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WOLF PACK WEEKEND PREVIEW: DECEMBER 14th, 2023

Mitch Beck — Sat, 16 Dec 2023 05:32:24 +0000

By: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack

HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack’s eight-game point streak (7-0-1-0) stopped last Saturday when the Pack dropped a 5-1 decision to the Laval Rocket at Place Bell. Now, coming off their first regulation loss since November 17^th, the Wolf Pack will look to reset and begin a new streak this weekend.

The club wraps up five consecutive games against North Division opponents this weekend when the Rochester Americans and Toronto Marlies make their lone trips to the XL Center this season.

This weekend will kick off a three-game homestand that takes the Wolf Pack to the holidays. The club’s next road game isn’t until December 27^th in Springfield against the Thunderbirds.

Friday, December 15^th, 2023, Vs. Rochester Americans: The Wolf Pack and Americans open their two-game season series on Friday night at the XL Center. Hartford will travel to the Blue Cross Arena in Rochester on March 20^th to wrap up the set.

The foes met twice during the 2022-23 campaign, with the home team winning both meetings. The Amerks cruised to an 8-4 victory on home ice in the last meeting on March 10^th, while the Pack scored a 4-1 victory in Hartford on January 21^st.

Turner Elson struck 12:01 into the game on January 21^st, giving Hartford a lead they never lost. Cristiano DiGiacinto’s goal at 17:53 of the opening stanza would stand as the game-winning tally, while Dylan Garand earned first-star honors with a 23-save victory.

On March 10^th, Tim Gettinger scored to give the Wolf Pack a 1-0 lead just 6:18 into the contest, but the Americans rattled off six unanswered goals to cruise to their 8-4 victory. Mason Jobst’s goal at 3:42 of the second period would be the game-winner.

Over the last five seasons, the Wolf Pack are 2-5-0-1 against the Americans. Rochester holds a 6-1-1-0 record in that span.

Sunday, December 17^th, 2023, Vs. Toronto Marlies: The first Sunday home game of the season will see the Marlies make their lone stop in the Connecticut capital this season. Hartford will return the favor and stop in ‘The 6ix’ on March 23^rd.

Last season, the teams split two overtime games, with the home team winning both. First, the Marlies claimed a 3-2 overtime victory in Toronto on March 11^th. Less than a month later, on April 5^th, the Wolf Pack got their revenge with a 2-1 overtime decision at the XL Center.

In Toronto, Jake Leschyshyn deflected a centering pass from Adan Clendening into the net at 19:23 of the third period, forcing overtime and earning the Wolf Pack a point. However, Logan Shaw buried the winner at 2:39 of the extra session, sending the fans home happy.

On April 5^th, no goals were scored in the first 58:48 of action. The final 1:12, however, featured two tallies. Anton Blidh put Hartford ahead 1-0 at 18:48 of the third period with his 12^th goal of the season, but Topi Niemelä’s first career AHL goal would tie the affair at 19:47 with the net empty.

1:42 into overtime, Leschyshyn would find the back of the net to earn the Wolf Pack the season split and three out of a possible four points.

Sunday’s puck drop is set for 3:00 p.m. The game will also feature postgame photos with Wolf Pack players! More information and tickets are available at www.hartfordwolfpack.com.

Quick Hits:

On Sunday night, the parent New York Rangers (NHL) assigned forward Riley Nash to the Wolf Pack. Nash had missed the last three Wolf Pack games due to recall. He debuted with the Rangers last Saturday night in Washington against the Capitals.
On Tuesday morning, the Rangers recalled defenseman Matthew Robertson from the Wolf Pack ahead of their game against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Robertson was assigned back to Hartford following the game.
Also on Tuesday, the Rangers reassigned goaltender Olof Lindbom from the Wolf Pack to the ECHL’s Cincinnati Cyclones. Lindbom started for the Wolf Pack Saturday in Laval.
The Wolf Pack loaned forward Cristiano DiGiacinto to the Cyclones on Tuesday. DiGiacinto made his season debut with Hartford on Saturday afternoon.
Although their overall point streak was snapped on Saturday, the Wolf Pack are still working on a seven-game point streak on home ice. They are 6-0-1-0 in that span.
Forward Ryder Korczak, who picked up an assist on Blake Hillman’s goal on Saturday, is working on a two-game point streak (1 g, 1 a, 2 pts). It is the first point streak of the rookie’s career.
Despite their loss on Saturday, the Wolf Pack are 4-2-1-0 against the North Division this season.

About OVG360: OVG360, a division of Oak View Group, is a full-service venue management and hospitality company that helps client partners reimagine the sports, live entertainment, and convention industries for the betterment of the venue, employees, artists, athletes, and surrounding communities. With a portfolio of more than 200 client partners spanning arenas, stadiums, convention centers, performing arts centers, cultural institutions, and state fairs around the globe, OVG360 provides a set of services, resources, and expertise designed to elevate every aspect of business that matters to venue operators. Service-oriented and driven by social responsibility, OVG360 helps facilities drive value through excellence and innovation in food services, booking and content development, sustainable operations, public health and safety, and more.

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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The post WOLF PACK WEEKEND PREVIEW: DECEMBER 14th, 2023 first appeared on Howlings.

WOLF PACK WEEKEND RECAP: DECEMBER 11TH, 2023

Mitch Beck — Tue, 12 Dec 2023 03:21:28 +0000

By: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack

HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack’s season-long point streak of eight games stopped on Saturday afternoon at Place Bell in Laval, Quebec. The defeat, the club’s first in regulation since November 17^th, sends Hartford back home with a record of 15-5-3-0.

On Monday, the team was back on the ice preparing for two more North Division opponents. The Wolf Pack will see the Rochester Americans and Toronto Marlies at the XL Center this weekend.

Friday, December 8^th, 2023, @ Laval Rocket (4-3 SOW): Emotions were high on Friday night as Alex Belzile returned to Laval. The former Rocket captain is the franchise’s all-time leader in games played (174), goals (54), assists (76), and points (130). He received a terrific tribute video pregame, accompanied by a standing ovation from the fans who adored him throughout five seasons.

The Rocket rode the crowd’s emotion to a 2-0 lead, scoring powerplay goals at 3:47 and 4:10 of the first period to stun the Wolf Pack. Belzile silenced the crowd with a powerplay goal of his own at 6:01, but 38 seconds later, the roar was restored when Riley McKay made it 3-1 Rocket.

The Pack battled back, tying the game with two goals in just 21 seconds in the second period. First, Turner Elson tipped home a shot from Bobby Trivigno at 7:53 to make it a 3-2 game. Then, at 8:14, Ryder Korczak jammed home a rebound for his fourth goal of the season to make it 3-3.

After a scoreless third period and overtime, a shootout was required. In a hockey mecca, it was fitting that great theater was seen at the end of this dramatic comeback.

Belzile, to a chorus of boos, snapped home the game-winning shootout goal in the bottom half of the first round. Fellow Quebec native Louis Domingue stopped both Rocket shooters, while Brett Berard clinched the victory with his first career shootout goal in the second round.

The win was the first in Wolf Pack history at Place Bell and extended the club’s point streak to eight games (7-0-1-0) at the time.

Saturday, December 9^th, 2023, @ Laval Rocket (5-1 L): Blake Hillman got the party started on Saturday, scoring his first regular-season goal as a member of the Wolf Pack just 2:14 into the contest. The lead wouldn’t last, however, as the Rocket notched the game’s final five goals to cruise to a 5-1 victory.

