WOLF PACK WEEKEND PREVIEW: JANUARY 11th, 2024
By: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack
HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack opened the 2024 calendar year with three road games in four nights. The Pack prevailed in their first two contests, defeating the rival Bridgeport Islanders and defending Calder Cup Champion Hershey Bears.
Although the Wolf Pack dropped their finale in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton at the hands of the Penguins on Sunday, the club came home with four of a possible six points.
Now, the Wolf Pack get set for their first home game of 2024. The club will play a set of back-to-back games this weekend, starting back in Pennsylvania on Friday night.
Friday, January 12th, 2024, @ Lehigh Valley Phantoms (7:05 p.m.): The Wolf Pack and Phantoms will wrap up their 2023-24 season series on Friday night at the PPL Center in Allentown.
The Wolf Pack have won four of the first five meetings between the foes and collected points in all five games (4-0-1-0). Most recently, the Wolf Pack swept a back-to-back set at the XL Center on December 1st and 2nd, prevailing by scores of 7-3 and 5-4 in overtime.
The lone victory in the head-to-head matchup for the Phantoms came back on November 3rd with a final score of 5-4 in overtime.
The Wolf Pack are 1-0-1-0 at the PPL Center this season and 3-0-1-0 in their last four visits. Dating back to last season, the Wolf Pack have points in seven straight games against the Phantoms (6-0-1-0).
This will be the first head-to-head season series in the division that the Wolf Pack complete this year.
Saturday, January 13th, 2024, Vs. Providence Bruins (7:30 p.m.): The Bruins roll into town for the third time this season on Saturday night. It’ll be the fifth of ten overall meetings between the foes during the 2023-24 campaign.
Each team has won two meetings, one at home and one on the road. The Bruins claimed a 2-0 victory in Hartford on November 11th, then took a 3-2 overtime decision at home the next afternoon. The Wolf Pack, meanwhile, opened their season with a 3-2 shootout victory over the Bruins on October 13th at the Amica Mutual Pavilion.
The Pack even the season series last time out, scoring four unanswered goals in the third period to win 6-4. The victory was Hartford’s first multi-goal comeback of the season. It is also the only time so far during the 2023-24 season that the club has won a game when trailing after two periods of play.
Mac Hollowell, named to the 2024 AHL All-Star Classic, scored a career-high four assists in the Wolf Pack’s win at home on November 22nd, the last meeting between the foes.
Quick Hits:
- On Tuesday, the parent New York Rangers (NHL) assigned forward Brennan Othmann to the AHL’s Hartford Wolf Pack. The Rangers then recalled forward Jake Leschyshyn.
- Othmann is currently tied for second in the AHL among rookies in powerplay goals. He has scored five this season, one behind rookie league leader Kyle McDonald of the Texas Stars.
- On Wednesday, the AHL announced the 2024 AHL All-Star Classic rosters, set to take place in San Jose, CA, on February 4th and 5th. Othmann and Hollowell were named to the game as the Wolf Pack’s representatives on the Atlantic Division roster.
- Also on Wednesday, the Rangers recalled defenseman Matthew Robertson from the Wolf Pack. Robertson notched his second goal of the season in the club’s 5-3 victory at Hershey on Saturday night.
- Following a nine-for-ten performance over the weekend in Hershey and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, the Wolf Pack penalty kill is now ninth in the league with an 84.5% kill rate.
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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 Ranger’s newest faces, including Igor Shesterkin, Filip Chytil, and Ryan Lindgren. Follow the Wolf Pack on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok.
