Utica, NY – The Comets hosted the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins to kick off the month of November and came away with a 3-1 win.
The Comets went to the penalty kill early after Nathan Légaré was called for holding just 4:48 into the first period. Utica’s penalties held up and limited Wilkes-Barre/Scranton to just two shots on goal. Midway through the frame, both teams traded chances for just seconds, with Comets goalie Nico Daws and Penguins netminder Sergei Murashov each making spectacular diving saves to keep the game scoreless.
Utica broke through with 5:01 left in the period when Austin Strand chased a loose puck behind the Penguins’ net and fed Angus Crookshank in front, who beat Murashov’s high glove side to give the Comets a 1-0 lead.
After a strong end to the first period, the Comets opened the second stanza with their first power play of the game. Utica extended its lead 3:26 into the frame when Matyas Melovsky found Mike Hardman open in front of the net, who beat Murashov by five to make it 2-0.
With nine minutes left in the period, Xavier Parent almost scored his third goal of the season, but Sergei Murashov made a spectacular save to keep the game at 2–0. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton finally broke through late in the period when Danton Heinen gave Aidan McDonough the lead and slid the puck past Daws’ left pad to make it 2-1 for his second goal of the season.
Utica started the third period with the penalty kick, but emerged unscathed. Both teams held it tight defensively in the final frame, each allowing just six shots on goal. The Penguins were awarded a high-stick penalty with just over a minute left, and Jon Gruden would eventually score an empty net goal to seal the deal for the Comets.
The Penguins defeated the Comets 26-20 in the game. Sergei Murashov stopped 17 shots for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, while Nico Daws made 25 saves for Utica.
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