WOLF PACK: THE HART BEAT – VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1
THE HART BEAT – VOLUME 1, ISSUE 1
By: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack
HARTFORD, CT – The 2025-26 Hartford Wolf Pack season is officially underway. The club kicked off the 29th season of AHL hockey in Hartford last Saturday night with a 2-1 road loss at the hands of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.
This weekend, the Wolf Pack will open the newly renovated PeoplesBank Arena on Friday night, then hit the road for Rhode Island on Saturday night.
Welcome to a new weekly feature, ‘The Hart Beat’. In this space, we’ll recap the week that was, preview the week ahead, and look at some quick facts around the team.
The Week That Was:
Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025 – @ Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (1-2 L): Trey Fix-Wolansky opened the scoring 10:43 into the season with his first strike as a member of the Wolf Pack. Fix-Wolansky took a feed from Gabe Perreault on a delayed penalty and broke the ice by beating Sergei Murashov.
Despite a strong first period, the Wolf Pack were unable to hold off the Penguins. Valtteri Puustinen tied the game 8:32 into the middle period, beating Dylan Garand from the right-wing circle for his first goal of the season.
Owen Pickering then potted the game-winning goal 3:33 into the third period, beating Garand with a shot from the point through traffic.
The loss marked the Wolf Pack’s seventh straight defeat overall against the Penguins and their seventh straight loss at Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza dating back to the 2022-23 season.
The Week Ahead:
Friday, Oct. 17, 2025 – Vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (7:00 p.m.): The Wolf Pack get their shot at revenge on Friday night when they open the newly renovated PeoplesBank Arena.
This is the second of six meetings between the Wolf Pack and Penguins this season, and the first of three between the foes in Hartford. The Wolf Pack and Penguins will meet next on Friday, Nov. 21, in Hartford.
The Penguins have won seven straight meetings in the head-to-head matchup. They swept the six-game season series during the 2024-25 campaign, then opened the season with a 2-1 victory last Saturday night.
The Penguins won all three trips to Hartford a season ago, outscoring the Wolf Pack 17-3 in the process.
The Wolf Pack’s last win over the Penguins came on Apr. 19, 2024, by a score of 3-2 in Hartford. Nic Petan scored the game-winning goal on the power play at 13:22 of the third period.
Saturday, Oct. 18, 2025 – @ Providence Bruins (7:05 p.m.): This is the first of ten meetings between the Wolf Pack and the Bruins during the 2025-26 season. It is the first of five matchups in Rhode Island.
The Bruins won the season series a year ago, posting a record of 7-3-0-0. The Wolf Pack went 3-7-0-0 in that span.
The Bruins won each of the last three meetings, taking a 5-2 decision on Mar. 2 and a 2-1 decision on Mar. 29 in Providence, then ending the season series with a 6-2 triumph in Hartford on Apr. 11.
The Wolf Pack’s last head-to-head victory against the Bruins came on home ice on Feb. 22 by a final score of 6-5. Nathan Sucese scored the game-winning goal at 17:17 of the third period that night, breaking a 5-5 tie.
Where To Watch & Listen:
You can watch both Wolf Pack games this weekend on AHLTV on FloHockey here!
Alex Thomas and Sean Dufrense will have the call on Friday night from PeoplesBank Arena. ‘Wolf Pack Pregame’ starts at a special time of 6:30 p.m. on Friday night.
Due to Alex’s duties with the New York Rangers, Brett Chaves of the Providence Bruins will have the call on Saturday night from Rhode Island.
Friday night’s Wolf Pack game against the Penguins can also be heard on Mixlr.
Quick Hits:
- F Gabe Perreault scored his first professional point, an assist, on Fix-Wolansky’s tally in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton last Saturday night.
- Former Wolf Pack F Noah Laba recorded his first two points in the NHL, a pair of assists, in the parent New York Rangers’ 6-1 victory against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Oct. 11.
- D Connor Mackey was recalled by the Rangers on Sunday. He remains with the club.
- D Scott Morrow was recalled by the Rangers on Wednesday. He recorded three shots in his Wolf Pack debut on Oct. 11 against the Penguins.
- The Wolf Pack has won each of its last two home openers. They defeated the Penguins 5-0 on Oct. 20, 2023, and the Springfield Thunderbirds 6-5 on Oct. 18, 2024.
- The Wolf Pack posted a record of 19-15-1-1 at home during the 2024-25 season.
Wolf Pack in the Community:
- Wolf Pack D’s Casey Fitzgerald and Derrick Pouliot were out in the community this week! Fitzgerald and Pouliot visited Pine Grove Elementary School in Avon, CT, on Oct. 14, reading to students.
- Everyone’s favorite mascot, Sonar, was a busy wolf this past weekend! He stopped by the Wallingford Hawks Youth Hockey Association Mite Jamboree, the Eversource Hartford Marathon, and visited with spectators and participants at the ‘Fore the Cure’ LGMD2D Golf Tournament this weekend.
Join the Wolf Pack for the 2025-26 season! Single game tickets are on sale now! To buy, click here.
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 are the top player-development affiliate of the NHL’s New York Rangers and play at PeoplesBank Arena. The Wolf Pack has been home to some of the Rangers newest faces including Igor Shesterkin, Will Cuylle, and Matt Rempe. Follow the Wolf Pack on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok.
