WILKES-BARRE, Pa. – The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins have a chance to redeem themselves this season. In the course of last season, the Penguins came in eighth place in the Atlantic Division. With a record of 26-32-8-6, it was one of the more dismal seasons for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
The schedule for the season was released in July, and for the Penguins, it will be a battle to redeem themselves. This season marks the 25th season for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. As will every other AHL team, the Penguins will play 72 games, with 36 games being played at home, and 36 games coming on the road. Those 72 games will feature 14 opponents, all within the Eastern Conference.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton is going to start the season on the road with back-to-back games against the Charlotte Checkers at BoJangles’ Coliseum in North Carolina. Turn around in eight days, the team comes back to the Mohegan Sun Arena for its home opener against the Springfield Thunderbirds. In looking at the home schedule, there will be 26 out of 36 games on weekends. Six games will take place on Fridays, 17 games played on Saturdays, and there will be three games on Sunday afternoons. Ten other games will take place on Wednesday evenings.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton is part of the eight-team Atlantic Division during the 2023-2024 season. This division includes the 2023 Calder Cup Champion Hershey Bears, Bridgeport Islanders, Lehigh Valley Phantoms, Hartford Wolf Pack, Charlotte Checkers, Providence Bruins, and Springfield Thunderbirds. Games against divisional opponents will occur 54 times, while the other 18 games will take place against teams that are in the North Division.
The busiest month of the season for the Penguins is January. There are 13 games set to take place, including seven games at home. There are two road trips during the season in November and February that are five games each. In November, the Penguins will visit Providence for a pair of games before heading back south for a game in Hershey and two in Charlotte. February will feature a road trip to Hartford, two to Allentown to take on the Phantoms, followed by a trip to Toronto and Rochester. The longest home stretch of games occurs in December with four games, against four different opponents: Springfield, Cleveland, Providence, and Syracuse.
There are four preseason games that will start the season off for the Penguins. They hit the road down the Pennsylvania Turnpike to take on the Lehigh Valley Phantoms at the PPL Center on October 3rd. The Penguins will then return home October 4th for a game against the Calder Cup Champs. The Penguins will head out to Hershey for a game on October 6th and then come back home for a game against the Phantoms on October 7th.
