By: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings
HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack extended their record to 4-0-0-0 while earning the franchise’s 1,000th win in a 5-1 victory over the Lehigh Valley Phantoms before 5,292 Saturday night at the XL Center.
The win made it four straight to open the season for the Wolf Pack, the first time they’ve achieved that since Jason LaBarbera was the team’s MVP in 2004.
“We got off to an incredible start in the first 25 minutes. We got ahead and were able to play our game and put them away. Their goalie made some good saves, and we couldn’t finish off our plays. The fact we didn’t finish those allowed them to get back in the game and make it a one-goal game going into the third,” Pack Head Coach Kris Knoblauch said after the game.
The third period saw the Pack’s Alex Belizle open in the left-wing circle and hit the post 31 seconds in.
The Pack finally got the elusive third goal as Adam Edström used his size, strength, and speed to protect the puck before feeding Brandon Scanlin at the right point.
Scanlin sent a shot through some traffic that Jake Leschyshyn intercepted in front. He then turned around and passed it quickly to the incoming Nik Brouillard, who came down from the left point. With the open highway to the net, Brousillard avenged the power play goal that the Phantoms scored on his penalty.
For Brousillard, it was his first of the season at 6:53 while the two teams played four-on-four.
“Nik has played very well for us this weekend. A great start; (we) played well in these two games (this weekend) and created a lot of offense. He moves very well and composed with the puck. Forwards like to play with defensemen who play like that because you’re gonna get the puck. I was very happy with how he played. It’s good when defenseman extend their play and contribute offensively and be aggressive, but we have balanced our decision-making smartly, “remarked Knoblauch.
Then, after not being critically tested to that point, starting netminder Dylan Garand made consecutive pad saves of Eliot Desnoyers and Helge Grans.
“Dylan wasn’t tested very much the first 25 or 30 minutes of the game. In the second half of the game, Dylan came up big. Even in the second period, we spent the majority of the time in their zone, whether power play or five-on-five play,” Knoblach said. “Even though we didn’t create as much (as they had in the first), we didn’t realize they created some big chances. When we looked at the tape after the second, Dylan made the saves (and in the third). “
The Phantoms had to open up their play and take chances to get themselves back into the game. At 10:33, the Pack took advantage of that and made it 4-1 as Bobby Trivigno cut in laterally and elevated the puck over a prone goaltender, Cal Petersen, who made the first move.
Ben Harpur made the play possible with a solid backhander that cleared off the boards in the Wolf Pack Pack zone. Then rookie Ryder Korczak earned his first professional point with a small center ice tip of the pass off the boards that sent Trivigno on his way.
“Bobby didn’t get to play much in the second (period) with all the power play time, and we have our PK units. We rotate guys in and out to play in certain situations who are very capable of playing both, Tonight, to play in these types of games, he put it all together in the third and came up big for us. It was not just that big goal for us, he had some key blocked shots in the first period and drew a couple of penalties, and he’s hard to defend against. We’re happy with him so far,” remarked Knoblauch.
Jonny Brodzinski followed, taking a wing-to-wing pass from Belzile on the right side and beating Petersen stick side high from 20 feet out on the left wing at 15:55. The Pack captain earned his second point of the evening, securing a 5-1 lead.
“We’ve been very pleased by Alex’s play. He played in Laval and Montreal with the Canadians. We’re very fortunate to have him here in the American (Hockey) League.”
Knoblach said having depth on his bench in this early part of the season is an important factor.
“Depth in the National (Hockey) League and in the American (Hockey) League because of Friday-Saturday and sometimes Friday-Saturday-Sunday, you play so many back-to-back games. We’re very happy with the guys. They played in the first period, and there wasn’t any power play time. We were just rolling four lines. We like the flow and the depth we have developed here.”
The second frame was scoreless until late in the period, with the five-on-five play coming only in spurts, with both teams taking penalties.
The Pack managed two shots in nine seconds from Mac Hollowell and Matt Robertson early in the period that Petersen stopped.
The Phantoms scored the first goal of the season by a Pack opponent at the XL when Nikolas Brouillard was hit with a questionable interference minor on a hit to Tanner Lacynski. Brouillard skated away, shaking his head. Ryder Korczak earned himself a ten-minute misconduct for his extended verbal commentary to the referees.
Lacynski came in on a break-in shortly after that and was stopped by Garand, who came out to challenge him. Olle Lycksell corralled the big rebound and beat Garand to the short side to narrow the Pack lead to 2-1 at 18:58.
In the first, the Wolf Pack broke out with a 2-0 lead after a solid period of play.
At 5:59, the red-hot Brett Berard, who was stopped earlier in his shift, was in the right-wing circle and evaded Adam Ginning’s weak stick check before snapping a wrist shot over Cal Petersen’s shoulder, tallying his second goal in as many nights. It was the Pack’s fifth shot of the night as they held the Phantoms shotless.
“I saw they were coming late for their line change; I had a lot of open ice. (Nik Brouillard) made a really good pass. I was going lower and lower as (Petersen) was coming out on me. I just was lucky it went in. It’s always the way I’ve played,” Berard said. “Can’t score if you don’t get pucks on the net. Whenever there is open ice for me or a lane, I always try to shoot. It’s always good to get pucks to the net. I’ve been lucky things have worked in my favor. “
The Pack grabbed a 2-0 lead when Jonny Brodzinski was at the left point on a power play. He took a soft pass from Mac Hollowell and put a shot on Peterson. The rebound went right to Alex Belizle at the left side of the net, and he promptly deposited his second of the young season into the wide-open left side of the net at 16:45.
The Wolf Pack requested that the off-ice officials change the primary assist from Hollowell to Nash, who either tipped it or glanced off his skate and went to Belzile.
LINES:
Jake Leschyshyn – Anton Blidh – Adam Sýkora
Brennan Othmann – Riley Nash – Brett Berard
Alex Belzile – Adam Edström – Jonny Brodzinski
Matt Rempe – Ryder Korczak – Bobby Trivigno
Mac Hollowell – Connor Mackey
Ben Harpur – Nikolas Brouillard
Brandon Scanlin – Matt Robertson
Dylan Garand
Louie Domingue
SCRATCHES:
Blake Hillman
Karl Henriksson
NOTES:
The Phantoms, amid a three-in-three weekend, scored the last five goals in a 5-2 win in Springfield over the Thunderbirds on Friday night.
One player with CT connections in Lehigh’s lineup was Adam Karaschik (Ridgefield/Avon Old Farms/UCONN).
Update on Friday Night’s fan Disturbance – At the end of Friday night’s game, it turned out that a handful of kids in section 204 were tossing hot dogs, and “adults” were throwing the rally towels and chuck-a-pucks before the Hartford Police Department dispersed and eject the unruly fans.
UCONN broke a three-game losing streak by beating the Union College Garnet Chargers (ECACHL), as they are now known, 5-0. They split the non-conference weekend series on the road as Tristan Fraser scored twice.
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