the two teams face off in the postseason. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/web1_TK-Bears.jpg</photo0><caption0>Tom Kostopoulos fights Hershey defenseman Tyler Lewington on April 10. The Penguins-Bears rivalry is sure to get heated as the two teams face off in the postseason. </caption0><photoCredit0>Fred Adams file photo | For Times Leader </photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta>By Tom Veneskytvenesky@www.timesleader.com</bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta>VIDEOWondering how the Penguins&#8217; playoff beards are coming along? To find out who the players think has the best playoff beard, and who is lacking, visit the online version of this story at www.timesleader.com.</factboxMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><videoMeta><table class="mceItemTable" style="border:none;width:98%;"><tbody><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">VideoID:</td><td id="videoid" style="width:50em;font-size:90%;">F-UGNAmLGx0 </td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">VideoType:</td><td id="videotype" style="font-size:90%;">YOUTUBE</td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">URL:</td><td id="url" style="font-size:90%;">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-UGNAmLGx0 </td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Embed String:</td><td id="videoembedstring" style="font-size:90%;"> </td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Caption:</td><td id="videocaption" style="font-size:90%;"> Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins talk playoff beards.</td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Credit:</td><td id="videocredit" style="font-size:90%;"> Tom Venesky | Times Leader</td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Position:</td><td id="videoposition" style="font-size:90%;"> </td></tr></tbody></table>(use the &#8220;for files&#8230;&#8221; link above to associate attached files with this source)</videoMeta></div>

Penguins looking to punch out Bears as playoff series opens in Hershey