Rocket forward Riley Kidney recorded his career’s first three-point (2 g, 1 a) game. He tied the game 1-1 at 4:45 of the first period, scoring the Teddy Bear Toss goal at Place Bell. He also extended the lead to 3-1 at 8:32 of the second period and assisted on Nolan Yaremko’s goal, making it 4-1 at 17:27.

Brandon Gignac scored the game-winning goal 6:03 into the second period while shorthanded. It was the Rocket’s league-leading seventh shorthanded goal.

The win snapped a nine-game losing streak for the Rocket (0-5-2-2) and improved them to 6-0-0-1 all-time against the Wolf Pack on home ice.

Quick Hits:

The Wolf Pack and Rocket will meet twice more this season, with both games at the XL Center. The Rocket come to town on February 16^th (7:00 p.m.) and March 1^st (7:00 p.m.).
After scoring a goal on Friday night and picking up an assist on Saturday, Ryder Korczak now has points in back-to-back games for the first time in his professional career.
After denying both Rocket shooters in the shootout on Friday night, Wolf Pack goaltender Louis Domingue is 2-0 in the shootout and has stopped all five shooters faced this season.
Gignac’s shorthanded goal in the second period on Saturday afternoon was the third allowed by the Wolf Pack this season. It was the first allowed since a 4-2 loss at the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on October 28^th.
After scoring five goals over the weekend, the Wolf Pack now sit second in the AHL in goals scored with 83 on the season. They trail only the Texas Stars (89).
Wolf Pack captain Jonny Brodzinski, who still sits third in the AHL in points with 25 (11 g, 14 a), scored a goal and an assist for the parent New York Rangers (NHL) on Sunday night against the Los Angeles Kings. Brodzinski has six points (1 g, 5 a) in seven games with the Rangers this season.

The Week Ahead:

Friday, December 15^th, 2023, Vs. Rochester Americans (7:00 p.m., XL Center, Toy Drive, $2 Beers & $2 Hot Dogs)
Sunday, December 17^th, 2023, Vs. Toronto Marlies (3:00 p.m., XL Center, Toy Drive, Sonar’s Birthday Celebration, Postgame Photos with Players)

# # #

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WOLF PACK 8-GAME POINT STREAK ENDS IN LAVAL

Mitch Beck — Mon, 11 Dec 2023 02:08:25 +0000

By: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack

LAVAL, QC – The Hartford Wolf Pack started strong on Saturday afternoon, scoring on their first shot of the hockey game. It wouldn’t be enough, however, as Riley Kidney collected the first three-point game of his career in a 5-1 victory for the Laval Rocket.

The home side won the special teams battle on this day, with a shorthanded goal proving to be the difference. With Emil Heineman in the penalty box for cross-checking, Brandon Gignac sprinted out of the defensive zone and eventually entered the Wolf Pack zone on the left-wing side. Gignac came to the top of the left-wing circle and rifled a shot by Olof Lindbom for his first shorthanded goal of the season at 6:03 of the middle frame.

The goal was the Rocket’s league-leading seventh shorthanded goal of the season.

Things started well for the Wolf Pack, as they opened the scoring just 2:14 into the game. Defenseman Blake Hillman fired a shot into traffic that clipped a Rocket defender and snuck by goaltender Jakub Dobeš for his first goal of the season on the team’s first shot of the day.

Dobeš was perfect from there; however, denying the final 25 bids sent his way to deter the Wolf Pack attack.

Just over two minutes after Hillman opened the scoring, Kidney scored his first goal of the night to even the affair 1-1. Laval’s teddy bear toss goal came after a Logan Mailloux point bid hit the goalpost behind Lindbom. The rebound popped to Kidney, who buried his fourth goal of the season.

Gignac’s goal at 6:03 put the Rocket ahead for good. It was the third shorthanded goal surrendered by the Wolf Pack this season.

At 8:32, Kidney collected his second goal of the night when he burst down the left-wing side after receiving a pass from Philippe Maillet. Maillet absorbed a check from Matthew Robertson while dishing the pass to Kidney, who fired the puck by Lindbom to extend the lead to 3-1.

Nolan Yaremko made it a 4-1 game at 17:27 when he found the back of the net for the first time this season. Gignac entered the zone on a two-on-one with Yaremko, coming down the right-wing side. Yaremko took the pass and snapped the puck by Lindbom to complete a three-goal period for the home side.

The Wolf Pack would go on an extended five-on-three in the third period with Xavier Simoneau and Brady Keeper in the penalty box but could not find paydirt. As a result, the club’s ten-game powerplay scoring streak ended.

Moments after the penalties expired, the Rocket would go to the advantage when Nikolas Brouillard played the puck over the glass for a delay of game minor. Jared Davidson picked up his second goal of the season at 15:13 on the ensuing powerplay when he tipped Joshua Roy’s shot by Lindbom after winning a battle for net-front position.

The result snapped a nine-game losing streak for the Rocket and snapped an eight-game point streak (7-0-1-0) for the Wolf Pack.

The Pack returns home next Friday night to host the Rochester Americans. The puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m.; tickets are available at www.hartfordwolfpack.com.

ABOUT OVG360:

OVG360, a division of Oak View Group, is a full-service venue management and hospitality company that helps client partners reimagine the sports, live entertainment, and convention industries for the betterment of the venue, employees, artists, athletes, and surrounding communities. With a portfolio of more than 200 client partners spanning arenas, stadiums, convention centers, performing arts centers, cultural institutions, and state fairs around the globe, OVG360 provides a set of services, resources, and expertise designed to elevate every aspect of business that matters to venue operators. Service-oriented and driven by social responsibility, OVG360 helps facilities drive value through excellence and innovation in food services, booking and content development, sustainable operations, public health and safety, and more.

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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BELZILE STARS IN PACK SHOOTOUT WIN IN LAVAL

Mitch Beck — Sun, 10 Dec 2023 04:08:34 +0000

By: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack

LAVAL, QC – It started with Alex Belzile receiving a tribute video for his five years of service to the Laval Rocket organization. It ended with Belzile, the Rocket’s all-time leader in games played, goals, assists, and points, securing first-star honors after burying the shootout winner that completed the Wolf Pack’s 4-3 come-from-behind victory over the Rocket.

The win gives the Wolf Pack points in eight straight games (7-0-1-0), while the loss was the Rocket’s ninth in a row.

Belzile completed the comeback in the bottom half of the shootout’s first round. He carried the puck in and beat Jakub Dobes to put the Wolf Pack ahead 1-0. After Emil Heineman bobbled the puck and lost possession, Brett Berard cemented the win when he went top-shelf for his first career shootout goal.

The game didn’t start according to plan for Hartford. Just 2:13 into the game, the club was down on a five-on-three penalty kill after Connor Mackey (1:52) and Brandon Scanlin (2:13) were both assessed cross-checking minors. The Rocket made the Wolf Pack pay, scoring on both penalties.

Philippe Maillet opened the scoring 3:47 in when he ripped a shot by Louis Domingue for his fourth goal of the season. Just 23 seconds later, Joshua Roy would make it a 2-0 game with a five-on-four advantage.

Roy was streaking in down the right-wing side and took a feed from Heineman. Domingue denied Roy’s initial attempt but stuck with the play and jammed home the rebound for his eighth goal of the season.

