WIIKMAN HEADING SOUTH 

In a move that many have been speculating for a while, Miika Wiikman has been reassigned by the Hartford Wolf Pack to the Charlotte Checkers of the ECHL. Wiikman has been battling injuries since training camp and hasn’t been able to play and this may be a chance for him to get healthy and then rejoin the team down the road or it could be the end of his Wolf Pack career. Only the organization knows the answer to that one.

Miika has been an incredibly generous person with his time and support of Howlings. We wish for him a speedy recovery and that he come back stronger and able to make a push for himself to play in Hartford. If the organization is finished then we hope that Wiikman will find a team that will give him a legitimate shot at making the AHL and even possibly an NHL franchise.

Remember this about Wiikman. It was his outstanding play between the pipes two seasons ago that set the wheels in motion that sent Al Montoya out to Phoenix. It was at that time and ever since that we proudly changed the goaltender picture in our logo from Jason LaBarbara to Wiikman.

Good luck Miika.

Here’s the official release.

GOALTENDER MIIKA WIIKMAN REASSIGNED FROM WOLF PACK TO CHARLOTTE

Hartford Wolf Pack general manager Jim Schoenfeld announced today that the parent New York Rangers have reassigned goaltender Miika Wiikman from the Wolf Pack to the team’s ECHL affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers.

Wiikman had been unable to suit up for the Wolf Pack’s four preseason games, or their season opener in Binghamton Saturday, due to injury.  Last season, Wiikman saw action in 43 games for the Pack, going 21-18-4 with a 2.70 goals-against average, a 90.4% save percentage and two shutouts.  In 77 career outings in a Wolf Pack uniform over two seasons, the Mariestad, Sweden native is 42-26-7, with a 2.53 GAA, a 91.1% save percentage and four shutouts.

The Wolf Pack return to action this Friday night, October 9, visiting the Providence Bruins for a 7:05 game, before returning to the XL Center for their home opener against the Springfield Falcons Saturday night.  Faceoff on Saturday is 7:00, and once again this season, tickets to the home opener are only $10 each.

The Wolf Pack is offering “Knockout Season Ticket Prices” for 2009-10, with across-the-board price reductions of 8-13% depending on the seat location, as well as terrific discounts for groups of 15 or more.  For more information, visit www.hartfordwolfpack.com, or call the Wolf Pack ticket office at (860) 548-2000 to talk with an account executive today about all of the Wolf Pack’s many ticket options.

Single-game tickets for 2009-10 Hartford Wolf Pack regular season home games are on sale now at the XL Center box office, through Ticketmaster Charge-by-Phone at 1-800-745-3000 and on-line at www.hartfordwolfpack.com.

The AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack is operated by Northland AEG LLC, a joint partnership between Northland Investment Corporation and AEG Facilities.  The team is the top player-development affiliate of the NHL’s New York Rangers.

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