By: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack
HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack return to the XL Center for the team’s first ‘School Day Game’ on home ice since November 20th, 2019. The Springfield Thunderbirds come to town as the ‘I-91 Rivalry’ rages on for the third time this season.
The puck drop is set for 11:00 a.m. and coverage is available on both AHLTV and Mixlr.
Tale of The Tape:
This is the third of ten meetings between the Wolf Pack and Thunderbirds this season and the second of five at the XL Center. The sides met on October 14th in Springfield and on October 27th in Hartford. The road team has won both games in the season series, with Hartford claiming a 3-1 decision at the MassMutual Center and the Thunderbirds taking a 5-2 game at the XL Center.
The T-Birds won the last meeting on the strength of 37 saves from Vadim Zherenko and two goals from Adam Gaudette. Gaudette opened the scoring 9:56 into the game, converting on a powerplay for the visitors. Mikhail Abramov would make it 2-0 just 3:14 into the middle frame before Gaudette scored a five-on-three goal at 10:17 to put the T-Birds in control.
Alex Belzile got the Wolf Pack on the board at 17:23, but it would not be enough. Nathan Walker scored shorthanded 7:53 into the third period, while MacKenzie MacEachern hit the empty net at 18:43 to cement the victory.
Anton Blidh lit the lamp at 14:27 of the third period, sandwiched between the two Thunderbirds goals, for his first tally of the campaign.
The sides will meet once more this month, getting together on the day after Thanksgiving in Springfield. The T-Birds’ next visit to Hartford comes on February 3rd, 2024.
Wolf Pack Outlook:
The Wolf Pack dropped a 3-2 overtime decision on Sunday afternoon in Providence to finish their three-in-three weekend with a 1-1-1-0 record.
Anthony Richard opened the scoring 8:17 into the second period for the Bruins, tipping home a Jakub Zboril shot on the powerplay. Brandon Scanlin drew the Wolf Pack even 5:10 into the third period, firing his first goal of the season into the net from the slot. The Bruins powerplay struck again at 11:39, however, restoring the lead. Marc McLaughlin tapped home a pass from John Farinacci at the top of the crease for his second goal of the season.
Hartford had the answer again, this time scoring six-on-five at 17:49. Riley Nash won a faceoff directly to Nikolas Brouillard, who quickly slid a pass to Jonny Brodzinski. Brodzinski then blasted a one-timer by Brandon Bussi to force overtime.
Just 1:42 into overtime, however, Jesper Boqvist would speed in and beat Dylan Garand to give the Bruins the extra point.
Brodzinski leads the Wolf Pack in both goals with seven and points with 12 (7 g, 5 a). Mac Hollowell, meanwhile, leads the team in assists with nine.
On Monday, the parent New York Rangers (NHL) assigned defenseman Connor Mackey and goaltender Louis Domingue to the Wolf Pack. The club also reassigned goaltender Olof Lindbom from the Wolf Pack to the Cincinnati Cyclones (ECHL).
Thunderbirds Outlook:
The Thunderbirds fell 2-1 in overtime to the Bridgeport Islanders in their last outing on Saturday night at Total Mortgage Arena. After a first period that didn’t see a goal, each side struck in the middle stanza.
Ruslan Iskhakov opened the scoring at 5:54 of the period, beating Malcolm Subban for his third goal of the season. Joseph Duszak evened the affair just under ten minutes later, however, firing home his first goal with the club at 15:28.
The third period, like the first, didn’t see a goal and brought forth a three-on-three overtime period. 4:08 into the extra session, Iskhakov found the twine for the second time in the game to give the Isles the extra point.
Adam Gaudette leads the club in both goals with eleven and points with 18 (11 g, 7 a). Matthew Peca, meanwhile, leads the team in assists with eleven. Gaudette’s 18 points are the most in the league, while Nathan Walker’s 17 points (9 g, 8 a) are tied for second.
Gaudette also leads the league in goals with eleven, while Walker is tied for second with nine.
Game Information:
Play-by-play voice of the Wolf Pack Alex Thomas will have ‘Wolf Pack Pregame’ starting live at 10:45 a.m. on both AHLTV and Mixlr.
The Pack will take on the Syracuse Crunch in a home-and-home set this weekend. The back-to-back opens at 7:00 p.m. on Friday when the Wolf Pack make their lone trip to Upstate Medical University Arena. On Saturday, the sides will battle at the XL Center, with the puck drop set for 7:00 p.m.
Saturday night is also the first postgame skate with players this season and is the Wolf Pack’s annual ‘Military Appreciate Night’. For tickets and more information, visit 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 is the top player-development affiliate of the NHL’s New York Rangers and plays 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.
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