Faceoff Factor

WBS Pens Game Recap - 4/12

Eric Politowski | WBS "Baby" Penguins

Apr 12, 05:11 AM | Hype this story!

To complete the 2007-2008 season, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Baby Penguins took on the last place Norfolk Admirals at home. Fan favorite Dennis Bonvie made his last stand, but how did the team execute?

PRE GAME:

When we arrived at the Wachovia Arena, there was a massive line of avid Bonvie fans waiting to get their hands on the promotion DVD. The guy behind us in line said he had never seen a line that big there before. He also made note that Norfolk’s LW David Koci will probably drop the gloves and take the honor of being Bonvie’s last opponent.

The Pens came out early, and after warm-ups, they presented the 2007-2008 Team Awards. Bonvie was sporting the “C” on his shoulder for the game as the honorary captain.

Dennis Bonvie won the Fan Favorite Award. D Alex Goligoski took home the Most Improved Player’s Award. The Most Valuable Player Award went to C Kurtis McLean. The Pens’ Rookie of the Year award went to G John Curry. D Ben Lovejoy won an award for the player that is the best with the media. D Ryan Lannon won an award for the best in the community.

Finally, D Alain Nasreddine was given the Most Valuable Defenseman Award. The man sitting next to me responded by saying, “I guess you were allowed to vote for yourself on that one.”

GAME RECAP:

The atmosphere was great in the building all night, and every time Bonvie’s name was mentioned or he took to the ice the place went nuts. The arena was packed with banners and shirts honoring him, and head coach, Todd Richards started him on the wing.

Late in the 1st period, Norfolk’s defense coughed up a puck to C Nathan Smith, who buried it top-shelf on the backhand behind Norfolk’s goaltender Marc Denis, picking up his 22nd goal of the season.

Minutes later, C Dave Gove made an astonishing play to put home his 23rd goal of the season. Gove banked the puck off the side boards, put it between his legs to get behind the defense, and deked Denis out to give the Pens a 2-0 lead.

The 2nd period would only result in a goal by Norfolk, thus making it 2-1 Pens.

The 3rd period rolled around and just about everyone in the arena was anticipating Bonvie to square off for one last time. A scrum starts near Norfolk’s net, and Bonvie and Norfolk’s D Jay Rosehill start giving each other face washes. Finally, the two combatants drop the gloves and everyone stands to their feet. Bonvie landed the better shots to the face, though it was over fairly quick. Rosehill paid respect to him by raising his arm after the fight.

Norfolk eventually scored late in the 3rd period with a blistering slap shot from RW Kyle Wanving, to tie it at 3-3.

Coach Richards had Bonvie written in the shootout line-up, but 41 seconds into overtime, Norfolk’s C Paul Szczechura silenced the crowd when he scored the game winning goal for them.

POST GAME:

They held a huge post-game tribute for Bonvie after the game. The AHL commissioner was there and gave a speech, followed by gifts from his teammates and such. Bonvie eventually got to give a speech of his own, and the crowd properly thanked him, as both the Admirals and Pens admired the great career that was. Former Pen, David Koci was one of the most notable players thanking him, as he gave him a hug and raised Bonvie’s hand.

We made a stop at the Arena Bar & Grill, which is where most of the Pens show up after games to eat. After the management found out we drove there from Pittsburgh, we instantly became super stars. I was able to get a good amount of autographs from the players, and they were all shocked to hear that we drove all the way there just to see them. Paul Bissonnette is by far one of the nicest players you will ever meet. Bissonnette was scratched for the game, and after asking him if he would have dropped them, he replied, “Oh, I definitely would have fought… probably Koci.”

NOTES:

LW Luca Caputi’s Niagra Ice Dogs were eliminated in the OHL playoffs last night. His team fell victim in a 5-2 loss to the Oshawa Generals. Caputi recorded a goal and an assist, but wasn’t enough to put his team on top. Caputi finished with 17 points (8 G, 9 A) in 10 playoff games. Hopefully, we can see him in a Baby Pens jersey for the playoffs.

UPCOMING SCHEDULE:

After picking up 1 point in the last game of the regular season, the Pens have won the East Division title. The Pens will face the lower-seeded Hershey Bears in their first series in the AHL Calder Cup Playoffs.

Game 1 – Wednesday, April 16 @ Giant Center – 7:00pm

Game 2 – Saturday, April 19 @ Wachovia Arena – 7:05pm

Game 3 – Sunday, April 20 @ Wachovia Arena – 5:05pm

Game 4 – Wednesday, April 23 @ Giant Center – 7:00pm

Game 5 – Friday, April 25 @ Wachovia Arena – 7:05pm

Game 6 – Saturday, April 26 @ Giant Center – 7:00pm

Game 7 – Sunday, April 27 @ Wachovia Arena – 5:05pm

Games 5, 6, and 7 if necessary

SLIDESHOW:
Here are the pictures promised from the game.