The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (37-18-7-1) continue their march towards the AHL Calder Cup playoffs, chasing the top spot in the Atlantic Division and pursuing a 40-win season. They got closer to achieving those goals after defeating the Charlotte Checkers 5-3 on Saturday.

In his professional debut, 2024 second-round pick Harrison Brunicke had an assist and a shot on a goal while finishing the afternoon minus-1. The rookie set up Vasily Ponomarev's game-winner at 14:43 of the third period, a power-play tally that broke a 2-2 tie. 

Despite picking up two helpers, Tristan Broz was not one of the game's three stars, as Valtteri Puustinen took top honors, scoring a goal at 12:10 of the second to give the visiting Penguins a 2-0 lead. 

WBS Penguins Can Snap Organization Playoff Winless StreakThe Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins punched their ticket to the Calder Cup playoffs on Wednesday with a

Unfortunately, that lead didn't make it to intermission as the Checkers got lamplighters at 14:57 and 16:15 to tie things up after 40 minutes.

Once Ponomarev restored the Penguins' lead, Matt Nieto and Joona Koppanen scored unassisted goals into the empty net at 17:43 and 18:08 to extend the visitor's lead to 5-2. Then, with 26 seconds left, Charlotte scored to make it a 5-3 final. 

Between the pipes, Filip Larsson made 25 saves on 28 shots (.893 SV%) to improve to 12-8-3 this season. Cooper Black was on the hook for the loss at the other end, stopping 18 of the 21 shots he faced. 

On special teams, WBS scored one power-play goal (Ponomarev) while going perfect on the penalty kill, 3-for-3. Neither team found the back of the net in the first period, with Charlotte finishing with more shots, 28-23.

Interestingly, Saturday's contest was not a day for players racking up assists. Three of the eight goals were unassisted, and only one tally (Ponomarev) had a secondary assist. 

The Penguins have nine games left and have already clinched a spot in the Calder Cup playoffs. Their next game is Sunday, a rematch with the Checkers. WBS is looking for its 38th win of the year and is chasing its first 40-win season since 2017-18.

Additionally, they are just three points behind the Hershey Bears for the top spot in the Atlantic Division, a crown they haven't won since 2016-17.

Pittsburgh Penguins Schedule: Remaining Games & Statistical NotesThe Pittsburgh Penguins are winding down their 2024-25 season and on pace to miss the Stanley Cup playoffs for the third consecutive season, a first in Sidney Crosby's 20-year career. However, there is plenty to play for in the final weeks of the regular season. 

March Penguins Prospects Update: GoaltendersThere are some exciting developments down on the farm for 

Nashville Predators forward Colton Sissons left during the first period of Saturday's game against the Vegas Golden Knights at Bridgestone Arena with what appeared to be a lower-body injury.

After taking a hit and falling awkwardly to the ice behind the Vegas net, Sissons remained down on the ice for several minutes and appeared to be in significant pain while being tended to by Predators head athletic trained Kevin Morley.

Sissons was eventually helped to his feet and off the ice by teammates Steven Stamkos and Michael Bunting, and he was not putting any weight on his left leg as he was helped back to the Nashville locker room. The Predators have yet to provide an official update on his injury status.

This is a developing story.

The Nashville Predators (27-37-8, 62 points) host the Vegas Golden Knights (44-20-8, 96 points) Saturday at Bridgestone Arena. 

The Predators were officially eliminated from playoff contention with Thursday's loss to the St. Louis Blues, while Vegas is currently in first place in the Pacific Division.

Justus Annunen will get the start in goal for Nashville, while Adin Hill will start for Vegas for the second night in a row. Ilya Samsonov took warmups with the Golden Knights, but it is Hill who will make the start despite also starting Friday's game against the Chicago Blackhawks. Samsonov remains on the bench to back up Hill against the Predators.

How the Predators Lined Up vs. Vegas 

Forsberg-O'Reilly-Evangelista
Bunting-Stamkos-Marchessault
L'Heureux-Svechkov-Sissons
Smith-McCarron-Bellows

Skjei-Blankenburg
Del Gaizo-Barron
Englund-Stastney

Annunen
Saros

Extra: Vrana, Oesterle
IR: Josi, Lauzon, Wilsby

Predators

First Period (NSH 0, VGK 0)

The Ottawa Senators are about to get extremely well acquainted with the 2024-25 Columbus Blue Jackets. The Senators have just 11 games left in their regular season, and three of them – more than a quarter – will be against the Blue Jackets, starting Saturday night at Canadian Tire Centre (7 pm).

