Penguins/NHL
WBS NOTES
Following last night’s 3-1 loss to Binghamton, where they outshot Binghamton 44-15, the Wilkes Barre/Scranton Penguins (14-15-2-1) have now lost 11 of 12 games.
A bright spot again for the Baby Pens was Beau Bennett (6G-16A-22Pts) who scored a beautiful goal coming down the right side and beating goaltender Robin Lehner top shelf. Bennett leads the team with 22 points and has 16 points in his last 16 games. Bennett the Penguins top forward prospect, has showed great vision and playmaking ability and hockey people just rave about how well he see’s the ice. The area I’m told he needs to improve is more mental in becoming more confident as a goal scorer because he has the shooting ability (can pick corners very well) to become a more efficient goal scorer but he doesn’t use his shot enough.
Bennett has just 57 shots on goal this season for Wilkes Barre.
ARCHIBALD HAVING STRONG SOPHOMORE CAMPAIGN
A few days ago I posted some remarks on prospects Kenny Agostino and Scott Wilson playing well in the college ranks and another one is Josh Archibald, the Penguins 6th round pick in 2011.
Archibald a sophomore for No. 15 Nebraska-Omaha, had a hat trick friday night (Game shown on NBC Sportsnetwork) to lead Omaha hockey team to an 8-4 win over Colorado College.
After a solid freshman campaign where Archibald had 10 goals and 5 assists, the 5-foot-10, 180-pound forward has already surpassed last years point total, with 10 goals and 20 points in 21 games. Archibald has seen an increased offensive role this year, seeing 1st unit power play time and top-6 minutes at even strength.
Archibald’s a player who has stood out in back to back development camps the past two summers. He’s an excellent skater, gets on the forecheck, but also has a solid skill set.
However, whether Archibald is a true NHL prospect remains to be seen but the Penguins have found some intriguing forward prospects in the late rounds of late in Archibald, Kenny Agostino, Scott Wilson and Anton Zlobin who could develop into NHL players.
