After having their game postponed on Saturday night, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins traveled to Quebec to face the Laval Rocket on Wednesday.
Unfortunately, after building up a 3-0 lead and losing their starting goalie, Filip Larsson, the Penguins gave up four straight goals as the Rocket won in overtime 4-3.
The Penguins opened the scoring in the first period when Avery Hayes scored his ninth of the year at 11:24, thanks to a feed from Rutget McGroarty on a partial two-on-one.
Jonathan Gruden extended the visitors' lead at 15:22, burying a shorthanded goal, outhustling a Laval defender once Joona Koppanen chipped the puck into the neutral zone.
Neither team scored in the second, but there was an endless parade to the penalty box, with Dan Renouf starting the period with a fight against Lucas Condotta. The Rocket took four consecutive penalties before Renouf finished the period with a hooking penalty.
Emil Bemström gave the Penguins a 3-0 lead at 6:14, scoring on a breakaway goal, outskating a Rocket defender once Hayes got the puck out of his zone.
However, that was the last time the Penguins would light the lamp. The Rocket began their comeback with a goal from William Trudeau at 12:04, followed by another from Florian Xhekaj at 13:20.
Defenseman Gustav Lindström tied things up at 3-3 with a goal at 16:42, meaning the Penguins blew a 3-0 lead in roughly four and a half minutes.
Ultimately, the game came down to a Mac Hollowell double minor high sticking call at 18:14, with the Laval power play continuing in overtime. Jared Davidson sent the home crowd home happy with a goal at 2:16.
As mentioned, Larsson did not come out for the second period, making 12 saves before departing in favor of Jaxon Castor, who made his AHL debut on Wednesday. He played 42:16 and finished with 26 saves on 30 shots.
Besides scoring the game's first three goals, WBS was outshot 42-30 and didn't register a single one in overtime. Even though Gruden scored a shorthanded goal, they went 0-for-5 on the powerplay, while the Rocket scored once, the game-winner, finishing 1-for-6 on the man advantage.
The Penguins (20-9-4-0) are tied with the Charlotte Checkers (20-10-2-2) for second place in the AHL Atlantic Division behind the Hershey Bears (23-11-3-0). They are off until Jan 24, when they open up a home-and-home set with the Utica Comets.
