Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
	Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
City	Wilkes-Barre Township, Pennsylvania, U.S.
League	American Hockey League
Conference	Eastern
Division	Atlantic
Founded	1981
Home arena	Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza
Colors	Black, gold, white, red;
Mascot	Tux
Owner(s)	Ronald Burkle; Mario Lemieux
General manager	Erik Heasley
Head coach	Vacant
Captain	Taylor Fedun
Media	Wilkes-Barre Times Leader; Scranton Times-Tribune; AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh; WILK Newsradio; AHL.TV (Internet)
Affiliates	Pittsburgh Penguins (NHL); Wheeling Nailers (ECHL)
Franchise history
1981–1988	Fredericton Express
1988–1993	Halifax Citadels
1993–1996	Cornwall Aces
1999–present	Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
Previous franchise history
Championships
Regular season titles	2: (2010–11, 2016–17)
Division titles	4: (2005–06, 2007–08, 2010–11, 2016–17)
Conference titles	3: (2001, 2004, 2008)
Calder Cups	0
	Current season

The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (sometimes known as the WBS Penguins) are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League, and are the AHL affiliate of the National Hockey League's Pittsburgh Penguins. They play at the Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza in Wilkes-Barre Township, Pennsylvania, just outside the city of Wilkes-Barre. They have won the Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy twice for having the best record in the regular season.

History[]

The Pittsburgh Penguins' top minor league affiliate throughout the 1990s was the Cleveland Lumberjacks of the IHL. However, in the mid-1990s, the IHL began moving away from being a developmental league and more towards being an independent minor league. For this reason, the Penguins wanted their top minor league affiliate in the AHL. The Penguins purchased the dormant Cornwall Aces AHL franchise from the Colorado Avalanche in 1996,^[1]^[2] but left the team inactive until the 1999–2000 season due to construction delays at their intended home–a new arena in Wilkes-Barre Township. The team is affectionately referred to as the "Baby Penguins" by fans. Their mascot is Tux the penguin, who wears number No. 99 in reference to the team's first season, in 1999.

The Penguins have gone to the Calder Cup final three times but have never won the championship. The team went all the way to the finals in their second season, losing to the Saint John Flames in six games. The Penguins returned to the finals in their fifth season, but were swept by the Milwaukee Admirals. They most recently made it to the finals in 2008 by way of beating the Portland Pirates in a seven-game series in the Eastern Conference finals. They went on to play the Chicago Wolves in the final, but lost the series in six games.

The WBS Penguins won the Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy for the best finish in the regular season, in 2011, with 117 points. Goaltender Brad Thiessen was named the recipient of the Aldege "Baz" Bastien Memorial Award, an award given to the AHL's most outstanding goaltender for each season. He posted a record of 35–8–1 in 46 appearances, along with a 1.94 goals-against-average and a .922 save percentage. Head coach John Hynes won the Louis A. R. Pieri Memorial Award, awarded to the most outstanding AHL coach of the season. Despite the best regular season finish in team history, the Penguins were eliminated in the second round of the 2011 playoffs by the Charlotte Checkers in six games.

The Penguins have made the playoffs in all but four seasons of their existence. The Penguins held a playoff streak of 16 seasons from the 2002–03 season to the 2017–18 season.

Prior to the 2009–10 season, they held the inaugural Penguins Black and Gold Game, an intra-squad game which featured members of the Pittsburgh and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and was the first ever head-to-head meeting between Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. The game was a complete sellout and tickets never reached the general public. The Penguins organization held its second Black and Gold Game prior to the 2010–11 season on September 19, 2010.

WBSPens15YrAnniversary — 15th anniversary logo

In 2009, they also spawned an affiliated youth level organization, the Wilkes-Barre Junior Pens. The team is based out of the Ice Rink at Coal Street Park, which also serves as a practice facility for the Penguins.^[3]

The Penguins' biggest rivals had been the Philadelphia Phantoms, the AHL affiliate of Pennsylvania's other NHL team, the Philadelphia Flyers. After that team moved to Glens Falls, New York, (as the Adirondack Phantoms) the Hershey Bears, also located in Pennsylvania, became the major rivals of the Penguins (they are currently the AHL affiliate of another rival of the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Washington Capitals). In 2014, the Adirondack Phantoms relocated back to eastern Pennsylvania as the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.

