HARTFORD WOLF PACK REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK
By: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings
HARTFORD, CT – Hartford Wolf Pack news is starting to trickle out as New York Rangers training camp has officially opened, with a few tidbits still to come.
The Rangers dropped their first pre-season game in Boston 3-0 to the Bruins as young netminder Brandon Bussi put up a 29-save shutout.
Likely Pac-bound forward Will Cullye had a strong game for the Rangers. Adam Sýkora rang one off the crossbar late in the second for NY.
The game featured several Wolf Pack players, including goalie Louie Domingue.
Domingue played the second half of the game and lost a skateblade on one save.
After the game, the Rangers assigned six players to the Wolf Pack. They include goaltender Olof Lindbom, defensemen Seth Barton, Zach Berzolla, and Ryan McCleary, the son of former New Haven Senator Trent McCleary, who is signed for an overage year with his hometown Swift Current Broncos (WHL). He was traded to them by the Portland Winterhawks about a month ago.
Forwards, Maxim Barbashev, the younger brother of Las Vegas Golden Knight Ivan Barbashev, was moved in a QMJHL trade last month from Moncton Wildcats to the Shawnigan Cataractes.
Barbshev, at 19, will be headed there as per the NHL-CHL agreement once the Wolf Pack training camp ends or whenever the organization ends his PTO deal.
Barbashev turns 20 on December 18th. Sahil Panwar is a summer free agent signee by the Wolf Pack.
Ex-Pack/Ranger bust, despite five points in five games, Vitali Kravtsov was injured early in his KHL season with Traktor Chelyabinsk. He is out four to six weeks with an upper-body injury and is out a week to ten days into it.
Kenny Agostino, a former Yale Bulldog, following his deal being scuttled in Sweden after being in Russia the last two years, signs in Germany with Düsseldorfer EG (DEL).
MATT GILROY
Ex-CT Whale/Ranger Matt Gilroy is now an assistant coach with the USNDTP U-18 team (USHL), replacing current Ranger assistant coach and former Yale/Sacred Heart assistant coach Dan Muse.
A great Gilroy story.
The Wolf Pack once put up a game-time trivia question on the scoreboard asking what college Gilroy attended.
On the scoreboard, they put up Boston College. Except Gilroy spent four years at BC’s rival Boston University.
A staff member had to go to the locker room between periods to grab him for a radio interview. Gilroy was NOT pleased. “How stupid are you people? I spent four (expletive) years at BU!”
In the post-game, Howlings jokingly asked Glroy at the end of the interview what school he attended.
He responded bitterly, then ripped the organization for screwing it up.
Matt Barnaby Jr. (Avon Old Farms-AOF), the son of the former Ranger, stays in the Sunshine State and heads over from the Orlando Solar Bears (ECHL) to the Florida Everblades (ECHL).
Nicolas Sykora, the son of NHL’er Petr Sykora, commits to Quinnipiac University (ECACHL) in 2026-27.
