WILKES-BARRE, Pa. — Michael Hutchinson made 30 saves to record his second shutout of the playoffs as the St. John’s IceCaps routed the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 5-0 on Wednesday in Game 3 of the American Hockey League’s Eastern Conference final.
The IceCaps lead the series 2-1. Game 4 will be played Thursday night in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.
Eric O’Dell had a goal and an assist and Andrew Gordon set up three goals. Jason Jaffray, Kael Mouillierat, Zach Redmond and Patrice Cormier all scored as well.
Hutchinson raised his post-season record to 9-4 with a .945 save percentage.
The IceCaps scored on consecutive shots less than two minutes apart in the first period to take a 2-0 lead.
Josh Morrissey took a cross-ice pass from Andrew Gordon in the right faceoff dot and put a puck on the stick of Cormier in the slot for a redirection goal on the power play at 11:24. Gordon intercepted a pass by Penguins winger Spencer Machacek behind the net and fed Jaffray in front for a goal at 13:15.
After killing a 65-second five-on-three Penguins power play late in the first period, the IceCaps forced another turnover on the forecheck early in the second, and O’Dell buried at loose puck at the left post to make the score 3-0.
Mouillerat scored from the goal-line on a five-on-three advantage at 6:24 and Redmond sent a slapshot on net from the blue-line that hit the glove of goalie Peter Mannino and trickled over the goal-line with a second left in the period to give the IceCaps a 5-0 edge going into the third.
Mannino, who played every minute of the Penguins’ first 13 playoff games, was pulled after stopping 19-of-24 shots in the first two periods. The Penguins are 0 for 13 on the power play in the series.
Matt Murray stopped all eight shots he faced in relief.