Season-by-season results[]

Regular season												Playoffs
Season	Games	Won	Lost	Tied	OTL	SOL	Points	PCT	Goals for	Goals against	Standing	Year	Prelims	1st round	2nd round	3rd round	Finals
1999–00	80	23	43	9	5	—	60	.375	236	306	5th, Empire State Div.	2000	—	Did not qualify
2000–01	80	36	33	9	2	—	83	.519	252	248	2nd, Mid-Atlantic Div.	2001	—	W, 3–2, SYR	W, 4–2, PHI	W, 4–0, HER	L, 2–4, SJF
2001–02	80	20	44	13	3	—	56	.350	201	274	4th, South Div.	2002	Did not qualify
2002–03	80	36	32	7	5	—	84	.525	245	248	3rd, South Div.	2003	W, 2–0, UTA	L, 1–3, GR	—	—	—
2003–04	80	34	28	10	8	—	86	.538	197	197	3rd, East Div.	2004	BYE	W, 4–3, BRP	W, 4–2, PHI	W, 4–3, HFD	L, 0–4, MIL
2004–05	80	39	27	—	7	7	92	.575	227	219	4th, East Div.	2005	—	W, 4–2, BNG	L, 1–4, PHI	—	—
2005–06	80	51	18	—	5	6	113	.706	249	178	1st, East Div.	2006	—	W, 4–3, BRP	L, 0–4, HER	—	—
2006–07	80	51	23	—	2	4	108	.675	276	221	2nd, East Div.	2007	—	W, 4–2, NOR	L, 1–4, HER	—	—
2007–08	80	47	26	—	3	4	101	.631	223	187	1st, East Div.	2008	—	W, 4–1, HER	W, 4–1, PHI	W, 4–3 POR	L, 2–4, CHI
2008–09	80	49	25	—	3	3	104	.650	274	212	3rd, East Div.	2009	—	W, 4–1, BRP	L,3–4 HER	—	—
2009–10	80	41	34	—	2	3	87	.544	239	229	3rd, East Div.	2010	—	L, 0–4, ALB	—	—	—
2010–11	80	58	21	—	0	1	117	.731	261	183	1st, East Div.	2011	—	W, 4–2, NOR	L, 2–4, CHA	—	—
2011–12	76	44	25	—	2	5	95	.625	235	215	2nd, East Div.	2012	—	W, 3–2, HER	L, 3–4, STJ	—	—
2012–13	76	42	30	—	2	2	88	.579	185	178	3rd, East Div.	2013	—	W, 3–0, BNG	W, 4–3, PRO	L, 1–4, SYR	—
2013–14	76	42	26	—	3	5	92	.605	206	185	6th, Eastern Conf.	2014	—	W, 3–1, BNG	W, 4–3, PRO	L, 2–4, STJ	—
2014–15	76	45	24	—	3	4	97	.638	212	163	4th, Eastern Conf.	2015	—	W, 3–0, SYR	L, 1–4, MCH	—	—
2015–16	76	43	27	—	4	2	92	.605	230	203	3rd, Atlantic Div.	2016	—	W, 3–0, PRO	L, 3–4, HER	—	—
2016–17	76	51	20	—	3	2	107	.704	247	170	1st, Atlantic Div.	2017	—	L, 2–3, PRO	—	—	—
2017–18	76	45	22	—	6	3	99	.651	252	223	2nd, Atlantic Div.	2018	—	L, 0–3, CHA	—	—	—
2018–19	76	36	30	—	7	3	82	.539	232	228	6th, Atlantic Div.	2019	—	Did not qualify
2019–20	63	29	26	—	3	5	66	.524	164	193	5th, Atlantic Div.	2020	—	Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2020–21	32	13	13	—	4	2	32	.500	92	107	5th, North Div.	2021	—	No playoffs were held
2021–22	76	35	33	—	4	4	78	.513	209	225	4th, Atlantic Div.	2022	W, 2–1, HER	L, 0–3, SPR	—	—	—
2022–23	72	26	32	—	8	6	66	.458	191	224	8th, Atlantic Div.	2023	Did not qualify
2023–24	72	39	24	—	8	1	87	.604	211	194	3rd, Atlantic Div.	2024	L, 0–2, LV	—	—	—	—

