Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins

Lore & Background

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, 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.

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.

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.

Reader's Guide

The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins serve as the primary AHL affiliate of the Pittsburgh Penguins, a role established after the IHL shifted away from development. The team's history is marked by consistent playoff appearances, having missed the postseason only four times in their existence and achieving a 16-season playoff streak from 2002–03 to 2017–18. Despite three Calder Cup final appearances—in their second season (losing to Saint John Flames), fifth season (swept by Milwaukee Admirals), and 2008 (losing to Chicago Wolves)—they have never won the championship. Their regular-season success includes two Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy wins, most notably in 2011 with a franchise-record 117 points, which also saw goaltender Brad Thiessen win the Aldege 'Baz' Bastien Memorial Award and head coach John Hynes win the Louis A. R. Pieri Memorial Award. The team has notable rivalries with fellow Pennsylvania AHL teams: initially the Philadelphia Phantoms, then the Hershey Bears, and later the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. Off the ice, the Penguins have engaged the community through events like the Black and Gold Game and the establishment of the Wilkes-Barre Junior Pens youth organization in 2009. The team's records include single-season marks such as Chris Minard's 34 goals and Janne Pesonen's 82 points, while Tom Kostopoulos holds career records for goals (181), assists (269), and points (450).

Did You Know?

• The team is affectionately called the 'Baby Penguins' by fans.
• The Penguins have never won the Calder Cup despite three finals appearances.
• Goaltender Brad Thiessen won the Aldege 'Baz' Bastien Memorial Award in 2011.