CRAWFORD: PACK POUND TIGERS
Hartford Wolf Pack 4, Bridgeport Sound Tigers 1
BY: Bob Crawford, Hartford Wolf Pack
Bridgeport, CT, February 23, 2020 – Tim Gettinger and Nick Jones had a goal and an assist apiece, and the Hartford Wolf Pack scored three special-teams goals, Sunday at Webster Bank Arena, in a 4-1 victory over the Bridgeport Sound Tigers.
The win, the Wolf Pack’s 30th of the season, lifted Hartford (30-14-6-5, 71 pts.) to within one point of idle Hershey for first place in the Atlantic Division.
J-F Berube, making his second start since joining the Wolf Pack, got his first Wolf Pack win with 17 saves, and Darren Raddysh had two assists. Josh Ho-Sang scored the only Bridgeport goal, and Jared Coreau made 26 saves.
“I thought it was a good 60 minutes,” Wolf Pack head coach Kris Knoblauch said. “Early in the game, I thought we had to rely on J-F making some key saves, but after that, we were pretty good.”
The two clubs traded power-play goals in the first period, on the first two man-advantage opportunities of the game.
Bridgeport struck first after Mason Geertsen was called for holding at 11:47. Sebastian Aho’s shot from high in the slot deflected wide, but Ho-Sang picked up the puck along the goal line on the right-wing side and moved around behind the net, beating Berube with a wraparound inside the goal post to his right, at 13:10.
That would be the only Bridgeport offense, though, and the Wolf Pack would go on to get the next four, starting when Vinni Lettieri tied things back up only 1:58 later, at 15:08, with Parker Wotherspoon off for hooking. Raddysh broke up a Bridgeport shorthanded rush in the Hartford end and passed ahead to Vitali Kravtsov. He moved across the middle in the Sound Tiger zone and set Lettieri up for a one-timer in the left circle, and the shot beat Coreau to the stick side.
That goal was Lettieri’s 24th of the season, a personal pro best for the Wolf Pack’s leading scorer.
Jones scored the only goal of the second period, the eventual game-winner, at 5:24. Patrick Newell fed the puck to Raddysh on the right side in the Bridgeport zone, and he took it towards the net, before sending towards the goalmouth. Jones and Gettinger both attacked the net, and Jones backhanded the puck inside the goal post to Coreau’s left.
The Wolf Pack then got two more in the third period, a shorthander by Gettinger and a power-play strike by Nick Ebert.
Gettinger scored his 13th of the season to up the lead to 3-1 at 6:16, with Steven Fogarty serving a delay-of-game penalty. Raddysh knocked a Sound Tiger pass out of the air in the defensive zone, and a Jones feed sent Gettinger up the right side. He made his way past Ho-Sang, a forward playing one of the power-play points, and cut across the front of the net, getting to his forehand to put the puck past Coreau on the stick side.
Then, with Bobo Carpenter in the box for holding, Ebert made it a three-goal advantage with 5:02 left. Matt Beleskey moved out high in the offensive zone and handed the puck to Ebert, who sent a long wrist shot from the right point that went through a Fogarty screen and eluded Coreau’s catching glove.
“The penalty-kill kind of put the game away, with the Gettinger shorthanded goal,” said Knoblauch. “The penalty kill’s been a strong point of our game throughout the year, and it was nice to see the power play rewarded today with a couple of goals.”
The Wolf Pack’s next action is this Friday night, February 28, when they travel to Binghamton to take on the Devils. Faceoff is 7:05. The next Wolf Pack home game is Sunday, March 1, a 3:00 contest vs. the Providence Bruins. That is another chance to take advantage of the Wolf Pack’s “Click It or Ticket Hat Trick Pack”. The Hat Trick Pack includes two tickets, two sodas, and one large popcorn, all for just $40.
Tickets for all 2019-20 Wolf Pack home games are on sale now at the Sunwave Gas & Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, on-line at www.hartfordwolfpack.com and by phone at (860) 722-9425. Tickets purchased in advance for kids 12 or younger start at just $10 each, and all tickets will have a $3 day-of-game increase.
To speak with a Wolf Pack representative about season or group tickets, or any of the Wolf Pack’s many ticketing options, call (860) 722-9425, or click here to request more info. To visit the Wolf Pack online, go to hartfordwolfpack.com.
Hartford Wolf Pack 4 at Bridgeport Sound Tigers 1
Sunday, February 23, 2020 – Webster Bank Arena
Hartford 1 1 2 – 4
Bridgeport 1 0 0 – 1
1st Period-1, Bridgeport, Ho-Sang 3 (Schilkey, Aho), 13:10 (PP). 2, Hartford, Lettieri 24 (Kravtsov, Raddysh), 15:08 (PP). Penalties-Geertsen Hfd (holding), 11:47; Wotherspoon Bri (hooking), 14:23.
2nd Period-3, Hartford, Jones 8 (Gettinger, Raddysh), 5:24. Penalties-Dmowski Hfd (slashing), 0:54; Aho Bri (slashing), 11:52.
3rd Period-4, Hartford, Gettinger 13 (Jones), 6:16 (SH). 5, Hartford, Ebert 5 (Beleskey, Fogarty), 14:58 (PP). Penalties-Geertsen Hfd (holding), 1:57; Fogarty Hfd (delay of game), 4:56; Carpenter Bri (holding), 13:20; Burroughs Bri (tripping), 15:38; Dmowski Hfd (elbowing), 19:32.
Shots on Goal-Hartford 6-11-13-30. Bridgeport 9-2-7-18.
Power Play Opportunities-Hartford 2 / 4; Bridgeport 1 / 5.
Goalies-Hartford, Berube 13-12-4 (18 shots-17 saves). Bridgeport, Coreau 10-14-1 (30 shots-26 saves).
A-5,427
Referees-Carter Sandlak (6), Mason Riley (79).
Linesmen-Nick Briganti (58), Petr Hejna (76).