The Wolf Pack powerplay got a chance to counter at 5:08 when Brady Keeper was called for hooking. They wasted little time converting, as less than a minute into the powerplay, Mac Hollowell gained a 2-on-0 with Belzile. Hollowell slid a pass to Belzile, who potted his eighth goal of the season at 6:01 to make it a 2-1 game.

Hollowell’s assist on the goal was his 21^st of the season. That leads the AHL.

Thirty-eight seconds later, however, a bad bounce would end up in the net behind Domingue. Logan Mailloux was attempting to send the puck toward the goal, but it hit the legs of Adam Sýkora and came to Riley McKay. McKay quickly blasted a shot by the blocker of Domingue to restore the two-goal lead for the home side.

The Wolf Pack settled down from there, and Domingue was perfect the rest of the way.

Hartford’s hard work was rewarded twice in the middle stanza, as two goals in 21 seconds brought the game back to even footing.

First, a Bobby Trivigno shot from the right-wing point was deflected by Turner Elson in the slot at 7:53. The shot evaded Dobes and found the back of the net for Elson’s second goal of the season.

Then, 21 seconds later, Matej Pekar intercepted a pass at the top of the offensive zone. Pekar flung a shot toward the goal that Dobes denied, but the rebound came right to Matt Rempe. Rempe was also rejected, but Ryder Korczak was also in the neighborhood. Korczak found the loose puck and slammed home his fourth goal of the season to make it a 3-3 game at 8:14.

Both goaltenders were strong in the final period, each making eight saves to earn a point for their respective teams. In overtime, Brandon Gignac created two good opportunities, including one that struck the crossbar. Neither side found paydirt, however, and a shootout was required.

Belzile opened the shootout with a first-round goal, the game-winner before Berard ended it in the second round. Domingue denied both Rocket shooters and is now a perfect 5-for-5 in the shootout this season.

The win is Hartford’s first in franchise history at Place Bell. Previously, the club was 0-4-0-1 in five visits.

The Wolf Pack conclude their two-game road trip tomorrow when they again take on the Rocket at 3:00 p.m. Wolf Pack Pregame starts live with play-by-play broadcaster Alex Thomas at 2:45 p.m. on AHLTV & Mixlr.

The Pack returns home next Friday night to host the Rochester Americans. The puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m.; tickets are available at hartfordwolfpack.com.

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HARTFORD WOLF PACK REPORTERS NOTEBOOK

Mitch Beck — Tue, 12 Sep 2023 01:21:57 +0000

By: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings

HARTFORD, CT – Hartford Wolf Pack players will report to the New York Rangers training camp in only a few weeks. But that is not the only news, as more players are moving about and signing contracts around the world. But while some are signing to keep playing, others call it a career.

Ex-CT Whale and Ranger defenseman Michael Del Zotto retired from hockey after 14 seasons, his last with the Anaheim Ducks. He split last year with the Charlotte Checkers and the San Diego Gulls (AHL) after 736 NHL games and a Stanley Cup. Del Zotto was initially drafted by the Rangers in 2008.

Another player calling it a career is ex-Bridgeport Sound Tiger goalie Kevin Poulin. He retired from hockey after playing with the Laval Rocket with an above .500 record in the AHL. Poulin played for five teams and accumulated a career record of 115-106-23 with a .910 save percentage over nine seasons. He spent 13 years in pro hockey and earned a bronze medal for Team Canada at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in South Korea.

SIGNINGS

Ex-Pack Joey Keane renews his deal with Spartak Moscow (Russia-KHL).

Ex-Pack/Sound Tiger Jean-François Bérubé leaves the Florida Panthers organization and returns to the LA Kings organization.

Five more AHL’ers move on to Europe.

Bobby Lynch leaves the Rockford IceHogs for Torpedo Novgorod (Russia-KHL). Goalie Anton Khudobdin also leaves Rockford for Sokol Krasnoyarsk (Russia-VHL). Dylan Sikura leaves the San Diego Gulls and Rockford for Skellefteå AIK (Sweden-SHL). Chase Pearson leaves the Grand Rapids Griffins to go to HC Dukla Michalovce (Slovakia-SLEL), and Erik Brown departs from Bridgeport to Sport Vassa (Finland-FEL).

That makes 83 players in total heading to Europe. Ten go to Russia, making 17 to the KHL. 30 of the 32 AHL teams have seen at least one player sign overseas. Sweden leads all countries with 31 players signed.

ERIC BOULTON & SONS

Eric Boulton, who played with the Rochester Americans (AHL) during his career. He played against the Wolf Pack, most memorably in the 2000 AHL Calder Cup final. He was also a Sound Tiger for two games at the end of his career. The Rangers originally drafted him in the ninth round of the 1994 NHL Draft, but he never played in New York. He spent half a season in Binghamton. Boulton has both of his sons involved in hockey.

His 17-year-old son, Ryder Boulton, will play for the London Knights (OHL) this season. He spent last year with the Buffalo Jr. Sabres U-16 AAA team, where his father was the assistant coach and an Islanders pro scout.

19-year-old Sawyer Boulton is in American junior hockey. He goes from the El Paso (TX) Rhinos (NAHL) to the Rochester Jr. Americans (NAHL) this year.

MOVES

The Pittsburgh Penguins dealt Peter DiLiberatore (Quinnipiac University) to the Arizona Coyotes, where he will likely play with the Tucson Roadrunners (AHL).

Another former member of the national champion Quinnipiac Bobcats and a grad transfer from Wisconsin (Big 10), Ty Smilanic, is slated to be in the rookie camp of the Montreal Canadiens, hoping to get a deal to play in Laval or the Trois-Rivières Lions (ECHL).

Jacob Nordqvist, who played his grad transfer also with the national champion Quinnipiac University (ECACHL) team after four years with Lake Superior State (CCHA), signs with the Kalamazoo Wings (ECHL).

Now that makes 26 ECACHL pro signees.

The Hockey East conference still leads all conferences with 38 singings, while the NCHC has 37, the CCHA has 35, the Big Ten 32, and the AHA has 20.

As for the rest, the NCAA Independents have 13, Europe has 65, and Division III has 34. Canadian colleges have four, and Canadian major junior leagues have only two. Undergrads leaving early is at 39, and the total number is now 305.

Grad transfers 70 and in-school-104.

NEWS

UCONN promotes Assistant Coach Tyler Helton to Associate Head Coach. After four years as an undergrad since 2013, he has been a part of the UCONN Hockey East version since its inception.

The Huskies got a verbal commitment from California native Colin Frank of the Dubuque Fighting Saints (USHL) for 2025-26.

Jake Sanderson, the son of ex-Hartford Whaler Geoff Sanderson, signed a one-year extension with the Ottawa Senators to his original ELC deal.

The U-17 tourney schedule was announced. It will be held in Charlottetown (Eastlink Centre)/Summerside (Credit Union Place), PEI (Prince Edward Island) November 2-12. It features six teams: Canada Red, Canada White, Czechia, Finland, Sweden, and the US.

The medal games will be held on November 11 at noon and 5 p.m. AST.

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HARTFORD WOLF PACK REPORTER’S NOTEBOOK

Mitch Beck — Sat, 02 Sep 2023 20:11:55 +0000

By Gerry Cantlon, Howlings

HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack are not the only team looking to make a few late signings and moves. A few stray signings this week as Labor Day approaches.

