FALCON CREST 

      VERSUS     

After losing four straight at home, the Hartford Wolf Pack entered Friday night’s contest against the visiting Springfield Falcons desperately seeking two things: goals and a win. But despite a 42-shot effort, it was ultimately a bad bounce on a clearing attempt that led to a Michael Blunden goal in overtime and a 2-1 defeat.

Just 47 seconds into extra time, Chad Kolarik drove hard to the net and drew a slashing penalty on team captain Dane Byers. During the resulting four-on-three advantage the Wolf Pack, who’d already killed five penalties in the game, battled hard and limited Falcon chances. Hartford managed to even generate a little offensive pressure shorthanded, but as it has been on this winless five-game homestand, even the good things have turned south for the Rangers American League affiliate.

While in the offensive zone, Jeremy Williams fell down. The puck was quickly moved out of the zone and created a four-on two odd man rush going the other way. The Falcons put a couple of shots on net that were handled easily by Chad Johnson (2-5-1, 23 saves) and when the puck wound up behind the net on the stick of rookie Ryan McDonagh it looked like the team would be able to make a change and get out of danger. But McDonagh’s clearing attempt took a weird bounce hitting a stanchion, changing its direction and stayed in the Pack end. Kolarik then put another shot on net only to have it mishandled by Johnson. The puck stayed in the crease where Blunden found it and poked it under the Pack goaltender for the game winner at 3:24.

“A lot of different guys were chipping in (on the winning goal). It wasn’t our best game offensively,” Falcons head coach Rob Riley said afterwards. “Bottom line, we found a way to win. The hockey gods were with us.”

If the hockey gods had anything to do with the outcome it was because they were filling the pads of Falcons starter and ex-Pack netminder, David LeNeveu (3-2-0, 41 saves) who was simply spectacular from start to finish. “Even our own guys came back to the bench surprised by the saves that (LeNeveu) had made.” Riley said. The amazing thing about how great of a performance LeNeveu put on was that it came nowhere near the amazing performance

The Pack were challenged by Head Coach Ken Gernander to find a way to generate more offensive chances. They certainly took that advice to heart pouring 20 shots on net in the first period, but the Fernie, British Columbia native rose to the challenge and stopped them all.

It wasn’t like they didn’t get good chances either. They just didn’t get good bounces.

At 14:34 of the first, a Grant Clitsome’s centering pass hit Chad Johnson’s pad and came right out to Kolarik in front of the crease. The Falcon center lifted the puck over Johnson (2-5-1, 23 saves) and deposited it into the back of the twine for a gift goal.

After that it was all Wolf Pack as the team started to pour shots in on LeNeveu.

First, Ryan Garlock, who has improved steadily with each game this season, missed the net in front. Then it was Tomas Kundratek, who got two amazing chances in front only to be stopped both times by LeNeveu’s acrobatics. In the last 26.6 the Pack had two other great chances but LeNeveu stop tall on Garlock for a second time and on Chris McKelvie.

Hartford outshot their guests 20-7 for the period.

They didn’t lighten up in the second period outshooting the Falcons 16-8.

When a team puts out that much effort, and gets all those shots, they’re bound to bear some fruit. At 6:50 the harvest came in.

After taking an outlet pass from Jared Nightingale, Kris Newbury executed a perfect give-and-go between he and Byers along the left wing boards. Newbury shot the puck from in front. The puck hit LeNeveu and came right back to him. The Brampton, Ontario native knocked it right past the game’s first star.

The score remained deadlocked through a tightly played third period that saw only eleven shots between the two teams with six going to the home team.

The best scoring chance of the period came with 5:49 remaining when Mats Zuccarello took a Newbury pass in front and was stopped by LeNeveu’s right leg.

Since winning on opening night, the team was just 0-4-1-0 in the friendly confines of the XL Center. On the current five game home stand, the Wolf Pack has netted the team just a single point in their overtime loss to Syracuse.

Gernander summed it up best. “We have to continue to persevere,” he said. “I can’t fault the overall effort and some of the heart and courage that you saw, but we still made some costly mistakes. When you’re in a bit of funk like this, your margin for margin isn’t such that you can afford to make mistakes. At some point in time, we’re going to have to have someone step up with a real big effort or big play or something.”

