BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings
BRIDGEPORT, CT – Tim Gettinger’s overtime power play gave the Hartford Wolf Pack a 3-2 win over the Bridgeport Sound Tigers.
A holding penalty to Parker Wotherspoon in overtime was unappreciated by the Sound Tigers. Still, for the league’s second-best power play unit, it was an opportunity that they took advantage of it.
The four-on-three advantage saw the Wolf Pack use good puck and player movement earning three quality scoring chances. The first was Jonny Brodzinski, then Gettinger, and then Tarmo Reunanen. All three were stopped by Czech rookie netminder, the impressive Jakub Skarek.
Morgan Barron then fired a shot from the right-wing circle. The shot went off the stick of defenseman Seth Helgeson, who was trying to block it. Skarek was there to make the save. The loose puck was scooped up by Gettinger, who backhanded his eighth goal of the season at 3:32.
PACK STAY IN SECOND PLACE
Hartford stays in second place with a record of 12-8-1-0 (25 points). They have closed the gap on the Providence Bruins to just four points. They play on Saturday at 1 PM at the XL Center.
The Sound Tigers fall to 6-13-2-0 (14 points). They will play Providence on Thursday in Marlborough, MA.
Using the final games as a playoff series, the Wolf Pack are tied two games apiece.
In the third period, Tyler Wall in net for the Pack was solid, making key stops and then Skarek (35 saves) stopped a Darren Raddysh right point blast and Paul Thompson’s net-front rebound chance; seconds later, Ty Ronning put one just over the net.
“Our goalie kept us in it, to be in the hockey game. He’s really quick and has been calm in net for us, which I like, and he has grown since the start of the season when he was more overactive (at times),” said Bridgeport head coach Brent Thompson.
The Sound Tigers, riding a three-game winning streak, finally broke through the Wolf Pack defensive curtain with two quick-strike goals within a 28-second span to tie the game.
SOUND TIGERS TIE THE GAME
The tying goal came with Blade Jenkins along the right-wing wall. He took a rim-around-the-boards pass from Thomas Kuhnhackl that escaped rookie Hunter Skinner. He then went to Jenkins.
Jenkins found Cole Bardreau at the net on the back door behind Vincent LoVerde. He made an open blade redirect past Wall for his ninth of the season.
The momentum of the game changed like flicking a switch.
“I was fighting the puck like everybody else in the first two periods. I just locked eyes with Blade (Jenkins), and I knew he was gonna find me. All I had to do was get to that far post, and he made a great play.”
THOMPSON APPRECIATES BARDREAU
“We dug ourselves a hole by not being ready. We were sleeping at the beginning (the first two periods), and Cole has a way to bring energy. He plays the right way. He plays a solid 200-foot game. He’s a voice on the bench, and he has been successful this year producing offense. He’s contagious (in how he plays) and helped us get back in this game.”
The Sound Tigers’ first goal came with Dmytro Timashov wide open on the left-wing side, taking a rebound off Wall’s right-pad save. He then zipped his fifth goal of the season into the open top portion of the net at 11:41.
Forechecking pressure by Bridgeport’s Jeff Kubiak forced Reunanen to make a one-hand swipe at the puck. It went right to Robert “Bobo” Carpenter, who put the shot on Wall.
“It was good character by our club to get back in the game to make it 2-2 and take it to overtime,” Thompson said.
After Timashov’s goal off the ensuing faceoff, Gettinger had a serious quality chance but hit he post, and the Sound Tigers went back up ice and scored to tie it.
SECOND PERIOD
Late in the second period, the Wolf Pack power play brought their precision to the ice and tallied on their second opportunity.
The play began with a cross-ice pass to Ty Ronning by Patrick Newell. Ronning controlled the puck in the air on a pass by Austin Rueschhoff. He grabbed it, put it to the ice in one motion, and flipped a short backhanded pass to Rueschhoff.
With space, the rookie sent a short pass over to Reunanen, who had a team-high five shots. He tossed a floating wrister toward the net with an effective Thompson screen that allowed the puck to sail into the back of the net for a 2-0 Wolf Pack lead at 17:04.
Reunanen’s fourth of the season allowed the Wolf Pack to continue its impressive power play goal streak.
The Wolf Pack have registered at least one power play goal in nine of their last eleven games.
PACK FIRST GOAL
The Wolf Pack’s first goal broke the Sound Tigers’ five-game streak of scoring the game’s first goal. Barron was at the lower left-wing boards and shipped a short pass to Brodzinski, who escaped his check from Samuel Bolduc. He whirled and turned in the left-wing circled, and whistled a wrist shot by Skarek for his sixth goal at 13:58.
Brodzinski set up the scoring play with an initial dump-in. Barron retrieved and escaped a check from the Sound Tigers’ Tanner Fritz.
Just 30 seconds before, the Sound Tigers had a solid chance as Zach Giuttari lost his edge and the puck by forechecking pressure by the Sound Tigers Simon Holmstrom.
Then he dished off a pass to Cole Coskey, moving on the left wing with good speed and inside position on Patrick Sieloff and went backhand to forehand, cutting in on the net, but Wall denied him.
LINES
Richards-Gettinger-Ronning
Newell-Brodzinski-Barron
Rueschhoff-O’Leary-Geersten
Khordorenko-Greco-Thompson
Raddysh-Reunanen
LoVerde-Skinner
Giutarri-Sieloff
Huska
Wall
THREE STARS
Tim Gettinger Hartford
Morgan Barron Hartford
Jakub Skarek Bridgeport
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Tarmo Reunanen – Hartford
Austin Rueschhoff – Hartford
Cole Bardreau – Bridgeport
SCRATCHES
Jeff Taylor
Alex Whalen
Will Cullye
James Sanchez
Ryan Dmowski
Zach Berzolla
Francois Brassard
Gabriel Fontaine (upper-body, season over)
NOTES
Morgan Barron’s younger brother, Justin, who is playing for the Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL), signed his NHL Entry Level Contract (ELC) to start in the fall. The Mooseheads head coach is former Wolf Pack assistant coach J.J. Daigneault.
In the third, Jakub Sharek’s rink-length clearing attempt went right on the net. Wall made the stop. A shot on goal for the goalie doesn’t happen often.
The Wolf Pack power play remains second-best in the AHL at 29.8%, a shade behind #1, the Cleveland Monsters at 30.3%.
Former Wolf Pack, Ville Meskanen, is looking for a new team to play next season. He was not resigned following the conclusion of a two-year deal with Ilves Tampere (Finland-FEL).
Chris Bourque joins Meskanen in unemployment as his deal with EHC Munich (Germany-DEL) was not renewed.