Tanner Fritz has resolved his contract situation.

On Thursday morning, his situation was unresolved, but by that afternoon, it had concluded. Fritz signed a one-year AHL deal to return to the Bridgeport Islanders, where he spent his first six years. He spent the last two in Hartford.

Fritz (the second player named Fritz to play in Hart City and Park City) often played out of position to help when the Wolf Pack were shorthanded at forward.

He had talks with Hartford and Springfield, all to tend to his son’s special needs.

MISCELLANEOUS HARTFORD RELATED NEWS

Ex-Pack Alex Bourret was named head coach for the CCL Dynamiques M (minor)15 team (QBAAA).

The Islanders named ex-Pack/Ranger Pascal Rheaume as one of the two new assistant coaches to work with their new head coach, Rick Kowalsky. It’s his first AHL stint. He was initially an assistant with Iowa in 2015-16. The last two years he spent with the Trois-Rivières Lions (ECHL).

Bryce McConnell-Barker might be in Wolf Pack training camp, but his ticket back to Sault Ste. Greyhounds Marie (OHL) is already stamped. He spent three weeks here last spring without playing a game before being released.

Like Will Cullye and Brennan Othmann before him, he is still 19 and can’t play in the AHL until his junior season. He will likely captain the Greyhounds and be on the 2024 Canadian WJC Team. McConnell-Barker hopes to be like Othmann, go deep in the OHL playoffs, and maybe get a shot at the Memorial Cup.

An ex-Pack/Ranger, Libor Hájek, has signed as a PTO training camp invite with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Next year, he will go to the Penguins and the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL). He joins another ex-Pack, Ryan Graves, who starts his first season of a six-year deal in the Keystone State.

Howlings learned that Adam Samuelsson, the youngest son of Hartford Whaler great Ulf Samuelsson, an ex-New York Ranger whose Whalers #5 is “retired” in the XL rafters. Ulf is also a former Wolf Pack and Avon Old Farms assistant coach. Adam will attend the training camp on an invite basis of the independent Chicago Wolves this fall. He signed a deal with Atlanta Gladiators (ECHL) earlier this summer.

Sam Gagner, the son of former New Haven Nighthawk/Ranger Dave Gagner, has gone from the Winnipeg Jets to the Edmonton Oilers on a PTO deal. Gagner was a first-round pick of the Oilers in 2007 and had 519 career points in 1,015 games played with seven different teams.

HAGELIN CALLS IT A CAREER

Carl Hagelin, who played 17 games for the CT Whale en route to 713 NHL games and who won two Stanley Cups, two silver medals for Sweden in the Olympics and the WJC, and two NCAA national titles in four full years at Michigan, had a career of 152 points in 171 games – a sure-fire entrant in the Wolverine HOF.

After a year off, Hagelin retires from active playing, resulting from an eye injury suffered in practice two years ago in Washington. Hagelin exceeded expectations as a sixth-round draft choice, as it was considered a stretch that he would ever play in the NHL. He was supposed to be too small and slight. However, nobody could catch him with his outstanding speed.

Hagelin was traded early Saturday morning for the Anaheim Ducks’ Emerson Etem in late June 2015.

MORE MOVES

Madison Bowey goes from the Laval Rocket to Dynamo Minsk (Belarus-KHL). Turner Ottenbreit of Iowa heads to Kunlun (China-KHL), making 78 AHL’ers signed in Europe.

The Lehigh Valley Phantoms and Milwaukee Admirals are the only two teams not to have lost a player.

A story on the website Detroit Hockey Now reprised a story from an Inside AHL Hockey interview with long-time Chicago Wolves GM Wendell Young. The story was that former coach Ryan Warsofsky (Sacred Heart University) was threatened with dismissal by Carolina two years ago before his Wolves team went on to win the Calder Cup final against the Springfield Thunderbirds in seven games. Warsofsky was and is now an assistant with the NHL San Jose Sharks.

Warsofky is an old friend of ex-Pack/Sound Tigers, the now-retired Bourque brothers, Chris and Ryan. He chose to play the former Yale goalie, Alex Lyon, over Carolina’s objections instead of their Russian prospect Pytor (Peter) Kochetov two springs ago.

Carolina had gone through hoops to get him to North America via Austria first because of the war in Ukraine.

Now Lyon, who then made a very public obscene gesture in the championship team picture at center ice, with a two-middle-fingered salute. It was not meant or directed at the Springfield fans but rather the Carolina management, despite having just won the Calder Cup.

Lyon was given a one-game AHL suspension for his stunt. Chicago has gone the independent route this season and has gone through four affiliates in the last seven years. Winning a championship is very important in Chicago.

Instrumental in Florida making the Stanley Cup playoffs last year, Lyon was a backup to Spencer Knight (Darien/AOF). The previous spring, they had to enter a substance abuse clinic as they made it to the finals before bowing out to the eventual champion, the Las Vegas Golden Knights.

Lyon is expected to be in Grand Rapids this year to teach and tutor the highly regarded prospect Sebastian Cossa, who battled Pack goalie Dylan Garand two years ago in juniors, as they were the two best netminders in the WHL. Lyon was helped at Yale when he played by another ex-Yale goalie, Jeff Malcolm, the current Wolf Pack goalie coach.

The Red Wings have four goalie prospects: Cossa, Carter Gylander, a junior at Colgate University (ECACHL) under the guidance of new head coach ex-Pack Mike Harder, John Lethmon, a Grand Rapids returnee, and Yale-bound next year, just drafted (sixth-round) Rudy Guimond (Taft School) in Cedar Rapids (USHL) this year.

Ex-Pack Tysen Helgesen, re-signs with the Rapid City Rush (ECHL).

Chase Zieky (Avon/AOF) signs with the Maine Mariners (ECHL) for next year.

Matt Tugnutt (Sacred Heart University) leaves HC Chamonix (France-Magnus League FREL) and signs with the South Carolina Stingrays (ECHL) for next season.

Ex-Pack/Sound Tiger Anthony Greco is at an unknown Frölunda HC (Sweden-SHL) destination.

Ex-Sound Tiger Brandon DeFazio announced his retirement from hockey. DeFazio played last year with ERC Schwenniger (Germany-DEL). His father, Dean DeFazio, was a former New Haven Nighthawk with four sons involved in hockey. Jeremy and Cameron have already retired. His youngest, Cole, is entering his sophomore year at Division III, Neumann (Aston, PA) College (UCHC).

Brandon has taken an amateur scouting position (Ontario region) with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Mark Osiecki, a former New Haven Senator, also becomes a Midwest region Penguins Pro Scout as he leaves the University Wisconsin-Madison (Big 10) campus.

Ex-Wolf Pack/Sound Tiger Matt Lorito, a Greenwich resident, also announced his retirement from hockey. Lorito played with EHC Wolfsburg (Germany-DEL) last year and took a pro scouting position (Midwest) with Pittsburgh.

DeFazio and Lorito join another ex-Sound Tiger, Matt Mangene, who has been a Penguins amateur scout for the last three years.

After his grad year at Michigan Tech (CCHA) after playing at Ohio State (Big 10), Ryan O’Connell becomes the 63rd college player to sign in Europe with Toulouse-Blagnac (France-FFHG-Division-3). He is also the nephew of ex-New Haven Senator Brian Downey.

