By: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack
HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack opened a season-long, six-game homestand on Wednesday night at the XL Center. Unfortunately, despite a powerplay goal and a shorthanded goal, the Wolf Pack came up short against the Charlotte Checkers by a final score of 4-2.
The Pack are back on the ice this morning, preparing for two more home games before the All-Star break. The club will look to make up ground in the Atlantic Division and possibly jump to third place.
Friday, February 2nd, 2024, Vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (7:00 p.m.): “We owe them one in our building,” interim head coach Steve Smith said Wednesday night about Friday’s matchup with the Penguins. After taking a 5-0 decision over the Pens on October 20th, the Wolf Pack have dropped three straight in this head-to-head series.
The Penguins got off to quick starts in all three games at the Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza, winning all three games in regulation time. They claimed a 4-2 victory on October 28th, then won both meetings in January by scores of 2-1 (January 7th) and 4-1 (January 24th).
In all three games, the Penguins opened the scoring early. Most recently, on January 24th, the Pens led 2-0 just 3:42 into the hockey game.
The good news for the Wolf Pack is that the home team has largely dominated this head-to-head matchup as of late. The Wolf Pack went 2-0-0-1 against the Penguins at home last season and have won three straight at the XL Center against the Penguins.
Following Friday night’s matchup, these two rivals won’t see each other again until April 19th at the XL Center.
Saturday, February 3rd, 2024, Vs. Springfield Thunderbirds (7:00 p.m.): The ‘I-91 Rivalry’ takes center ice at the XL Center on Saturday night in the final game before the All-Star break. This will be the sixth of ten meetings between the foes and the first of two in February. They’ll meet again at the MassMutual Center on February 23rd.
This is the season’s third meeting at the XL Center and the first since November 15th. The T-Birds took a 5-2 decision on their first visit on October 27th, but the Pack paid them back with a 5-1 triumph on November 15th.
Each of the last two meetings has taken place in Springfield, with each team picking up a victory. Matt Rempe scored the game-winning goal on November 24th in a 4-2 Wolf Pack win, while the T-Birds scored a 3-1 decision on December 27th.
The Wolf Pack lead the season series with a 3-2-0-0 record through five meetings thus far.
Quick Hits:
- Thanks to his goal on Wednesday night, rookie forward Brett Berard now leads the Wolf Pack in goals with 13 on the season.
- Berard’s shorthanded marker 12:00 into the third period was his first career shorthanded goal as a pro.
- On Wednesday night, Rookie forward Brennan Othmann recorded an assist on Karl Henriksson’s first-period powerplay goal. Othmann is currently riding a career-high six-game point streak (1 g, 5 a, 6 pts).
- Earlier on Thursday, the Wolf Pack agreed to terms with defenseman Bryan Yoon on a one-year AHL contract for the remainder of the 2023-24 season. Yoon made his AHL debut with Hartford on January 19th.
- With an assist on Wednesday night, defenseman Nikolas Brouillard picked up his 20th point of the season. It is the third consecutive season that Brouillard has hit the 20-point plateau. He recorded a career-high 39 points in both the 2021-22 (13 g, 26 a) and 2022-23 (6 g, 33 a) seasons while a member of the San Diego Gulls.
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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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