That means six points are up for grabs and that's exactly Ottawa's lead on Columbus right now. A Sens win on Saturday would make it eight and almost impossible for the Jackets to catch them. A loss would drop the lead to four, which suddenly isn't all that imposing. So, that's the last thing the Sens want to see.

That, and donkey hats.

YOUR FIRST STAR AND DONKEY OF THE GAME!✨
BOOOOOONNNEEEEEE!!!! 🫏 pic.twitter.com/g6U8phXV9y

— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) March 29, 2025

After each victory, the Blue Jackets decided this season to honour their player of the game with a donkey hat in honour of the late Johnny Gaudreau, who would jokingly call his teammates "donkeys' when the friendly chirps broke out. 

Sens headlines:
One On One: GM Steve Staios' Additions Help To Reset The Ottawa Senators
UND Fires Brad Berry, Unofficial Member of Ottawa's Player Development Team
Former Ottawa Senator Jakob Chychrun Gets Massive Deal In Washington

Columbus enters play on Saturday as the WC2 holder, tied with the Montreal Canadiens and the New York Rangers, but they've played two fewer games than the Rangers and one less than the Habs. The New York Islanders lost 5-3 to Tampa Bay on Saturday to stay a point back.

The Senators will have the advantage of rest for this one. While they beat the Detroit Red Wings 4-3 two nights ago, the Blue Jackets scored a wild, emotional 7-6 shootout victory over the Vancouver Canucks at home on Friday. Columbus had trailed in the game, 3-0, so it's hard to predict if they'll be gassed on Saturday or on top of the world. 

Jackets head coach Dean Evason isn't buying into the fatigue factor.

“It’s just hockey,” Evason told the Columbus media after Friday's game. “That’s all it is. We’re not skating (Saturday), so you can sleep in and get a nice meal in a wonderful hotel. You fly a charter and have a nap, you wake up, puck drops, and you play hockey. It’s not that hard.”

Ottawa Senators winger Drake Batherson, who has nine points in his past eight games, says the Sens' locker room is buzzing about the opportunity that lies before them.

"Yeah, it's such a tight race and for those teams, it feels like they're almost losing every night we lose. So it's been kind of good for us," Batherson said. "It's going to be an interesting finish, I think, and we're excited for it. Obviously, we've got three games left against Columbus alone, so a lot of big points at stake here coming up."

At the brief game-day skate on Saturday morning, banged-up Senator defenceman Nick Jensen didn't participate. But this has been the norm for many weeks and probably won't change until next season. He is expected to play on Saturday as the Senators roll out the same line combinations they did in Motown.

Linus Ullmark will start in goal for the Sens against Daniil Tarasov for Columbus.

The first 7000 fans to Canadian Tire Centre will receive a pair of Go Sens Go sunglasses. Apparently, the Sens' future is so bright they gotta wear shades. 

Senators Projected Lineup

 Forwards
Claude Giroux – Tim Stutzle – Fabian Zetterlund 
David Perron – Dylan Cozens – Drake Batherson 
Brady Tkachuk – Shane Pinto – Ridly Greig
Matthew Highmore – Adam Gaudette – Michael Amadio

Defensemen

 Jake Sanderson – Artem Zub
Thomas Chabot – Nick Jensen
Tyler Kleven – Nikolas Matinpalo

Goalies

 Linus Ullmark
Anton Forsberg

Scratched 
Dennis Gilbert, Travis Hamonic

Injured 
Nick Cousins (knee)

Blue Jackets Projected Lineup

Forwards 
Dmitri Voronkov – Sean Monahan – Kirill Marchenko
Boone Jenner – Adam Fantilli – Kent Johnson 
Cole Sillinger – Justin Danforth – Mathieu Olivier 
Zach Aston-Reese – Sean Kuraly – Luke Kunin

Defensemen 
Zach Werenski – Dante Fabbro 
Ivan Provorov – Damon Severson 
Denton Mateychuk – Erik Gudbranson

Goalies 
Daniil Tarasov 
Elvis Merzlikins

The Vancouver Canucks have made a roster move ahead of their matinee game on Satuday against the Winnipeg Jets. Vancouver assigned goaltender Artūrs Šilovs to the Abbotsford Canucks, who are currently in San Jose to take on the Barracude. The move is a good indicator that both Thatcher Demko and Kevin Lankinen are fully healthy and ready to resume their tandem for the remaining nine games of the season. 

