SPECIAL TEAMS? 

The key to winning hockey games is special teams… Teams rise and fall by them all the time. Saturday night the Hartford Wolf Pack dropped an important game 3-1 to the Manchester Monarchs in front of 6,946 at the XL Center in no small part due to the inability to perform on the both sides of the special teams.

The Monarchs (29-28-5-4) came into this game as the AHL’s leading team on the power play at a 23.3% clip. The Pack (39-19-2-6) are the league’s 20th ranked penalty kill stopping the opposition 82.7% of the time. While on the reverse, the Pack’s power play, ranked third in the AHL at 20.8% would face the Monarchs’ last ranked penalty kill at a measly 77.6%. For the Wolf Pack, clearly the key to winning this game was going to be staying out of the penalty box to limit the Manchester power play from getting on the ice and to capitalize on whatever chances they got. The problem was they did neither.

Controversial referee (kind of sounds redundant these days doesn’t it?) Nygel Pelletier was in a whistle-happy mood right from the outset of the game. Pelletier called Manchester’s Matt Moulson for a hooking call just seven seconds into the contest. In total, Pelletier gave the Monarchs four power plays and the Wolf Pack eight, calling a total of twenty infractions (11 against Manchester and 9 against the Pack). In the first period alone there were six power plays and three four-on-four’s which neither team was able to convert on and took all the flow right out of the game.

In the second period, Manchester struck first when P.J. Atherton charged up center ice and into the Pack zone. Atherton dropped a pass for Trevor Lewis who came in completely untouched up the slot and rifled a shot on goal that was deflected past Wolf Pack netminder, David LeNeveu (19 Saves) for the 1-0 lead at 2:08.

Six minutes later, the Monarchs added to their lead when Pack defensemen Corey Potter took a holding penalty putting the top rated Monarch power play back on the ice for the fourth time. This time, Gabe Gauthier found David Meckler open in the left face off circle. Meckler fired on goal and LeNeveu was in position to handle it, but the puck hit defensemen Jake Taylor on the way to the net and redirected past LeNeveu.

The Wolf Pack would get their lone goal with just 52.6 seconds remaining in the second period. Hugh Jessiman gave a mighty effort in front of the crease. The shot he put on Monarch goaltender Daniel Taylor (31 saves) rebounded in front and Jordan Owens got his third of the season off a terrific backhanded follow-up shot that beat that beat Taylor low to the glove side.

In the last meeting between these two clubs two weeks ago, Pelletier waived off an apparent goal by Dane Byers on a supposed high stick. He then allowed a Monarch goal that Moulson clearly interfered with LeNeveu on. In this one he would again be the center of controversy with another blown call. In the third period the Pack were charging hard and getting great opportunities that were stopped by Taylor. But the Pack had momentum and were clearly putting tremendous pressure on a bending Monarch defense. But at 12:10, Lauri Tukonen put a shot on LeNeveu that deflected high over the net and with a stick clearly over the top of the crossbar, Tukonen swatted it in. Pelletier was in good position to make the call and despite great protest from LeNeveu ruled that the shot was allowable and basically took all the wind out of the Pack’s sails.

This was another tough defeat for LeNeveu who is 2-3-0 with a 1.42GAA and .940% since coming over from San Antonio at the trade deadline. LeNeveu was solid throughout the entire game. In the first period alone he made some solid stops on on-time Rangers draft pick, Marc-Andre Cliche, (traded to the Monarch’s parent club, the L.A. Kings, in the Sean Avery deal) as well as AHL All-Star MVP, Teddy Purcell and on Moulson as well.

Bruce Berlet takes you inside the locker-room and tells you all about this one in the Hartford Courant. The Union-Leader has the Manchester perspective in a short piece.

Game stats are in the Game Summary and the Official Scorer’s Sheet.

*****NOTES*****
* The Pack record when trailing after two periods is 3-23-1-1

* When they out shoot their opponents the Pack are 15-16-2-4

* When the winning margin in games is 3-goals, the Pack tend to be more on the losing side of them at 2-8-0-0.

* Here’s the Brown – Westgarth fight from the game. ***WARNING*** The fans do swear in the background…

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rX96Vygwxo&hl=en]

*****LINES*****
Korpikoski – Moore – Gratton
Pock – Anisimov – Parenteau
Dupont – Ouellette – Jessiman
Lee – Owens

Taylor – Baranka
Brown – Potter
Constant – Sauer

LeNeveu

*****SCRATCHES*****
Liffiton – Concussion -Season
Hutchinson – Hip – Day-To-Day
Bourret – Concussion – Indefinite
Lessard – Knee – Season
Fritz – Shoulder – Undetermined
Byers – Second game of three game suspension

*****THREE STARS*****
1. MCH – 55 David Meckler
2. MCH – 25 Matt Moulson
3. HFD – 46 Jordan Owens

*****OFFICIALS*****
Nygel Pelletier (41), Referee
Jim Briggs (83), Linesman
Brent Colby (7), Linesman

(Jordan Owens photo courtesy of beanballinc.blogspot.com)