Jack Badini (Old Greenwich/CT Oilers-EHL) departed Newfoundland (St. John’s) (ECHL), had a few call-ups to Toronto (AHL), and signed overseas with Stjernen (Norway-NEL).

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HARTFORD WOLF PACK ANNOUNCE PROMO NIGHTS

Mitch Beck — Fri, 01 Sep 2023 04:03:16 +0000

By: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack

HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack unveiled the promotional schedule for the upcoming 2023-24 season, the club’s 27th in Connecticut.

The home schedule kicks off with the club’s annual Home Opener on Friday, October 20^th, at 7:00 p.m. against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. The night will feature the first giveaway of the season, as fans will receive a Wolf Pack rally towel courtesy of Carvel and CM Concessions.

Home Opener weekend concludes on Saturday, October 21^st, when the Lehigh Valley Phantoms come to town for a 7:00 p.m. puck drop. Fans in attendance that night will receive a 2023-24 Wolf Pack magnet schedule courtesy of Pepsi.

Once again, the Wolf Pack will don a pair of specialty jerseys during the 2023-24 season. The first jersey will be worn on both December 1^st and 2^nd, when the Pack hosts the Phantoms for a back-to-back weekend set. The second specialty jersey will make its debut on February 3^rd when the Springfield Thunderbirds come to town for a 7:00 p.m. puck drop.

In addition to the Home Opener weekend rally towel and magnetic schedule giveaways, the Wolf Pack will have numerous giveaway nights during the 2023-24 season. This season’s giveaways include a 2024 Wolf Pack branded calendar on December 30^th, youth jerseys on February 3^rd, a bobblehead on March 8^th, and a 2023-24 team photo on April 14^th.

Returning in 2023-24 are recurring promotions, including $2 drafts and $2 hot dogs every Friday night. The CT-DOT Family Value Pack is once again available for select dates, allowing fans to purchase three tickets, three hot dogs, and three fountain drinks in the red or blue sections. This package will be available on October 21^st, November 25^th, December 17^th, December 30^th, and April 14^th.

The Pack will also host four postgame events featuring players from the team. Fans will get a chance to once again skate with some of their favorite Wolf Pack players following the games on November 18^th and March 30^th. Fans will get a chance to take photos with available players following the game on December 17^th, while postgame autographs will occur on February 24^th.

The Wolf Pack will celebrate a special milestone this season on Friday, February 9^th. The club will play the 2,000^th game in Wolf Pack history when the Bridgeport Islanders come to town. Details regarding this special celebration will be announced at a later date.

The full 2023-24 Hartford Wolf Pack promotional schedule is below. The full 2023-24 regular season schedule can be seen here.

Friday, October 20^th, 2023 – Home Opener (7:00 p.m. vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins)
*Rally Towel Giveaway, Presented by Carvel & CM Concessions
*$2 Drafts & $2 Hot Dogs

Saturday, October 21^st, 2023 – Postgame Skate (7:00 p.m. vs. Lehigh Valley Phantoms)
*Magnet Schedule Giveaway, Presented by Pepsi

Friday, October 27^th, 2023 – Costume Parade (7:00 p.m. vs. Springfield Thunderbirds)
*$2 Drafts & $2 Hot Dogs

Saturday, November 11^th, 2023 – Hockey Fights Cancer (7:00 p.m. vs. Providence Bruins)

Wednesday, November 15^th, 2023 – School Day Game (11:00 a.m. vs. Springfield Thunderbirds)

Saturday, November 18^th, 2023 – Military Appreciation Night (7:00 p.m. vs. Syracuse Crunch)
*Presented by General Dynamic Electric Boat
*Postgame Skate with Wolf Pack Players

Friday, December 1^st, 2023 – Specialty Jerseys (7:00 p.m. vs. Lehigh Valley Phantoms)
*$2 Drafts & $2 Hot Dogs

Saturday, December 2^nd, 2023 – Teddy Bear Toss (7:00 p.m. vs. Lehigh Valley Phantoms)
*Specialty Jerseys

Wednesday, December 6^th, 2023 – College Media Night (7:00 p.m. vs. Cleveland Monsters)

Friday, December 15^th, 2023 – $2 Drafts & $2 Hot Dogs (7:00 p.m. vs. Rochester Americans)

Sunday, December 17^th, 2023 – Sonar’s Birthday & Mascot Mania (3:00 p.m. vs. Toronto Marlies)
*Postgame Photos with Wolf Pack Players

Friday, December 22^nd, 2023 – Pucks ‘N Paws (7:00 p.m. vs. Bridgeport Islanders)
*$2 Drafts & $2 Hot Dogs

Saturday, December 30^th, 2023 – Hockey ‘N Hops (7:00 p.m. vs. Bridgeport Islanders)
*2024 Calendar Giveaway

Saturday, January 13^th, 2024 – Pride Night (7:30 p.m. vs. Providence Bruins)
*Presented by Nissan

Friday, January 19^th, 2024 – New York Rangers Night (7:00 p.m. vs. Hershey Bears)
*$2 Drafts & $2 Hot Dogs

Friday, February 2^nd, 2024 – $2 Drafts & $2 Hot Dogs (7:00 p.m. vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins)

Saturday, February 3^rd, 2024 – Women in Sports Night & Specialty Jerseys (7:00 p.m. vs. Springfield Thunderbirds)
*Presented by Nissan
*Youth Jersey Giveaway

Friday, February 9^th, 2024 – 2,000^th Game Celebration (7:00 p.m. vs. Bridgeport Islanders)
*$2 Drafts & $2 Hot Dogs

Friday, February 16^th, 2024 – $2 Drafts & $2 Hot Dogs (7:00 p.m. vs. Laval Rocket)

Wednesday, February 21^st, 2024 – Pucks ‘N Paws (7:00 p.m. vs. Bridgeport Islanders)

Saturday, February 24^th, 2024 – Star Wars Night (7:00 p.m. vs. Cleveland Monsters)
*Postgame Autographs

Friday, March 1^st, 2024 – $2 Drafts & $2 Hot Dogs (7:00 p.m. vs. Laval Rocket)

Friday, March 8^th, 2024 – Bobblehead Giveaway (7:00 p.m. vs. Providence Bruins)
*$2 Drafts & $2 Hot Dogs

Saturday, March 16^th, 2024 – Hartford Hockey Heritage Night (6:00 p.m. vs. Utica Comets)

Friday, March 29^th, 2024 – $2 Drafts & $2 Hot Dogs (7:00 p.m. vs. Springfield Thunderbirds)

Saturday, March 30^th, 2024 – Guns ‘N Hoses (7:00 p.m. vs. Hershey Bears)
*Postgame Skate with Wolf Pack Players

Friday, April 12^th, 2024 – $2 Drafts & $2 Hot Dogs (7:00 p.m. vs. Springfield Thunderbirds)

Sunday, April 14^th, 2024 – Miracle League Night (3:00 p.m. vs. Charlotte Checkers)
*Team Photo Giveaway

Friday, April 19^th, 2024 – Fan Appreciation Night (7:00 p.m. vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins)
*Chance to win $100,000
*$2 Drafts & $2 Hot Dogs

Full-season tickets, 20-game plans, 12-game plans, and flex plans for the 2023-24 season are on sale now! Visit hartfordwolfpack.com/tickets or call 860-722-9425 for more details!

