TORONTO — About 40 minutes had elapsed since the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins’ gritty, Game 4 victory Wednesday at the Coca-Cola Coliseum evened their best-of-seven conference final against the Toronto Marlies.Members of the Penguins’ AHL affiliate had concluded their postgame routines, but, instead of taking a shower and heading back to the team hotel, most of them were sitting around in folding chairs outside of their locker room in a makeshift workout room. And that was just the beginning of the postgame socializing.“It’s incredible how close this group is,” said Rutger McGroarty, who scored the winning goal late in the third period to secure the 4-3 victory. “This is nothing. After games, especially games like this, we all struggle to sleep. We’ll go back to the hotel room eventually and snap the cards around for a while. We never get enough of each other.”That is the embodiment of a plan coming to fruition for Penguins president/general manager Kyle Dubas and assistant GM Jason Spezza. Both members of the Penguins’ brain trust have spoken about their desire for Wilkes-Barre to go on a long playoff run, as playing deep into the spring would not only serve individual prospects well, but it would also generate togetherness and an understanding of winning hockey that someday will pay off in Pittsburgh.“One of the reasons we want to keep winning is because that means we get to stay together for a while longer, and we want to stay together for as long as possible,” McGroarty continued. “There’s just a real bond here. Winning games like this? It never gets old.”Wilkes-Barre dropped the first two games of this series at home but never flinched in Toronto to even the series at 2-2. Game 5 is Friday in Toronto, and Game 6 returns to Pennsylvania on Sunday. If needed, Game 7 will be played on Tuesday in Wilkes-Barre.Not only was Wilkes-Barre down 2-0 in this series, but it was down 2-0 in Game 4 after Sergei Murashov allowed two shaky goals. The Penguins regrouped after the first period and found a way.“Obviously, our first period wasn’t good,” said forward Avery Hayes. “But I think you just saw the character of the people we have on this team. We finally started playing well. And when we play our best hockey, I don’t think too many people can play with us.”Hayes and McGroarty have both enjoyed a taste of life in the NHL and are expected to see considerable time in Pittsburgh next season and beyond. But they’re clearly getting something out of their time in the AHL. It’s far from a punishment for them to be in the minor leagues. Rather, they seem to be embracing every second of it.“You’re able to look at the big picture and see what a great experience it is for us,” Hayes said. “We’re in the middle of a playoff series, so you’re not really thinking about that kind of stuff. But yeah, it’s great for us. This group, we all just love each other. We want to keep winning together.”Here’s what else I’m seeing from the AHL playoffs:Ten observations• Wilkes-Barre plays nothing like its NHL team in Pittsburgh, and I mean that in the nicest way possible.