TWO MINUTES FOR THOUGHTS: JANUARY 5TH, 2024
Jan 5, 2024
Happy New Year, Wolf Pack fans! 2023 was one of the more successful calendar years in recent memory for the Wolf Pack, an enjoyable year that was a long time coming for this fanbase. The Pack treated fans to an eight-game winning streak, the first playoff berth since 2015, two playoff-round victories last spring, and the best start to a regular season since 2004-05.
It was a great year for Wolf Pack alumni, too. Former forward Jonathan Marchessault not only won the Stanley Cup with the Vegas Golden Knights, but he also became the first Wolf Pack alumni to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. Kris Knoblauch departed for the NHL, now serving as head coach of the Edmonton Oilers, while forward Will Cuylle and defenseman Zac Jones both graduated to the NHL with the New York Rangers.
2023 can only be described as a success, but it’s over now. 2024 has arrived, and the Wolf Pack has bigger goals this year. 2023 was a building block year for the organization. Now, the trick is to build off that and challenge for the franchise’s second Calder Cup Championship.
Onto the blog!
1.) Welcome back to Hartford, Artem Anisimov! The veteran forward, who has played in 771 career NHL games, inked a professional tryout agreement (PTO) with the Wolf Pack on Tuesday morning. On Thursday night, he was back in the Wolf Pack lineup for the first time in a regular season game since April 11th, 2009, against the Springfield Falcons.
His reintroduction to the Wolf Pack was a successful one, as Anisimov scored the game-winning goal 1:13 into the third period. It was his first regular-season goal with the Wolf Pack since April 11th, 2009.
That’s a 5,382-day gap between regular-season goals for the Wolf Pack for Anisimov.
Who says you can’t go home?
2.) The Anisimov addition could prove to be a big one for the Wolf Pack. Jonny Brodzinski has been with the Rangers for an extended period, while Riley Nash is out week-to-week with a lower-body injury. Anisimov provides stability down the middle of the ice and provides strong offense still.
Remember, Anisimov finished third on the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in points with 36 (19 g, 17 a) a season ago in just 55 games. He can still produce at this level.
3.) Last thing on Anisimov, the vision is clear. Should he stick around through his PTO, the depth at center ice becomes impressive for the Wolf Pack as they get healthy. Anisimov is currently joined by Jake Leschyshyn, Karl Henriksson, and Ryder Korczak. Nash is working his way back from injury, while both Alex Belzile and Matt Rempe can shift down the middle in a pinch.
Center ice is a vital position, and the addition of Anisimov further strengthens that spot for the Wolf Pack.
4.) Adam Sýkora traveled back from Sweden earlier this week and accompanied the Wolf Pack to Bridgeport on Thursday night. He didn’t play in the game but fear not Wolf Pack fans, the rookie forward is healthy. He was given a well-deserved chance to catch his breath after a wild few weeks representing his native Slovakia at the 2024 World Junior Championships.
Sýkora almost certainly will return to the lineup this weekend for the first time since December 17th.
5.) Last lineup-related point in this week’s blog. Nash (week-to-week, lower-body) isn’t the only player dealing with injury for the Wolf Pack. The club is currently without two defenders as Ben Harpur (indefinitely, upper-body) and Zach Berzolla (week-to-week, lower-body) are both injured. Up front, Nash is joined by Adam Edström.
Edström is currently week-to-week with an upper-body injury and will not be an option for interim Head Coach Steve Smith this weekend.
6.) Happy Birthday, Brennan Othmann! The rookie forward turns 21 today but got his big present on Wednesday morning before Wolf Pack practice. As Othmann told the assembled media in New York on Thursday, he was told before Wednesday’s practice by Smith that he was being recalled by the Rangers for the first time in his career.
A little more than 24 hours later, Othmann was making his NHL debut at Madison Square Garden against the Chicago Blackhawks. Not a bad early birthday present.
Othmann is the second Wolf Pack player to make his NHL debut this season, joining Edström.
7.) Speaking of young players, Brett Berard continues to impress in his rookie season. He’s got goals in back-to-back games, both on the powerplay. That’s where the similarities end, however, as his two goals couldn’t be more different.
Berard tied the game against the Islanders on December 30th with a hard drive to the net and a strong effort play. Berard was denied twice before jamming a rebound by Ken Appleby to tie the game 2-2 at the time.
On Thursday, Berard wired a low shot by Henrik Tikkanen from the right-wing circle to give Hartford a 2-1 lead.
Berard’s got a strong combination of speed, skill, and grit that makes him a handful to play against. He’s been very impressive in his rookie season and is playing a key role right now for the Wolf Pack up front.
When injuries and recalls hit, you need players to step up. Opportunity knocked, and Berard answered.
8.) Tomorrow night is going to be fun. It’ll be a showdown in Chocolatetown as the top two teams in the Atlantic Division by points percentage battle it out at the Giant Center in Hershey. This is the first of just four meetings between the Wolf Pack and Bears this season.
You know the group of players who saw their Calder Cup dreams end last May at the hands of the Bears will be highly motivated to get a little revenge tomorrow night. You can also be assured that this is a measuring stick game for the Pack, a chance to see how they stack up against the defending Calder Cup Champions who are currently the league’s best team.
9.) It was nice to see Cristiano DiGiacinto’s hard work rewarded on December 30th. A fan-favorite in Hartford, DiGiacinto plays the game with a high-intensity level and strong work rate. His deflection early in the third period proved to be the game-winning goal in Hartford’s 3-2 win over the Islanders.
The goal was his tenth career marker in the AHL. It was his sixth against the Islanders. Boy, does he love that matchup.
10.) You probably noticed that there was no column last week. Part of that was due to the holiday season, but part of that was because I took our normal column day, Thursday, to return home to Boston to say goodbye to my grandmother, Wilma Thomas, who passed away on December 22nd.
I wanted to make a note of that this week, as the support she had given me over the years truly meant a lot to me. It was at her house, alongside my grandfather, where my love and passion for hockey grew. She was the first female President of Woburn Youth Hockey in Massachusetts, to give you an idea of what the sport meant to my family.
We’ll all greatly miss her.
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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 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.