Single-game tickets will go on sale on a to-be-announced date later this summer.

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HARTFORD WOLF PACK WEDNESDAY NEWS

Mitch Beck — Thu, 13 Jul 2023 14:12:37 +0000

By: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings

HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack released their full 2023-24 72-game schedule on Wednesday, following the previous release of the home openers for all 32 teams.

The season opens for the Wolf Pack on the road against the Providence Bruins on Friday, October 13th, before they travel the following night over to Springfield to take on the Thunderbirds at the Mass Mutual Center.

The Wolf Pack’s home opener is the following Friday night, October 20th, against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, with the puck drop coming at 7:00 PM. It is the first of six meetings between the two teams in the ’23-’24 season. The first home weekend will end with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms making their first visit to Hart City on Saturday night.

Among the schedule’s other highlights will be the return of the early morning ‘School Day Game’ in Hartford when the Wolf Pack hosts rival Springfield on Wednesday, November 15th, at 11:00 AM.

There will be a Thanksgiving Eve contest coming to Hartford this season. The Wolf Pack will play the P-Bruins at the XL Center on Wednesday, November 22nd, at 7:00 PM in the season’s second meeting with the Bruins.

Returning after a year off their schedule will be the Montreal Canadien’s AHL franchise, the Laval Rocket, who the Pack will meet four times. The first games with the Rocket are on December 8th and 9th at Place Bell. The two will battle again on Friday, February 16th, and March 1st at the XL Center.

The Belleville Senators are on the menu twice this season. They will face the Baby Blueshirts once in November in Hartford and then travel to the CAA Canadian Tire Centre in Belleville in late March for an early Sunday afternoon game following a late Saturday afternoon game in Toronto.

Rockford, Grand Rapids, and Milwaukee were rumored to be on the schedule, but they were not. However, the schedule includes the Cleveland Monsters for the second time in team history.

The Monsters just unveiled a brand-new logo and will skate into Hartford on Wednesday, December 6th. The last time Cleveland appeared in Hartford was back on February 13th, 2009. The Wolf Pack will return the favor with a trip to Cleveland to play at Rocket Mortgage Arena for two games on Friday, January 26th, and Saturday, January 27th. The Pack has not played in Cleveland since November 16th, 2008.

The franchise’s biggest rivals, the Bridgeport Islanders, will be the final game before the holiday break. That game will be on Friday, December 22nd, at 7:00 PM.

Post-Christmas weekend, the Wolf Pack will play a pair of games this season, first going to Springfield and then hosting Bridgeport.

They will take on the Islanders for a Saturday night tilt on New Year’s weekend as the two sides close out the calendar year of 2023 on December 30th at the XL Center at 7:00 PM.

On St. Patrick’s Day Eve, Hartford will host the Utica Comets at 6:00 PM, and then on St. Patrick’s Day itself; they will travel to play the defending Calder Cup champion Hershey Bears at 5:00 PM.

To their benefit, the Pack only have three three-games-in-three-nights to contend with this upcoming season. One of those three comes at an inopportune time as The Pack will close out the 2023-24 season in reverse order of the season, beginning with one of them against all Atlantic Division teams.

The club will host the Penguins in the regular-season home finale on Friday, April 19th. The final weekend then concludes with visits to Springfield on Saturday, April 20th, and ends in Providence on Sunday, April 21st, at 3:05 PM.

SIGNINGS

The team announced two depth signings, one up front and one on the blue line. Both players come from one of last season’s opponents, the Grand Rapids Griffins.

Both players split their season between Grand Rapids and the Toledo Walleye (ECHL).

On defense, Seth Barton, 23, was inked to a one-year deal. He played 36 games with the Griffins and 10 with the Walleye contributing 13 points in the regular season, but equaled that 13 in 13 playoff games with the Griffins. He’s played two seasons with Grand Rapids and four years collegiately at UMASS-Lowell (HE).

Drew Worrad, 26, is a centerman who skated in 47 games with Grand Rapids and 25 in Toledo (ECHL). Worrad registered 25 points, of which just four came while playing with the Griffins in his first and only minor pro season. He played four seasons collegiately for the Western Michigan University Broncos (NCHC). Worrad is 6’2″ and weighs 185 pounds.

Both players will likely start the season with the new Double AA affiliate, the Cincinnati Cyclones.

After one season outside the organization, the Wolf Pack resigned defenseman Zach Berzolla to a one-year deal. Berzolla spent most of last year with the Cyclones, then with the Buffalo Sabres organization with recalls to the Rochester Americans.

The Cyclones also announced the signing of ex-Pack Justin Vaive for next season. He will be their team captain again this coming season.

Ex-Pack Andrew Yogan, who started out last year with HK Poprad (Slovakia-SLEL), then left for EC Graz (Austria-IceHL), has signed for next season with Eisbären Regensburg (Germany DEL-2) for 2023-24. He joins another ex-Pack in goalie Tom McCollum.

Ex-Sound Tiger Kevin Czuczman departs Ilves Tampere (Finland-FEL) for HC Litvinov (Czechia (Czech Republic)-CEL for the 2023-24 season.

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HARTFORD WOLF PACK SWEEP SPRINGFIELD THUNDERBIRDS

Mitch Beck — Sun, 23 Apr 2023 13:32:36 +0000

By: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings

HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack vanquished their playoff demons after a 7-1 dismantling of the Springfield Thunderbirds at the XL Center before 5,745, completing the two-game sweep of their I-91 rivals.

The Pack received outstanding efforts from Tanner Fritz, Turner Elson, and Anton Blidh in the series-clinching win. The Pack saw seven players score in the first-round sweep and will need to continue to receive that kind of balanced scoring if they are to continue moving forward in the playoffs.

“Going into the series, they had won nine of the twelve regular season games, but I felt at five-on-five we had played good hockey against them. The special teams was the difference,” remarked Hartford Head Coach Kris Knoblauch.

The Wolf Pack move on to challenge the Providence Bruins in a Best-of-Five series beginning Friday, April 28th, and Saturday, April 29th, at the Amica Mutual Pavilion. Both games start at 7:05 PM. As the higher seed, The Bruins will have the home-ice advantage in the Atlantic Division semi-final. After the first two games in Providence, the Pack return home for Game Three on Wednesday, May 3rd, and a potential Game Four on Friday, May 5th. Those two games will have puck drop starting at 7:00 PM. Finally, a potential Game Five would be back in Providence on Sunday, May 7th, with the first puck drop coming at 7:05 PM.

The Pack should have a level of confidence in this upcoming series. In ten regular season games against the Baby Bruins, the Wolf Pack went 5-3-1-0.

“We have been playing playoff hockey for three or four weeks before this series, so we got into a groove,” Knoblauch said.

The challenge for Knoblach with the Pack’s top four regular season players on recall to New York serving as the Black Aces squad for the Rangers meant the call went out to the roster to come together and find ways to score. “We needed somebody to step up and everybody did so in some way. We had the energy and we knew Springfield had taken us lightly in Game 1, but our guys were prepared for them.”

THIRD PERIOD

In the third period, Springfield trailing 5-1, they pulled their goaltender early. The Wolf Pack capitalized, adding two unassisted empty net goals. The first came shorthanded from Blidh at 13:34, and then Tim Gettinger tallied at 15:02.

