BY: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack
HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack will look for their first victory in April tonight when they conclude a back-to-back set at the XL Center. Tonight’s opponent, the Syracuse Crunch, is making their first and only visit in Hartford this season.
The puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m.
Tale of The Tape
This is the second and final meeting between the Wolf Pack and Crunch during the 2021-22 season. The Crunch scored a 4-2 victory over the Wolf Pack in the first meeting on March 16th. Justin Richards tied the game 1-1 at 4:41 of the second period after Alex Barré-Boulet opened the scoring in the first period. Otto Somppi put the Crunch ahead for good 2:03 into the final frame, while Darren Raddysh and Gabriel Fortier tacked on insurance markers. Zac Jones scored his sixth goal of the season at 18:00, but the result was determined by that point.
This is Syracuse’s first visit to Hartford since November 20th, 2019. That night, the Crunch skated to a 3-1 decision over the Pack.
Hartford has not defeated Syracuse since February 9th, 2018. In Syracuse, the Pack scored a 4-3 shootout victory. Adam Tambellini and Ryan Gropp scored in the shootout, while Alexandar Georgiev made 43 saves.
Wolf Pack Outlook
On Friday night, the Wolf Pack dropped their ninth game in their last eleven outings. Maxim Letunov scored his first goal with the Wolf Pack just 23 seconds into the contest, but Hartford couldn’t solve Filip Gustavsson again. Jonathan Aspirot tied the affair 12:34 into the game, while Lassi Thomson scored a five-on-three goal at 14:55 to give the Sens a lead they would not lose. Egor Sokolov and Logan Shaw both added powerplay goals for insurance.
Hartford surrendered three powerplay goals in a game for the second time this season and the first time since February 27th against the Providence Bruins.
Greco leads the Pack in scoring with 50 points (17 g, 33 a). He also leads active skaters in goals with 17.
The Wolf Pack signed forward Bobby Trivigno to an amateur tryout agreement (ATO) on Saturday morning. On Friday, he signed an entry-level contract with the parent New York Rangers (NHL). Forward Easton Brodzinski also joined the Wolf Pack as he signed a professional tryout (PTO) with the club. He is the younger brother of Wolf Pack captain Jonny Brodzinski.
Crunch Outlook
Last night, the Crunch dropped a 5-3 decision in Utica against the Comets. Utica jumped out to a 4-0 lead before the Crunch scored three goals in a span of 1:55 in the third period to cut the deficit to 4-3. Fortier got the Crunch on the board 15:56 into the third period, then Simon Ryfors (16:13) and Barré-Boulet (17:51) quickly scored to put the game in doubt. Finally, Tyce Thompson’s empty-net goal at 18:53 cemented the victory for Utica after some nervous moments.
Gabriel Dumont leads the Crunch in scoring with 49 points (24 g, 25 a) on the season. His 24 goals are also atop the Crunch.
The Crunch enters tonight’s game with a record of 30-24-6-2, good for a points percentage of .548 and a fifth-place standing in the North Division.
Game Information
WATCH: AHLTV
LISTEN: https://mixlr.com/hfd-wolf-pack/
Join us tonight at the XL Center for Hartford Sports Weekend and a Wolf Pack coffee mug giveaway for the first 1,500 fans into the building courtesy of Xfinity! Tickets are still available at www.hartfordwolfpack.com.
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ABOUT THE HARTFORD WOLF PACK
The Hartford Wolf Pack has been a premier franchise in the American Hockey League since the team’s inception in 1997. The Wolf Pack are the top player-development affiliate of the NHL’s New York Rangers and play at the XL Center. The Wolf Pack has been home to some of the Rangers’ newest faces, including Igor Shesterkin, Filip Chytil, and Ryan Lindgren. Follow the Wolf Pack on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok.
