Prospects Of The Week
Melvin Fernstrom On Fire Since Joining Penguins Prospect Pipeline
Melvin Fernstrom scored three goals in three games last week for Orebro HK, including a pair in a 3-1 win over Modo Hockey on Tuesday and in the empty net in a 4-2 win over Timra IK on Thursday. Since being acquired by the Pittsburgh Penguins as part of the Marcus Pettersson and Drew O’Connor trade on February 1, Fernstrom boasts nine points in nine games after recording eight in 35 prior to trade. The 2024 third round pick now ranks eighth on the team with 17 points in 44 games.
Cooper Foster Makes Most Of Only Game Last Week
Cooper Foster played in only one game last week for the Ottawa 67’s, but scored the eventual game winner and added a primary assist in a 5-2 win over the North Bay Battalion on Friday. Foster missed the 67’s game on Sunday after missing about four weeks recovering from injury. The 2023 sixth round pick ranks third on the team with 44 points in 46 games.
Tanner Howe Strings Together Productive Week With Calgary
Tanner Howe recorded five points in three games last week, scoring the eventual game winner and adding a secondary assist in a 3-0 win over the Swift Current Broncos on Monday, going without a point in 2-1 shootout loss to the Red Deer Rebels on Friday, but rebounding with a goal and two helpers in a 7-0 win over the Kelowna Rockets on Sunday. With the offensive outburst, Howe jumped to over a point per game with the Calgary Hitmen with 30 points in 29 games since being traded from the Regina Pats in late November.
Down On The Farm
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Goes 1-1-1 Last Week
After falling behind 3-0 in the first period, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins battled back, but ultimately lost 5-2 to the Rochester Americans on Wednesday night. Rutger McGroarty and Boris Katchouk scored, and Mac Hollowell, Tristan Broz, Emil Bemstrom, and Ville Koivunen recorded assists. Tristan Jarry surrendered four goals on 35 shots in the loss.
Filip Larsson stopped 31 shots in a 2-0 win over the Syracuse Crunch on Friday night to tie for the AHL lead with five shutouts in the 2024-25 season. Valtteri Puustinen scored in the first period, and Atley Calvert scored for the first time at the AHL level to give the Penguins a 2-0 lead in the third. Koivunen, Katchouk, and McGroarty all recorded assists.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton let a point slip away and missed a chance to claim the top spot in the Atlantic Division with a 5-4 overtime loss to the Hershey Bears on Saturday. McGroarty, Puustinen, and Koivunen scored to give the Penguins a 3-0 lead just over halfway through the second period, but the Bears battled back to tie the game 3-3 in the third. Puustinen scored again only eight seconds after Hershey tied the game, but the Bears answered again to force overtime and scored 2:08 into the extra frame to stay atop the division. Puustinen and Koivunen added assists, Katchouk recorded two helpers, and Owen Pickering, Hollowell, Filip Kral, and Jack St. Ivany finished with assists. Tristan Jarry surrendered five goals on 36 shots in the loss.
Wheeling Nailers Split Series With Adirondack, Lose To Maine In Shootout
The Wheeling Nailers beat the Adirondack Thunder 3-1 on Friday night powered by depth scoring and 25 saves by Sergei Murashov. Chrystopher Collin scored and added a helper, and Cole Cameron and Kyle Jackson scored the other Wheeling goals. David Jankowski, Mats Lindgren, Jordan Martel, Eli Lieffers, and Logan Pietila all recorded assists.
The Wheeling Nailers fell behind early and never caught up in a 7-4 loss to Adirondack the next night. Matthew Quercia, Jackson, Collin, and Cole Tymkin scored. Pietila recorded two assists, and David Drake, James White, Peter Laviolette, and Martel added helpers. Murashov surrendered six goals on 32 shots.
The Nailers forced overtime with a third period goal and killed a penalty in the extra frame to take the game to a shootout, but ultimately lost 2-1 to the Maine Mariners on Sunday. Louie Roehl scored off White and Lindgren assists and Gauthier made 28 saves in regulation and overtime but surrendered two goals in a shootout while no Nailers skaters scored.