The Wolf Pack will get that chance Saturday night when they finish the home-and-home when they visit the Mass Mutual Center in Springfield. 

Bruce Berlet covered the game for both side. His story for the Wolf Pack can be found at HartfordWolfPack.com.  For the Springfield perspective, he filed this report at MassLive.com.  

GAME SUMMARY and OFFICIAL SCORERS SHEET

SOUNDS OF THE GAME

Ken Gernander Press Conference:

Mats Zuccarello:

Ryan McDonagh:

David LeNeveu:  

NOTES:

*With Evgeny Grachev on recall with the Rangers, Ken Gernander moved Nigel Williams up to right wing.

*LeNeveu backstopped the Salzburg Red Bulls of the Austrian Elite League last season and led them to a Championship.

*LeNeveu had a 55-stop performance in a 4-1 win against the Wolf Pack on 12/31/2003 in his first go-round with Springfield.

*The Wolf Pack scored only four goals in the five-game homestand

LINES:

DiDiomete – Dupont – J.Williams
Soryal – McKelvie – N. Williams
Byers – Newbury – Zuccarello
Donati – Garlock – Tessier

Valentenko – Nightingale
McDonagh – Kundratek 
Redden – Niemi

Johnson 
Grumet-Morris

(Assistant Captains Bold and Italicized)

SCRATCHES:

Cam Talbot – Groin – Day-to-Day
Tim Kennedy – Undisclosed – Indefinite
Dale Weise – Broken Wrist – Four to Six weeks
Lee Baldwin – Healthy Scratch
Brandon Wong – Healthy Scratch

THREE STARS:

1. SPR – D. LeNeveu
2. HFD – D. Byers
3. HFD – K. Newbury

ON ICE OFFICIALS:

Referee:
Ian Croft (87)

Linesmen:
David Spannaus (8)
Brent Colby (7)

NEXT GAME:

You think that maybe the Wolf Pack want to get out of Dodge and try their luck on the road? Well, they’ll have to try one more time at home first as they wrap up the five game homestand hoping to a) score some goals and b) win one.  They play their first home-and-home series of the season with Springfield. Game-time is 7pm with Bob Crawford and the pregame at 6:30pm.

To watch the game live, you can purchased it for $6.99 at AHL-live.

For Ticket information call (860) 548-2000.

Too far away or can’t make it? Listen live at WTIC.com or from your cell phone or computer visit www.twitter.com/howlingstoday for complete live in-game coverage.

SCORE-SHEET:

Springfield Falcons 2 (OT) at Hartford Wolf Pack 1 – Status: Final OT
Friday, October 29, 2010 – XL Center Veterans Memorial Coliseum

Springfield 1 0 0 1 – 2
Hartford 0 1 0 0 – 1

1st Period-1, Springfield, Kolarik 4 (Clitsome, Blunden), 14:34. Penalties-DiDiomete Hfd (interference), 0:49; Newbury Hfd (slashing), 7:12; Savard Spr (interference), 9:33; Sigalet Spr (hooking), 15:31; Blunden Spr (roughing), 17:35; Byers Hfd (roughing), 17:35.

2nd Period-2, Hartford, Newbury 1 (Byers, Nightingale), 6:50. Penalties-Dupont Hfd (boarding), 0:13; Savard Spr (interference), 1:21; Nightingale Hfd (elbowing), 4:39; Kana Spr (hooking), 16:36.

3rd Period- No Scoring.Penalties-Sestito Spr (fighting), 6:35; Nightingale Hfd (misconduct – unsportsmanlike conduct), 6:35; Soryal Hfd (fighting), 6:35; Valentenko Hfd (holding), 6:35.

OT Period-3, Springfield, Blunden 6 (Kolarik, Moore), 3:24. Penalties-Byers Hfd (slashing), 0:47.

Shots on Goal-Springfield 7-8-5-5-25. Hartford 20-16-6-0-42.
Power Play Opportunities-Springfield 0 / 6; Hartford 0 / 4.
Goalies-Springfield, LeNeveu 3-2-0 (42 shots-41 saves). Hartford, Johnson 2-5-1 (25 shots-23 saves).
A-2,952
Referees-Ian Croft (87).
Linesmen-David Spannaus (8), Brent Colby (7).