By: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack
PROVIDENCE, RI – For the second time in less than a week, the Hartford Wolf Pack spoiled the party at Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence with an overtime triumph. This time, it was Zac Jones who drove home the dagger to propel the Pack to a 2-1 victory.
Jones pushed the Pack to victory with his fifth goal of the season and his first overtime winner in the AHL. Ryan Carpenter collected the puck inside the Hartford zone on the opening shift of the extra frame, then darted up the ice and into the Providence end on the left-wing side. Carpenter then hit a streaking Jones, who collected the pass on his backhand, shifted to his forehand, and snapped the dagger by a sliding Kyle Keyser.
The sides played a scoreless first period for the second time in the season series. Hartford appeared to open the scoring in the final minute as Tanner Fritz beat Keyser from the right faceoff circle on a powerplay. Still, the goal was immediately waved off for goaltender interference.
The Wolf Pack opened the scoring for real for just the second time in the head-to-head series this season. Jack Achan was whistled for a cross-checking infraction at 13:04 of the second period, putting the Pack on their third powerplay of the night. As the final few seconds ticked off the minor penalty, Lauri Pajuniemi glided through the slot and flung a shot on goal that fooled Keyser at 15:04 to break the ice. The goal was Pajuniemi’s tenth of the season.
The Bruins responded with a powerplay goal of their own with just 31 seconds remaining in the period, making quick work of a too-many-men-on-the-ice penalty. Vinni Lettieri fired a shot from the left faceoff circle that Justin Brazeau tipped toward the Wolf Pack net. The deflection caught goaltender Dylan Garand and evened the score at the 19:29 mark.
A scoreless third period would push the Bruins and Wolf Pack to overtime for the third consecutive time at Amica Mutual Pavilion. However, Jones made quick work of the extra frame, scoring on the opening shift to push Hartford’s record in the three-on-three stanza to 3-3 on the campaign.
The goal came just hours after Jones was named to the 2023 AHL All-Star Classic.
The Pack return to the XL Center on Saturday, January 28th, hosting the Syracuse Crunch for the first time this season. Join us for New York Rangers night featuring special guest Stéphane Matteau! The puck drop is set for 7:00 pm; tickets are available at hartfordwolfpack.com.
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