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Sending Šilovs down the AHL should give the Latvian goaltender an opportunity to start more games. The 24-year-old has played just two games since the start of March, with his only start coming in a 6-2 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks. So far this season, Šilovs has played 10 games at the NHL level, posting a 2-6-1 record with a .861 save percentage. 

The addition of Šilovs should help Abbotsford in its quest to secure a spot in the 2025 Calder Cup Playoffs. Through 62 games, the AHL Canucks have 75 points and currently sit third in the Pacific Division. Abbotsford has 10 games remaining and is on pace to be the host city for their first-round matchup. 

As mentioned, Vancouver will be wrapping up their six-game road trip with a game against the Jets. Saturday's game is crucial for the Canucks as they are battling to secure a spot in the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Puck drop on Saturday is scheduled for noon PT from the Canada Life Centre.

 Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, be sure to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. 

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Brayden Point scored twice and Nikita Kucherov had a goal and an assist as the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the New York Islanders 5-3 on Saturday.

Nick Perbix and Jake Guentzel also scored for the Lightning. Jonas Johansson made 35 stops.

Marc Gatcomb, Anthony DeAngelo and Ryan Pulock scored for the Islanders, who lost their fourth straight game. Ilya Sorokin made 19 saves.

The Lightning won their third straight and matched the idle Florida Panthers’ 91 points atop the tight Atlantic Division, where the Toronto Maple Leafs entered Saturday night’s game against the Los Angeles Kings just a point back.

Takeaways

Islanders: At 32-20-10, New York is in fifth place in the Eastern Conference wild-card race with 74 points. The Islanders trail Ottawa (81), Columbus (75), Montreal (75) and the New York Rangers (75) with Saturday’s slate of games remaining.

Lightning: After a rematch with the Islanders on Monday in the opener of a four-game trip, Tampa Bay is at Ottawa, Buffalo and the Rangers, through a week from Monday.

Key moment

Kucherov and Perbix scored in the first 7:31 of the game to give the Lightning an early advantage. Point scored late in the first and second periods to extend the advantage to four goals before the Islanders clawed back with three unanswered goals in the first nine minutes of the third, making it 4-3. Guentzel’s empty-netter sealed the win.

Key stat

Kucherov scored on the Islanders’ first shot, at 2:02 of the first to fuel the fast start.

Up next

The Lightning play at the Islanders on Tuesday. New York is at the Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday.

Well, for some of the well-established teams, it mostly is. For the New York Rangers, it may not be. For the Philadelphia Flyers, who were eliminated on the last day of the season, it isn’t. This league is changing, and you have to have certain bases covered before you become that team. 

There’s no way I can say I am comfortable with the Montreal Canadiens goalie tandem if they want to battle for the playoffs next year. It’s not good enough and Jacob Fowler is too young to throw into the NHL no matter how good he looks.

Sam Montembeault has been up and down this year. He’s NHL mediocre. He’s no longer developing and asking him to be better than NHL average for a full season doesn’t seem possible. He is a good 1B. That’s what I think he is. 

Jakub Dobes is 23. He is still developing. Is it possible for him to be a 1A starter? Maybe, but I haven’t seen that in him aside from his hot start when he was promoted to the NHL. He’s a good AHL goalie, but not at the top of the league, so in the NHL, he has some steps to take but I don’t see the Canadiens being better next year with the same tandem. 

There will be changes on defense next year. Kaiden Guhle being healthy will be a big bonus and maybe they will go out and get another established defenseman to replace David Savard. I wouldn’t re-sign him under any circumstances. His game has dropped off to the point where the team can’t play as fast as they want to when he is in the game. In a reduced role, he can help another team. 

The center depth has to improve as well and I don’t have a quick fix there. Kirby Dach may not be the answer any longer. He never really got to that next level and maybe he will but that’s an if and you can’t build an offseason with maybe’s.