Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins

Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox ice hockey team The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (sometimes known as the WBS Penguins) are a professional ice hockey team based in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. They are the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the National Hockey League's Pittsburgh Penguins. They play at the Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza in Wilkes-Barre Township, Pennsylvania. They have won the Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy twice for having the best record in the regular season.

History

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,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> 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.<ref name="wbjpens">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

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.

Season-by-season results

Regular season												Playoffs
Season	Games	Won	Lost	Tied	OTL	SOL	Points	PCT	Goals for	Goals against	Standing	Year	Prelims	1st round	2nd round	3rd round	Finals
1999–00	80	23	43	9	5	—	60	.375	236	306	5th, Empire State Div.	2000	—	Did not qualify
2000–01	80	36	33	9	2	—	83	.519	252	248	2nd, Mid-Atlantic Div.	2001	—	W, 3–2, SYR	W, 4–2, PHI	W, 4–0, HER	L, 2–4, SJF
2001–02	80	20	44	13	3	—	56	.350	201	274	4th, South Div.	2002	Did not qualify
2002–03	80	36	32	7	5	—	84	.525	245	248	3rd, South Div.	2003	W, 2–0, UTA	L, 1–3, GR	—	—	—
2003–04	80	34	28	10	8	—	86	.538	197	197	3rd, East Div.	2004	BYE	W, 4–3, BRP	W, 4–2, PHI	W, 4–3, HFD	L, 0–4, MIL
2004–05	80	39	27	—	7	7	92	.575	227	219	4th, East Div.	2005	—	W, 4–2, BNG	L, 1–4, PHI	—	—
2005–06	80	51	18	—	5	6	113	.706	249	178	1st, East Div.	2006	—	W, 4–3, BRP	L, 0–4, HER	—	—
2006–07	80	51	23	—	2	4	108	.675	276	221	2nd, East Div.	2007	—	W, 4–2, NOR	L, 1–4, HER	—	—
2007–08	80	47	26	—	3	4	101	.631	223	187	1st, East Div.	2008	—	W, 4–1, HER	W, 4–1, PHI	W, 4–3 POR	L, 2–4, CHI
2008–09	80	49	25	—	3	3	104	.650	274	212	3rd, East Div.	2009	—	W, 4–1, BRP	L,3–4 HER	—	—
2009–10	80	41	34	—	2	3	87	.544	239	229	3rd, East Div.	2010	—	L, 0–4, ALB	—	—	—
2010–11	80	58	21	—	0	1	117	.731	261	183	1st, East Div.	2011	—	W, 4–2, NOR	L, 2–4, CHA	—	—
2011–12	76	44	25	—	2	5	95	.625	235	215	2nd, East Div.	2012	—	W, 3–2, HER	L, 3–4, STJ	—	—
2012–13	76	42	30	—	2	2	88	.579	185	178	3rd, East Div.	2013	—	W, 3–0, BNG	W, 4–3, PRO	L, 1–4, SYR	—
2013–14	76	42	26	—	3	5	92	.605	206	185	6th, Eastern Conf.	2014	—	W, 3–1, BNG	W, 4–3, PRO	L, 2–4, STJ	—
2014–15	76	45	24	—	3	4	97	.638	212	163	4th, Eastern Conf.	2015	—	W, 3–0, SYR	L, 1–4, MCH	—	—
2015–16	76	43	27	—	4	2	92	.605	230	203	3rd, Atlantic Div.	2016	—	W, 3–0, PRO	L, 3–4, HER	—	—
2016–17	76	51	20	—	3	2	107	.704	247	170	1st, Atlantic Div.	2017	—	L, 2–3, PRO	—	—	—
2017–18	76	45	22	—	6	3	99	.651	252	223	2nd, Atlantic Div.	2018	—	L, 0–3, CHA	—	—	—
2018–19	76	36	30	—	7	3	82	.539	232	228	6th, Atlantic Div.	2019	—	Did not qualify
2019–20	63	29	26	—	3	5	66	.524	164	193	5th, Atlantic Div.	2020	—	Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic
2020–21	32	13	13	—	4	2	32	.500	92	107	5th, North Div.	2021	—	No playoffs were held
2021–22	76	35	33	—	4	4	78	.513	209	225	4th, Atlantic Div.	2022	W, 2–1, HER	L, 0–3, SPR	—	—	—
2022–23	72	26	32	—	8	6	66	.458	191	224	8th, Atlantic Div.	2023	Did not qualify
2023–24	72	39	24	—	8	1	87	.604	211	194	3rd, Atlantic Div.	2024	L, 0–2, LV	—	—	—	—
2024–25	72	40	24	—	7	1	88	.611	244	215	4th, Atlantic Div.	2025	L, 0–2, LV	—	—	—	—

Template:Color box Won Macgregor Kilpatrick Trophy for the best record in the regular season
Template:Color box Round not held

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Players

Current roster

Updated November 6, 2025.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
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Team captains

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Notable alumni

Players listed have played at least 100 games with the Penguins and 100 games in the NHL. Template:Columns-list

Team records

Single season: Goals: Chris Minard, 34 (2008–09); Assists: Jeff Taffe and Janne Pesonen, 50 (2008–09); Points: Janne Pesonen, 82 (2008–09); Penalty minutes: Dennis Bonvie, 431 (2005–06); Goaltending wins: Brad Thiessen, 35 (2010–11); GAA: Jeff Zatkoff 1.93 (2012–13); SV%: Rich Parent (2000–01), Dany Sabourin (2005–06) and Brad Thiessen (2010–11), .922

Career: Career goals: Tom Kostopoulos, 181; Career assists: Tom Kostopoulos, 269; Career points: Tom Kostopoulos, 450; Career penalty minutes: Dennis Bonvie, 1081; Career goaltending wins: John Curry, 103; Career shutouts: Brad Thiessen, 17; Career games: Tom Kostopoulos, 627