Won Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy for the best record in the regular season
Round not held

Further information: 2013–14 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins season

Players[]

Current roster[]

Updated April 17, 2024.^[4]

#	Nat	Player	Pos	S/G	Age	Acquired	Birthplace	Contract
34	Canada	Abbandonato, PeterPeter Abbandonato	4.0 C	L	26	2023	Laval, Quebec	W-B/Scranton
12	Canada	Andonovski, CoreyCorey Andonovski	7.0 RW	R	25	2022	Uxbridge, Ontario	Pittsburgh
80	Latvia	Ansons, RaivisRaivis Ansons	6.0 LW	L	22	2022	Riga, Latvia	Pittsburgh
78	Canada	Belliveau, IsaacIsaac Belliveau	2.0 D	L	21	2023	Fleurimont, Quebec	Pittsburgh
30	Finland	Blomqvist, JoelJoel Blomqvist	1.0 G	L	22	2023	Nykarleby, Finland	Pittsburgh
56	United States	Brickey, ScooterScooter Brickey	2.0 D	R	25	2024	Mt. Clemens, Michigan	W-B/Scranton
46	United States	De St. Phalle, MathieuMathieu De St. Phalle	3.0 F	R	24	2024	Glencoe, Illinois	W-B/Scranton
4	Canada	Fedun, TaylorTaylor Fedun (C)	2.0 D	R	36	2021	Edmonton, Alberta	Pittsburgh
37	United States	Filipe, MattMatt Filipe	6.0 LW	L	26	2023	Newton, Massachusetts	W-B/Scranton
33	Canada	Gauthier, TaylorTaylor Gauthier	1.0 G	R	23	2022	Calgary, Alberta	Pittsburgh
44	United States	Gruden, JonathanJonathan Gruden (A)	4.0 C	L	24	2021	Rochester, Michigan	Pittsburgh
85	United States	Hayes, AveryAvery Hayes	7.0 RW	R	21	2023	Westland, Michigan	W-B/Scranton
79	Canada	Headrick, OwenOwen Headrick	2.0 D	R	27	2023	Garden River, Ontario	W-B/Scranton
13	United States	Hinostroza, VinnieVinnie Hinostroza (A)	4.0 C	L	30	2023	Melrose Park, Illinois	Pittsburgh
47	Canada	Houde, SamSam Houde	4.0 C	L	24	2021	Blainville, Quebec	W-B/Scranton
25	Finland	Jarventie, EmilEmil Jarventie	6.0 LW	L	19	2024	Tampere, Finland	W-B/Scranton
49	Canada	Jelsma, BeauBeau Jelsma	6.0 LW	L	20	2024	London, Ontario	W-B/Scranton
9	United States	Johnstone, MarcMarc Johnstone	7.0 RW	R	28	2023	Cranford, New Jersey	Pittsburgh
23	United States	Joshua, JaggerJagger Joshua	6.0 LW	L	25	2023	Dearborn, Michigan	W-B/Scranton
50	Finland	Kangas, KalleKalle Kangas	2.0 D	L	19	2024	Vantaa, Finland	W-B/Scranton
15	Finland	Koppanen, JoonaJoona Koppanen	6.0 LW	L	26	2023	Tampere, Finland	Pittsburgh
61	Canada	Ouellet, XavierXavier Ouellet (A)	2.0 D	L	31	2022	Bayonne, France	Pittsburgh
16	United States	Pietila, LoganLogan Pietila	7.0 RW	R	24	2024	Howell, Michigan	W-B/Scranton
11	Russia	Ponomarev, VasilyVasily Ponomarev	4.0 C	L	22	2024	Moscow, Russia	Pittsburgh
22	Canada	Poulin, SamSam Poulin	4.0 C	L	23	2021	Laval, Quebec	Pittsburgh
48	Finland	Puustinen, ValtteriValtteri Puustinen	7.0 RW	R	25	2021	Kuopio, Finland	Pittsburgh
54	United States	Quercia, MattMatt Quercia	3.0 F	L	25	2024	Andover, Massachusetts	W-B/Scranton
51	United States	Rathbone, JackJack Rathbone	2.0 D	L	25	2023	Boston, Massachusetts	Pittsburgh
26	United States	Rueschhoff, AustinAustin Rueschhoff	7.0 RW	R	27	2023	Wentzville, Missouri	W-B/Scranton
3	United States	St. Ivany, JackJack St. Ivany	2.0 D	R	25	2022	Manhattan Beach, California	Pittsburgh
53	Russia	Samorukov, DmitriDmitri Samorukov	2.0 D	L	25	2023	Volgograd, Russia	Pittsburgh
24	Canada	Smith, TyTy Smith	2.0 D	L	24	2022	Lloydminster, Alberta	Hurricanes
72	United States	Svejkovsky, LukasLukas Svejkovsky	4.3 C/RW	R	22	2022	Tampa, Florida	Pittsburgh
41	Canada	Vierling, EvanEvan Vierling	4.0 C	L	22	2023	Aurora, Ontario	W-B/Scranton
45	Switzerland	Waeber, LudovicLudovic Waeber	1.0 G	L	28	2024	Fribourg, Switzerland	Pittsburgh
63	Czech Republic	Zohorna, RadimRadim Zohorna (A)	4.0 C	L	28	2023	Havlickuv Brod, Czech Republic	Pittsburgh

