By: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack
HARTFORD, CT – On Friday night, Nic Petan broke a 2-2 tie with a five-on-three powerplay blast in the third period. The goal stood as the game-winner as the Wolf Pack defeated the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 3-2 on Fan Appreciation Night at the XL Center in front of over 6,900 fans.
Two quick slashing calls on the Penguins gave Hartford 65 seconds of five-on-three time at the 12:59 mark of the third period. Petan ripped a one-timer by Joel Blomqvist for his 15th goal of the season to give the Wolf Pack the lead for good. Nikolas Brouillard picked up the second of two points (1 g, 1 a) on the night with an assist on the goal, while Brett Berard’s secondary helper was his second of the night.
The Wolf Pack controlled the pace of play in the first period, outshooting the Penguins by a 12-3 margin. Each side also hit a goal post, as Case McCarthy struck the iron for the Wolf Pack before Matt Filipe countered for the visitors.
A late push from the Wolf Pack in the second period led to the icebreaker, as Bryan Yoon roofed his first goal at the XL Center at 17:26 to make it 1-0.
Bobby Trivigno wired a shot high off Blomqvist, who surrendered a rebound to his left. Yoon collected the loose puck and snapped it with the netminder’s glove for the second goal of his AHL career.
The Pack extended their lead 43 seconds into the third period as Petan found a pinching Brouillard. Brouillard sniped his fifth tally of the season over the glove of Blomqvist to make it 2-0 Wolf Pack. Alex Belzile picked up his 31st assist and team-leading 50th point of the season on the goal.
The Penguins pushed back, however, tying the game with two goals in just 39 seconds.
Jack Rathbone made an excellent play in the slot, waiting out a Wolf Pack defender before breaking Louis Domingue’s shutout bid at 7:58 to give the visitors some life. Austin Rueschhoff then evened the game as he muscled his way to the blue paint before stuffing home a rebound to make it a 2-2 hockey game.
The club’s timely five-on-three goal at 13:22 of the third period would be the difference, as the Pack’s answer was too much for the Penguins.
The victory was the Wolf Pack’s second in a row against the Penguins, as the sides split the season series with three wins each. The home team went 6-0-0-0 in the head-to-head matchup.
Thanks to the victory, the Wolf Pack now have an eleven-game (9-0-1-1) point streak at home against the Penguins.
Hartford concludes the 2023-24 regular season with road games against regional rivals. Tomorrow night, the Pack heads north to the MassMutual Center to take on the Springfield Thunderbirds. The puck drop is set for 7:05 p.m., and coverage will be available on both AHLTV and Mixlr.
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ABOUT THE HARTFORD WOLF PACK: The Hartford Wolf Pack has been a premier franchise in the American Hockey League since its 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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