BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings
HARTFORD, CT – Hartford Wolf Pack head coach Kris Knoblauch’s worst fear has come true.
The New York Rangers used one of their two emergency recalls Wednesday morning as Pack captain Steven Fogarty was summoned for the Blueshirts game in Denver against the Colorado Avalanche.
The move was made because forward Filip Chytil suffered a lower-body injury in Tuesday night’s win against the Dallas Stars in the first period and never returned to the game.
Tonight, the Wolf Pack host the red hot, second-place, Providence Bruins who have won their tenth straight, all in regulation, are they’re unbeaten in eleven games and have not lost a regulation game since January 31st (to Binghamton 3-1).
Fogarty on recall joins three players, Vinni Lettieri, Mason Geersten, and Matt Beleskey, who are each serving their first of a three-game, AHL-issued suspension resulting from Sunday’s first-period melee at the MassMutual Center in Springfield, This puts a huge strain on the Wolf Pack roster.
Expect at least two-of-the-three collegiate players, forward Michael O’Leary and Patrick Khordorenko to be in the lineup as well as newcomer, Connor Bleackley, from the Maine Mariners (ECHL) who signed a PTO today.
Bleackley has ten points in fifteen games with the Mariners including his ninth last night in a 3-2 home loss to the Norfolk Admirals.
He started the year with the Texas Stars playing ten games with five points and scoring twice in their opening game against Manitoba before being released on November 10th from his PTO deal.
He was then sent to Idaho Steelheads (ECHL) with 13 points in 18 games before being acquired by Maine in a three-way ECHL deal including Orlando on January 14th.
He arrived along with goalie Adam Huska, who was in net Tuesday night making 32 saves for the Mariners in the game and was formerly reassigned back to the Wolf Pack today and goalie Francois Brassard sent back to Maine.
The Wolf Pack have lost four straight and are in third place in the AHL Atlantic Division.
