WOLF PACK WEEKLY: March 23 – 29, 2009 

The Wolf Pack (40-26-3-3, 86 pts.) faced a stretch of four Atlantic Division games in five days last week, and the club won three of them, to move into first place in the division.  The three victories also put the Pack over the 40-win mark for the year, giving the franchise six straight 40-win years, which ties an AHL record.  The Wolf Pack posted their third shutout of the season in Wednesday’s home matchup with Lowell, scoring a 1-0 win.  Friday in Portland the Pack knocked off the Pirates, 3-1, and the Wolf Pack then reached a season high for offense, and registered their most lopsided win of the season, Saturday at Springfield, with a 7-2 thumping of the Falcons.  The busy week concluded with a 5-3 loss to the Providence Bruins Sunday in Providence.  Miika Wiikman was 3-0-0 in the Wolf Pack net on the week, with a total of only two goals-against on 52 shots and his fourth career AHL shutout.  Patrick Rissmiller topped the team offensively during the week, with five points (1-4-5) in the four games.

This week:

After playing seven games in a span of 10 days, the Wolf Pack have only two games on the schedule this week.  The Pack will make their one-and-only visit of the year to Albany on Friday night (7:00 faceoff), and then will host divisional rival Providence on “Boy Scout Hat Night” Saturday at the XL Center (7:00).

Friday, March 27 at Albany (Times Union Center), 7:00 PM

· This is the second meeting of the year between the Wolf Pack and River Rats, and the Pack’s lone trip of the season to Albany.  The Wolf Pack won the first game of the year between the two clubs, 3-1, November 1 in Hartford.

· The River Rats (31-32-3-3, 68 pts.) currently occupy sixth place in the East Division and are 16 points out of a playoff spot.

· Jakub Petruzalek, who spent six games with the Wolf Pack in 2006-07, is Albany’s leading scorer, with 17-33-50 in 67 games.

· Radio – live with Bob Crawford in HD on WTIC’s 96.5 HD 2 and on-line at www.hartfordwolfpack.com and www.wtic.com.

Saturday, March 28 vs. Providence at the XL Center, 7:00 PM

· This is “Boy Scout Hat Night” at the XL Center.  All scouts who purchase group tickets in advance through the Wolf Pack ticket office at (860) 548-2000 will receive a special Wolf Pack scout hat.

· Fans can help battle hunger by bringing non-perishable food items to the game, to be donated to Foodshare.

· Sunday’s 5-3 home win over the Wolf Pack moved the second-place Bruins (39-25-2-5, 85 pts.) to within one point of the Pack in the Atlantic Division.

· The Wolf Pack are 2-3-1-0 on the year against Providence but have won two of the three previous meetings at the XL Center.

· Bruins points leader Martin St. Pierre (14-47-61 in 53 GP) had three assists in Sunday’s victory over the Pack, and top-scoring AHL defenseman Johnny Boychuk (19-39-58 in 70 GP) struck for two goals and an assist.

· Radio – live with Bob Crawford in HD on WTIC’s 96.5 HD 2 and on-line at www.hartfordwolfpack.com and www.wtic.com.

Recent Transactions:

Paul Crowder – signed to an Amateur Tryout (ATO) agreement by the Wolf Pack March 20.

Pack Tracks:

Adult tickets for Wolf Pack home games can be purchased for as low as $10 each for the rest of the regular season, sponsored by Click It or Ticket.  Individual tickets for Wolf Pack games are on sale now at the XL Center Box Office and all Ticketmaster locations, including Macy's at the Buckland Hills Mall and at the Westfarms Mall. Tickets may also be charged by phone at 1-800-745-3000, and on-line at www.hartfordwolfpack.com.  Season tickets, coupon books and group tickets are also available.  Contact 860-548-2000 for more details.

The Wolf Pack has a new broadcast partnership this season with WTIC NewsTalk 1080 and WTIC-FM.  All of the Wolf Pack’s regular-season and playoff games will air on 96.5 WTIC-FM’s HD 2 channel and will be streamed on-line at www.wtic.com . Select games will be carried live on the 50,000-watt AM powerhouse, WTIC NewsTalk 1080.  And, as part of the partnership, all Wolf Pack full season ticket accounts will receive a free HD car radio, with installation from JoDi’s Sound Center, courtesy of the two stations and the Wolf Pack.  To purchase your season seats, contact the Wolf Pack ticket office at 860-548-2000.

TRACK THE PACK AT WWW.HARTFORDWOLFPACK.COM