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Magistrate rules in favor of Wilkes-Barre Area School District in taxpayer complaint

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Local Roundup: Two Wyoming Valley West pitchers combine for no-hitter

<p>After 17 years, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins&#8217; postseason streak has finally been broken.</p><p>For the first time since the 2001-02 season, the Penguins will not be headed to the AHL playoffs. A roster made thin by injuries, call-ups and multiple years of traded draft picks by parent club Pittsburgh ultimately caught up with the team, culminating in Friday&#8217;s crushing 8-1 loss at Utica.</p><p>Everything fell apart in the second period as the Penguins allowed six goals and took nine penalties &#8212; five of them for fighting. Jarrett Burton scored the lone goal in the defeat.</p><p>Had the Penguins beaten the Comets, it would have kept them alive in the race for at least another day, as Providence also lost on Friday, falling 4-3 to Lehigh Valley. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton trails the Bruins by five points but can only earn four at most when they close out their year at home this weekend against Bridgeport on Saturday and Binghamton on Sunday.</p><p>The Penguins would have had to win all three games in three straight games over the weekend while also needing Providence to lose all three of their games in regulation. Even one point for the Bruins by reaching overtime would have been enough to eliminate Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.</p><p>The path was made tougher during the week when starting goalie Tristan Jarry was recalled to Pittsburgh to serve as the No. 3 goalie for the NHL playoff run.</p><p>That left John Muse as the starter for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton with Matt O&#8217;Connor, recently added to the roster on a tryout deal, serving as the backup.</p><p>Muse would end up surrendering the first goal when Jonah Gadjovich got off a backhander in the slot with less than three minutes off the clock. Utica outshot the Penguins 14-8 in the first period and pounced even earlier in the second on a Boucher wrist shot just 1:38 into the frame to make it 2-0.</p><p>Tom Pyatt scored on the power play just a few minutes later, and Boucher picked up his second of the game at the 10:58 mark to make it 4-0.</p><p>Burton finally got the Penguins on the board with a quick answer, but there would be no momentum swing.</p><p>Wilkes-Barre/Scranton committed two penalties 12 seconds apart and Boucher quickly picked up his third goal on the two-man-advantage to restore the four-goal lead.</p><p>As the season slipped away, the frustration spilled out for the Penguins, as Jimmy Hayes, Ben Sexton, Burton, Joseph Cramarossa and Matt Abt all picked up fighting majors in the second period.</p><p>Cramarossa also got a cross checking call against him late in the second, and Dylan Blujus scored on the ensuing power play for a 6-1 lead. Kole Lind added the extra point after the touchdown before the intermission.</p><p>Muse finished with 24 saves on 31 shots and was replaced by O&#8217;Connor for the third. Utica&#8217;s Jamie Sifers added to the misery with a shorthanded goal in the third period.</p><style>
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WBS Penguins’ playoff streak ends after lopsided loss in Utica