By: Shay Costa, Howlings
PROVIDENCE, RI – The Hartford Wolf Pack’s Anton Blidh scored 1:28 into the third period to give the team a 4-3 road win against his former team, the Providence Bruins, in Game One of the Atlantic Division semifinal in front of 2,683 at the Amica Mutual Pavilion in Providence, RI.
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Blidh’s line, composed of himself, Jake Leschyshyn (1 goal, 1 assist), and Tyler Pitlick (1 goal, 2 assists), was dominant, contributing six points. They generated the majority of the Pack’s Game One offense. “They dominated,” Interim Wolf Pack Head Coach Steve Smith said. “They looked like NHL players tonight. They were physical. They were simple. They were hard to play against both offensively and defensively. Quite frankly, they were the difference makers tonight.”
Pitlick led the way for the Pack’s third line and was humble afterward. “It’s always good to get on the score sheet,” He said. “I’ve just been focusing on getting physical and doing the little things, and sometimes you get rewarded.”
Blidh tallied the visitors’ game-winner at 1:28 of the third period. Providence had failed to clear the puck from their zone. Leschyshyn recovered the puck at the blue line and fired a shot that rebounded off Providence netminder Brandon Bussi’s pads. A wide-open Johnny-On-The-Spot Blidh took full advantage of the screen on Bussi. He recovered the rebound, drew the Bruins’ goalie out of the crease, and sent a backhander past the netminder’s pad into the net to make it 4-2.
Following Blihd’s goal, and with time ticking down, the Bruins turned up their intensity in a desperate effort to tie the game. They did manage to get a third tally, but it was too little, too late.
After a successful penalty kill with 1:42 left, the Bruins called a timeout and pulled Bussi for an extra attacker. With 47 seconds left, Patrick Brown deflected Anthony Richard’s shot to make it a one-goal differential in the final score.
The Pack drew first blood in the series at 1:07 of the first period on the team’s first shot. Leschyshyn tallied in transition. After Pitlick was doubled-teamed by Jimmy Lambert and Michael Callahan, he wisely advanced the puck to the open and on-rushing Leschyshyn, who had a clear lane to the net. His top-shelf shot gave the Wolf Pack an early lead and set the tone for the rest of the first period.
“We started on time. We were really good in the first period,” Smith said. He also said he felt his team had the upper hand. “[The Bruins] were a little flat because they hadn’t played in ten days.”
The Baby Bruins were off for ten days after earning a first-round bye from their regular reason performance.
Hartford’s efforts to extend its lead looked like it would come in a quick transition after Brennan Othmann’s stretch pass to Brett Berard sent him into the Bruins’ zone. But Berard ran out of ice. Instead, he waited for a better opportunity, which became Blake Hillman. Hillman took Berard’s pass in the slot and blasted a shot past Bussi’s blocker to put the Wolf Pack up by two at 5:27.
Providence shook off its rust by the second period and began chipping away at Hartford’s lead. Their first goal came on the rush as Lambert skated past the Wolf Pack defense, which was caught a bit flat-footed. Lambert’s hustle earned him a clear shot at the net, which successfully sailed past the pad of Hartford goalie Dylan Garand at 6:19, making it 2-1.
Lambert scored again for the P-Bruins on another Pack defensive error, this time as he was again left wide-open. Bruins forward Oskar Steen recovered a failed Hartford clearing attempt. He passed it to Lambert, who was driving the slot. He got the puck and went top shelf to Garand’s blocker side, knotting the game 2-2 at 13:41 of the second period.
“They came out to play in the second and made a game of it,” remarked Smith. Besides Providence’s rising competitive level, Smith acknowledged that the Wolf Pack also made a number of mistakes. “We didn’t manage the puck particularly well in the second.”
As the second-period clock ticked down, things seemed like things would be inconsequential but that changed quickly when Victor Mancini’s high shot in front of the net was tipped by Pitlick past Bussi and into the Providence goal, reclaiming Hartford’s lead as the second period expired.
The series continues with Game Two in Providence at 7:05 on Friday before shifting to Hartford and the XL Center for Games Three and Four next week.
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