WOLF PACK MAKE IT SIX STRAIGHT ON BIG OTHMANN NIGHT 

By: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings

HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack clawed out a 5-4 overtime win on Brennan Othman’s power play game-winner, capping a weekend series sweep of the Lehigh Valley Phantoms at 5,534 at the XL Center Saturday night.

For Othman, it was his first AHL game-winner and the team’s sixth straight victory.

The Pack tallied on the man advantage when they connected on the four-on-three power play in overtime.

Nikolas Brouillard was low in the right-wing circle and found Othmann up top. The rookie forward then waited patiently for Tanner Lacyzinski to slide past him, wired his second goal of the night and eighth of the season, and past Phantoms’ goaltender Felix Sandstrom at 3:52.

Othmann, who has put up ten points in his last seven games and is on a three-game goal-scoring streak, credits his father for his poise and patience.

“I give credit to my dad (Gery). He played pro hockey over in Switzerland (EHC Basel/EHC Visp and HC Thurgau). He was a good hockey player and has a hockey school back at home,” Othmann said. “I thrived with that. I did all my training with him. It’s called Pro Sports Hockey. That’s the name he had. It was three days a week as a kid, with him. It was shooting and patience. He was there when I was a kid and taught me about patience and waiting-out players. I gotta give him the credit sometimes.”

Othmann is still adjusting to playing the professional game.

“I’ve had adversity in my life and been able to handle it. The older guys in this locker room have been great. Not only (coaching) staff but also the equipment staff and support staff. The trainers in the gym. Not only us younger guys but the veteran players as well. The players have helped me. Everybody is helping everyone.

“The staff was so helpful. I was playing well but not playing my best hockey. They sat with me and did a lot of videos. They told me to stick with it. Your shot is what got you here; keep shooting, stay with it, use your creativity, and don’t be afraid to do that.

“It’s really cliché. It’s just the little details that fans upstairs might not see, but the organization might see. That’s what they’re looking at, and I’ve been able to nail those details down.

“I’ll need to sharpen up a couple more things. I think I’m starting to learn the pro-style and details every day,” Othmann said.

In the third period, Pack starting netminder Dylan Garand made a vital early save for the Pack to maintain the lead, stopping the Phantoms’ Samu Tuomaala on his doorstep.

The Wolf Pack, off a left-wing rush, extended the lead to two goals when Brett Berard fired a skillful shot over Sandstrom’s shoulder at 5:29 to take a 4-2 lead.

The Phantoms fought back in the Wolf Pack zone 33 seconds later when defenseman Emil Andrae had the puck at the left point. He fired a cross-ice pass to an open Jordy Bellerive in the right-wing circle. Bellerive then tallied his first goal of the year at 6:02.

Having just completed a league-imposed suspension, Garrett Wilson tied the score at 16:01 when he redirected Ronnie Attard’s left point shot for his fifth goal of the campaign, which tied the score at four. It was the third time in the game that a two-goal was blown.

With 1:22 left, Connor Mackey leveled Elliot Desnoyers coming across into the Pack zone with his head down on the left wing side. After the hit in which his helmet spun off,  a small scrum ensued, and Mackey was tagged with a minor for elbowing.

At the buzzer, the Phantoms saw Garland rob Olle Lycksell as he was wide open on the right side of the net. He went down to one knee, and the left-handed shot tried to convert a pass from Lacyzinski for the game-winner, but Garand came up a glove save for his third, colossal stop.

The Phantoms had the puck in the Pack zone for the entire last minute of regulation.

TEDDY BEAR TOSS

The Pack opened the second period, bringing the rain of the teddy bears in the annual promotion.

At 1:13 and on the powerplay, Riley Nash won a draw from Desnoyers. Alex Belizle retrieved the loose biscuit and shoveled it to Brouillard at the blue line. Brouillary then advanced the puck to Othmann. From 40 feet out, Othmann turned and wristed a blast at the net. Nash screened Sandstrom and, tallied his seventh goal of the year, and set off the downpour of Teddy Bears.

“I very rarely talk to him about scoring goals. He has a lot of hockey sense. He was squeezing his stick there for a while, trying to score. I know he’s gonna score goals,” Pack Interim Head Coach Steve Smith said. “He has a natural shot, an ability. The team has taken him under their collective wing and made him feel comfortable, and your personal success will lead to team success.”