Team captains[]

John Slaney, Stephen Leach & Tyler Wright, 1999–00
Sven Butenschon & John Slaney, 2000–01
Jason MacDonald, 2001–02
Tom Kostopoulos, 2002–03
Patrick Boileau, Kris Beech & Tom Kostopoulos, 2003–04
Rob Scuderi, 2004–05
Alain Nasreddine, 2004–06
Micki DuPont, 2006–07
Nathan Smith, 2007–08
David Gove, 2008–09
Wyatt Smith, 2009–10
Ryan Craig, 2010–12
Joey Mormina, 2012–13
Tom Kostopoulos, 2013–18
Garrett Wilson, 2018–19
David Warsofsky, 2019–20
Josh Currie, 2021
Taylor Fedun, 2021–present

Notable alumni[]

Players listed have played at least 100 games with the Penguins and 100 games in the NHL.

Team records[]

Single season: Goals: Chris Minard, 34 (2008–09); Assists: Jeff Taffe and Janne Pesonen, 50 (2008–09); Points: Janne Pesonen, 82 (2008–09); Penalty minutes: Dennis Bonvie, 431 (2005–06); Goaltending wins: Brad Thiessen, 35 (2010–11); GAA: Jeff Zatkoff 1.93 (2012–13); SV%: Rich Parent (2000–01), Dany Sabourin (2005–06) and Brad Thiessen (2010–11), .922

Career: Career goals: Tom Kostopoulos, 181; Career assists: Tom Kostopoulos, 269; Career points: Tom Kostopoulos, 450; Career penalty minutes: Dennis Bonvie, 1081; Career goaltending wins: John Curry, 103; Career shutouts: Brad Thiessen, 17; Career games: Tom Kostopoulos, 627

AHL records[]

As of the 2009–10 AHL Season. Data from the AHL Hall of Fame Website.^[5]

Team[]

Most road wins, 80-game season: 28 (2010–2011) (tied)

Longest road winning streak (one season): 13 games (October 9 – December 3, 2005) (tied)

Longest road winning streak (overall): 15 games (April 10 – December 3, 2005)

Player[]

Most points by a defenseman, career: John Slaney, 486 (Baltimore, Portland, Cornwall, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Philadelphia)

