The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (39-23-7-1) played their 70th game of the season on Wednesday night, dropping a tightly contested 3-2 affair to the Providence Bruins, who broke a tie in the standings between the two clubs.
After the victory, the Bruins (40-23-5-3) now sit in the third seed in the Atlantic Division with 88 points, while the Penguins slip down to the fourth seed with 86 points.
In the first, Atley Calvert tallied his ninth of the year to open the scoring at 10:32. Harrison Brunicke and Mathias Laferriere had helpers.
The visiting Bruins tied the contest with the only goal in the second period, a Dan Locnelis tally at 14:06. After getting outshot 15-10 in the first, Providence had the advantage in the second, 16-10, with the teams tied on the scoreboard.
At 7:50 of the third, Emil Bemström scored his team-leading 23rd goal of the season to restore his team's one-goal lead. Boris Katchouk and Nate Clurman set up his lamplighter, the Penguins' final tally of the night.
WBS Penguins Sign Three Players For 2025-26 SeasonThe Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins continue their quest for the Calder Cup this season, but the club is also looking towards the future, agreeing to contracts with three NCAA players for next season.
During a Clurman interference penalty kill that started at 10:06, the Bruins evened things up again at 10:59 with a Patrick Brown goal, before securing the one-goal victory at 19:33 with a Riley Tufte lamp lighter.
Somehow, Providence almost equalled their two-period shot total (26) with 20 in the third period, while limiting WBS to just six. The home team got fewer opportunities as the games progressed, going from 15 to 10 to six shots on goal.
In goal, Michael DiPietro picked up the win thanks to 29 saves on 31 shots, while Penguins' Joel Blomqvist was far busier, making 43 saves on 46 shots.
Regarding special teams, the Bruins went 1-for-3, while the Penguins failed to capitalize on their two opportunities.
WBS will play two more times before beginning their quest for the Calder Cup, facing the Hershey Bears on Friday and then the Cleveland Monsters on Saturday.