Pack goaltender Dylan Garand managed the third period well. He made key stops on Martin Frk, Will Bitten, and Nikita Alexandrov to secure the victory over Springfield in a contribution reminiscent of Cam Talbot, who thwarted the Bridgeport Sound Tigers in a short playoff win for CT Whale years ago.

“Garand, has been solid all year and we played well defensively in front of him,” said Knoblauch.

SECOND PERIOD

The second period started with the Pack picking up right where they left off in the first frame scoring early and controlling the play. “We got great support from all our lines, and you need that in the playoffs,” Knoblauch stated.

Adam Edström forced Brady Lyle down and out into a tripping penalty on an early two-on-one.

The Pack power play, a work in progress throughout the regular season, paid off in this series.

After a successful zone entry, Bobby Trivigno took a short pass from Elson and fired it into the net off the near post at 3:57 for the team’s fourth goal.

Moving Elson from the fourth to the first line wasn’t difficult for Knoblauch.

“He got lost in the shuffle, when we had all those trades in the beginning of March. He kept working. We had him when (Ryan) Carpenter was sent down (by the Rangers) in early December and they had good chemistry. So we had to restructure our lines. We put them back together. It was a fairly easy decision for a coach to make,” Knoblauch said.

Repeating their success from Game One on Wednesday night, the Wolf Pack kept their foot on the gas pedal and continued their exigency.

Fine work on the left-wing boards by Will Cullye kept the puck in the zone. He intercepted a Thunderbirds clearing attempt and got it back to Zac Jones. The Pack defenseman wasted little time sending a cross-ice feed to a wide-open Blake Hillman.

Hillman moved in with Elson and Carpenter providing traffic in front of Joel Hofer and fired a rocket past the Springfield netminder for a 5-1 lead at 6:30.

FIRST PERIOD

The Pack struck first.

Lauri Pajuniemi received a backhanded pass from Blidh, faded off the left wing, and found Fritz rushing in. Fritz received the puck and deposited the first postseason goal of his career at 8:03.

“Fritz was so strong. We played a stretch of four-and-a-half minutes and he was a plus-three. It was easy to give him the tap on the shoulder to go out,” an impressed Knoblach stated.

With limited playoff experience, Fritz had opined weeks ago about his desire for postseason play. He put action into his words.

“I’ve got what, three games, in like six or seven years. It was something I really wanted to experience,” Fritz added, “We got belief in that locker room right now. We’re a lot different (team) than Springfield faced before. The crowd has been regularly exciting. We fed off that.”

The Pack made it 2-0 with Fritz and Blidh factoring in again.

Fritz got the puck to Wyatt Kalynuk on the left point. Kalynuk sent a perfect drive to the net with Blidh with the Hofer screen at 10:48 for what would prove to be the game-winning goal.

The Pack made it 3-0 with Fritz and Blidh factoring in on the tally again.

Fritz was on the left side. He and Jones played a quick pass and catch before finding Ty Emberson open on the right point. Emberson sent a low shot on the net with Blidh and Springfield defenseman Tyler Tucker tied up in front of Hofer, who never saw the puck.

Blidh will try to torture his ex-teammates in Providence in the next series.

With his team reeling early, former Wolf Pack and now Springfield Head Coach Drew Bannister was forced to use his timeout early to settle his rattled Thunderbirds down, much to the delight of the exuberant XL Center crowd.

The crowd started early, chanting, “We want pizza.” The chant was about a team promotion with a local eatery providing free slices to ticketed fans whenever the Pack scored four goals.

Adam Clendening laid a perfectly clean shoulder check and ran over Quinnipiac grad Matt Peca when he tried to cut across the ice on his zone entry in a one-on-four situation.

SPRINGFIELD’S ONLY TALLY

Springfield scored in the last minute of the first period on the power play.

A Bitten cross-ice, across-the-goal crease pass went off Alexandrov’s stick right back to Bitten. He put a shot on the net that went off the inside of Garand’s stick and pad while sliding over to make the save with 27.8 left in the period.

The Pack never wavered or gave Springfield a chance.

LINES:

Cullye-Carpenter-Elson
Fritz-Pajuniemi-Blidh
Gettinger-Edström-Lockwood
Henriksson-Sýkora-Trivigno

Jones-Emberson
Hillman-Scanlin
Clendening-Kalynuk

Garand
Gahagen #35

SCRATCHES:

Talyn Boyko #40
Matt Rempe (upper body, day-to-day)
Louie Roehl #4 (healthy)
Bryce McConnell-Barker #8 (healthy)
Brett Berard #27 (healthy)
Cooper Zech #37 (healthy)
Matt Robertson (upper body, may return in the later half of the next round of the playoffs)
Patrick Khordorenko (season-ending shoulder surgery).
C.J. Smith (hip area surgery done for the season)

NOTES:

Near the end of the second period, the XL Center scoreboard malfunctioned and went out. Only the video portion came back. The issue forced the XL Center PA announcer to announce the time left when the play stopped. This continued until just 7:46 remained in the third period when only a small video was shown for the rest of the game.

The last playoff series win for the Wolf Pack came in a six-game quarterfinal series victory over the Hershey Bears in 2015. Two of the team’s home games were forced to be played in Worcester, MA, at the DCU Center. The now-shuttered Ringling Brothers Circus was at the XL Center. Worcester was still in the AHL before becoming an ECHL city.

Simsbury native Tommy Cross (Westminster), injured for half the season, dressed and played as a captain for an elimination game for Springfield.

Fritz’s three assists on Wednesday allowed him to become the 21st Wolf Pack to accomplish that in the playoffs. Chris Bourque was the last player to do so on May 15th, 2015. That was the last time the Wolf Pack had won a playoff game.

The Wolf Pack had three playoff series in the early years against the Springfield Falcons. They came in 1999, 2000, and 2003.

Eleven Pack players made their playoff debuts for Hartford on Wednesday night.

The AHL media voted Calgary Wrangler’s Dustin Wolf the league’s regular season Les Cunningham MVP. He becomes just the eighth goalie in league history to accomplish that honor. Wolf is the first netminder since the Wolf Pack’s Jason LaBarbera won the award in 2004. LaBarbera is presently the Calgary Flames goalie coach. Another ex-Pack, MacKenzie Skapski, is the Wranglers’ goalie coach.

The Jacksonville Icemen, the Wolf Pack Double AA affiliate, began its seven-game ECHL South semi-final series against the Rangers’ former ECHL affiliate, the Greenville (SC) Swamp Rabbits. Greenville took Game 1 4-1, with former UCONN forward Ben Freeman registering one of the goals, and former Thunderbird Ryan Bednard was in the net for the Swamp Rabbits.

Former Quinnipiac Bobcat Craig Martin had Jacksonville’s only goal. In the net for Jacksonville was a former Wolf Pack emergency goalie, Charles Williams. He made 27 saves in the loss.

Gettinger played his junior career under Bannister for three seasons with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL). The Greyhounds was the landing spot for Wolf Packm assistant coach Jamie Tardif before coming to Hartford.

Bannister was a member of the 2000 Wolf Pack Calder Cup championship team celebrated here two weeks ago.

The Springfield Thunderbirds went to the Calder Cup Final against the Chicago Wolves last year and didn’t face an elimination game until the Conference Final against the Laval Rocket. Then, they faced elimination against the Kevin Dineen-coached Utica Comets.

Speaking of Dineen, congrats to his son William. As a freshman at Yale, he won the William Chace Sportsmanship and Dedication Award at the Ivy League School.