Smith added, “We talk about backtracking on a daily basis, and how well he entered the (offensive) zone. What he’s doing on the wall. How physical he is. We’re talking all-around hockey. The goals are gonna come, and they have been for the last little while. In all honesty, we’re trying the develop an all-around hockey player here. “

Smith loved the goal and the idea of the Teddy Bear toss, but there was a downside to it, according to the coach.

“You know we scored the goal, and they tossed the teddy bears. It kind of killed the momentum there for a little bit,” He said.

The Pack has now tallied at least one power play goal in eight straight games.

The Pack struck again 24 seconds after the collection of the Bears to tie the game.

Matt Rempe was at the right side of the net and redirected Matej Pekar’s pass for his first AHL point. It gave the Wolf Pack a 3-2 lead at 1:37.

At the period’s midway point, Garand recorded his first of several huge saves on the night. Right-handed shooting Lacynski, on the left wing, was stopped after Garand got a piece of his shot with the shaft of his stick redirecting it off the post.

“That save was fantastic,” Smith said. “Our goaltenders have been making big saves at big times.”

Before the period expired, the Pack would take the lead as the North Atlantic trio struck again.

Blidh started the whole scoring sequence with a perfect feed from the right wing and went straight to the net. Karl Henriksson took advantage of plenty of net traffic while cruising in front of the net. He redirected Mac Hollowell’s point shot at 16:52 for his third goal of the season and gave Hartford a 3-2 lead.

“We’ve been able to roll four lines. There are stretches in games where we get outplayed, but we never quit,” said Smith.

PHANTOMS TALLY FIRST

Lehigh Valley struck first with a power play goal after strong passing up to the blue line to Victor Mete, the lone rearguard in their man-advantage formation. Mete passed it off to Ronnie Attard, who was stationed in the left-wing circle. He then ripped a shot that Garand stopped. But Wade Allison, who was unmarked at the left side of the net, put home the rebound, his third goal of the year at 10:36.

The Phantoms added another power play goal to go up 2-0 after Olle Lycksell got it started sending the uck to Laczynski. In turn, he chipped it over to Helge Grans. He then came off the right point on a deep, sharp angle to beat Garand to the short side for his first of the season at 13:43.

The Pack’s fortunes then changed.

“We told them to be simple early on. They’re a good hockey team and can skate, and put the puck behind us, and got some opportunities early.

“We finally decided we’re gonna play our game, and things started going our way. It’s amazing. Goals start going in when you take away a goalie’s eyes. There are a lot of good goaltenders in this league, and not only the guys scoring the goals, it’s the guys going to the net. Guys like Othmann and Berard are going to the net, and it hurts sometimes (getting hit) going to the net, “said Smith.

The Pack will conclude their longest homestand of the season on Wednesday, December 6th, in a rare game with the Cleveland Monsters, a team they haven’t played since 2004.

GAME SHEET

LINES:

Karl Henriksson – Anton Blidh – Adam Sýkora
Turner Elson -Riley Nash – Brennan Othmann
Brett Berard – Bobby Trivigno – Alex Belzile
Matt Rempe – Ryder Korczak – Matej Pekar

Mac Hollowell – Connor Mackey
Nikolas Brouillard – Blake Hillman
Matt Robertson – Brandon Scanlin

Dylan Garand
Louie Domingue

SCRATCHES:

D Ben Harpur (Upper Body, indefinitely)
F Jake Leschyshyn (Upper Body, week-to-week)
D Zach Berzolla (Lower Body, week-to-week)
F Adam Edström (Illness, day-to-day)
F Cristiano DiGiacinto (healthy)
D Grant Gabriele (healthy)
F Drew Worrad (not in residence)

NOTES:

The Rangers recalled Anton Blidh. He could play on Sunday against San Jose.

Jonny Brodzinski’s younger brother Bryce scored a late power play goal. Still, his seventh-ranked Minnesota Golden Gophers were upset 6-3 by the #18 Penn State Nittany Lions at Pegula Arena in Happy Valley, PA, splitting the weekend series. The Rangers’ Tyler Pitlick’s cousin, Rhett Pitlick, scored the first goal for Minnesota.

The independent Chicago Wolves (AHL) have the second-worst winning percentage, .313, with only the San Diego Gulls at .294 being worse.

Hershey is comfortably in first place in the Atlantic Division, ahead of Hartford and the winners of nine in a row.

Adam Edström sat out his second in a row with an illness.

HARTFORD WOLF PACK

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