Most goals by a defenseman, career: John Slaney, 157

Most goals by a defenseman, season: John Slaney, 30 (1999–2000)

Most PIM, career: Dennis Bonvie, 4,104 (Cape Breton, Hamilton, Portland, Philadelphia, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Providence, Binghamton, Hershey)

Most PIM, game: Steve Parsons, 64 (March 17, 2002 vs. Syracuse)

AHL awards and trophies[]

Per the AHL Hall of Fame:^[6]

Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy (AHL regular season champions)

Frank Mathers Trophy (Eastern Conference regular season champions from 2004 to 2011)

2010–11

Richard F. Canning Trophy (Eastern Conference playoff champions)

F. G. "Teddy" Oke Trophy (East Division regular season champions from 2002 to 2011)

Robert W. Clarke Trophy (Western Conference playoff champions)

2000–01

Eddie Shore Award (best defenseman)

John Slaney: 2000–01

Aldege "Baz" Bastien Memorial Award (best goaltender)

Harry "Hap" Holmes Memorial Award (goalies with lowest goals against avg.)

Tristan Jarry and Casey DeSmith: 2016–17
Matt Murray and Jeff Zatkoff: 2014–15
Jeff Deslauriers and Eric Hartzell: 2013–14
Brad Thiessen and Jeff Zatkoff: 2012–13
Brad Thiessen and John Curry: 2010–11
Dany Sabourin: 2005–06

Yanick Dupre Memorial Award (AHL Man of the Year Service)

Matt Carkner: 2006–07

Louis A.R. Pieri Memorial Award (coach of the year)

John Hynes: 2010–11

References[]

↑ Marrapese, Nancy L.. "Mighty Casey a pinch hit", May 19, 1996, p. 52. “The [Pittsburgh] Penguins will move and rename the AHL’s Cornwall Aces after buying the franchise from the Avalanche.”
↑ Mayer, Sean. "Pirates plundered", July 2, 1996, p. 3D. “[Godfrey] Wood will be responsible for finding a home for the [Pittsburgh] Penguins’ incoming AHL team, the defunct Cornwall Aces franchise Pittsburgh bought from the Colorado Avalanche.”
↑ Wilkes-Barre Jr. Penguins Youth Ice Hockey Club.
↑ Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins Roster (April 17, 2024).
↑ AHL Record Book.
↑ AHL Hall of Fame Trophy List.

External links[]

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Affiliates	Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL), Wheeling Nailers (ECHL)

This page uses content from Wikipedia. The original article was at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with Ice Hockey Wiki, the text of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike License 3.0 (Unported) (CC-BY-SA).

[1] Marrapese, Nancy L.. "Mighty Casey a pinch hit", May 19, 1996, p. 52. “The [Pittsburgh] Penguins will move and rename the AHL’s Cornwall Aces after buying the franchise from the Avalanche.”

[2] Mayer, Sean. "Pirates plundered", July 2, 1996, p. 3D. “[Godfrey] Wood will be responsible for finding a home for the [Pittsburgh] Penguins’ incoming AHL team, the defunct Cornwall Aces franchise Pittsburgh bought from the Colorado Avalanche.”

[wbjpens-3] Wilkes-Barre Jr. Penguins Youth Ice Hockey Club.

[4] Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins Roster (April 17, 2024).

[5] AHL Record Book.

[6] AHL Hall of Fame Trophy List.

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Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
Formerly the Fredericton Express, Halifax Citadels, and Cornwall Aces - Founded in 1999 - Based in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Franchise	History (Fredericton Express - Halifax Citadels - Cornwall Aces) - Players - Alumni - Seasons - Records - Coaches - All articles
Arenas	Aitken Centre - Halifax Metro Centre - Ed Lumley Arena - Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza
Coaches	Patrick - Therrien - Kehoe - Mullen - Richards - Bylsma - Reirden - Hynes - Sullivan - Donatelli - Vellucci - Forrest
Affiliates	Pittsburgh Penguins (NHL) - Wheeling Nailers (ECHL)