Chris Harpur, the younger brother of current Ranger, and former Wolf Pack, Ben Harpur, was recalled from the Orlando Solar Bears (ECHL) by the Syracuse Crunch.

After five years of NCAA hockey, Erik Gotz, the nephew of Wolf Pack great Ken Gernander, heads to Europe and signs with the Krefeld Penguins (Germany-DEL). He played a fifth year at the alma mater of two of his other uncles, the Gernander twins, Jim and Jerry, who were graduates of the Vermont Catamounts (HE) program. They played a Wolf Pack exhibition game with their brother many years ago.

Twelve players are now off to Europe. 228 Division I and III college players have signed pro deals in North America and Europe.

The USA U-18 Team is about to embark on the World U-18 championships in Basel, and Ajoie, Switzerland. They’ll play April 20-23. They named their roster. The team is coached by former Yale assistant Dan Muse and one of his assistants is ex-Pack, Chad Kolarik. Their players include two former Mid-Fairfield U-16 members, Sal Guzzo and Ryan Fine, who played together at Don Bosco Prep (NJPREP).

The Canadian U-18 squad coaches are ex-Springfield Falcon coach Jeff Truitt (Prince Albert-WHL), with one of his assistants being ex-Danbury Trasher, Bruce Richardson (Blaineville-Boisbrand-QMJHL).

Ex-Pack John Gilmour officially signed with Adler Mannheim (Germany-DEL).

Cheshire native and former Hartford Jr. Wolf Pack, Robert “Bert” Malloy, now a dual citizen, has been playing for the Australian National team this week in Madrid, Spain. It hasn’t gone well. They dropped their first three games to Croatia, Spain, and Iceland in Division II Group A. They won a 7-1 rout of the Israel National Team. Malloy collected the last two goals of the game. He had three shots and was a plus-three. The team plays tomorrow against the nation of Georgia at the Pista del Hielo Arena.

Some European titles have been decided. But, amazingly, in the middle of everything going on in Ukraine, the Ukrainian Hockey League (UHL) has crowned MHK Sokil as their champion.

SG Cortina (Italy) has won the Alps Hockey League (AlpsHL).

Anyang Halla (South Korea) won the first Asia League Ice Hockey (ALIH) title in three years because of the pandemic. The team’s head coach is former AHL’er Jim Paek, with one-time Providence Bruin Matt Dalton, a South Korean citizen, in the net.

The XL Center honored their late colleague Pat Rudolph-Anderson by having her family drop the ceremonial first puck after a moment of silence. In addition, all monies raised from the 50/50 raffle, Chuck-A-Puck, and jersey auction were donated to the family. The other tribute came behind the goal on each end of the ice as the name “Pat” was etched onto the ice surface by 40-year-plus XL veteran Ice Crew Chief Therell Wayne Knight in a thoughtful homage.

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HARTFORD WOLF PACK HOST FIRST CALDER CUP PLAYOFF GAME SINCE 2015

Mitch Beck — Fri, 21 Apr 2023 17:04:08 +0000

By: Alex Thomas, Hartford Wolf Pack

HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack will host their first Calder Cup Playoff game at the XL Center since May 27^th, 2015, this evening. The Wolf Pack welcome the Springfield Thunderbirds to town for Game Two of their best-of-three Atlantic Division First Round series. Hartford leads the series 1-0 and will advance to the Atlantic Division Semifinals with a victory.

Puck drop is set for 7:05 p.m., and coverage is available on both AHLTV and Mixlr.

Tale of The Tape:

The Wolf Pack and Thunderbirds met 12 times during the 2022-23 regular season, with the Thunderbirds winning nine of those games and collecting points in ten of the 12 outings. They posted a record of 9-2-0-1. The Wolf Pack, meanwhile, accumulated points in five of the 12 meetings, posting a record of 3-7-0-2.

After only winning once at the MassMutual Center in six tries during the regular season, the Wolf Pack scored a dominant 6-1 victory in Game One in Springfield on Wednesday night.

Lauri Pajuniemi opened the scoring 3:37 into the contest, giving Hartford a lead they never lost. Both Zac Jones and Pajuniemi would strike in the second period immediately after successful penalty kills. Jones was sprung in on a breakaway at 6:02, burying the eventual game-winner fresh out of the box. Pajuniemi also found himself on a breakaway after serving a minor penalty. He snapped home his second goal of the game at 10:43, making it 3-0. Blake Hillman made it 4-0 at 19:54, taking a backdoor pass from Bobby Trivigno and firing home his first goal as a member of the Wolf Pack.

Both Ryan Carpenter and Ty Emberson would tack on goals in the third period, while Adam Gaudette scored the T-Birds’ lone goal on the powerplay at 11:44.

This is the first playoff series between the Wolf Pack and Thunderbirds. Hartford previously played three playoff series against the Springfield Falcons (1999, 2000, 2003), posting a series record of 2-1.

Wolf Pack Outlook:

The Wolf Pack, despite having eleven players make their Calder Cup Playoff debut, opened the postseason in style on Wednesday night. Both Emberson (1 g, 2 a) and Tanner Fritz (3 a) scored three points in the victory. In addition, Frtiz’s three assists tied the franchise playoff record for assists in a game. He is the 21^st player to record three helpers in a playoff game for the club and the first since Chris Bourque did it on May 15^th, 2015. May 15^th, 2015, also marks the last time the Wolf Pack won a Calder Cup Playoff game before Wednesday night.

Dylan Garand made 24 saves in his professional playoff debut, picking up his first Calder Cup Playoff victory. Pajuniemi also dazzled in his debut, scoring his North American career’s first two playoff goals.

Fourteen different Wolf Pack players recorded a positive +/- differential in Game One, with Emberson leading the way with a +5 rating. Jones, meanwhile, was credited with the game-winning goal. It was his first Calder Cup Playoff game-winner.

Emberson (1 g, 2 a) and Fritz (3 a) lead the Wolf Pack in playoff scoring with three points each through one game. Pajuniemi’s two goals pace the club in that department.

Thunderbirds Outlook:

The defending Eastern Conference Champions must win tonight to keep their season alive. The Thunderbirds did not face elimination in last spring’s Calder Cup Playoffs until the Eastern Conference Final against the Laval Rocket.

They swept their first two series, defeating both the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and Charlotte Checkers in the Atlantic Division Semifinals and Final, respectively. As a result, the T-Birds had a bye through the First Round in 2022.

Gaudette’s goal at 11:44 of the third period was his first career Calder Cup Playoff goal in his playoff debut. Brady Lyle and Nikita Alexandrov were credited with the assists.

The T-Birds penalty kill was strong in Game One, killing all three Hartford powerplays. In 13 games against Hartford this season, the Thunderbirds have successfully killed 88.64% of Wolf Pack powerplays.

Game Information:

WATCH: AHLTV
LISTEN: Mixlr

Play-by-play voice of the Wolf Pack, Alex Thomas, will have ‘Wolf Pack Pregame’ starting live at 6:50 p.m. on both AHLTV and Mixlr.

If necessary, Game Three of this Atlantic Division First Round series will take place tomorrow, April 22^nd, at 7:05 p.m. at the MassMutual Center in Springfield. For playoff series and ticket information should the Wolf Pack advance, please visit hartfordwolfpack.com/tickets/playoff-information.

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