AHLOTB: HOLLOWELL ENJOYING IMPACT FIRST SEASON WITH WOLF PACK
Apr 4, 2024
*Published on theahl.com on April 3rd, 2024*
HARTFORD, CT – On the morning of July 2nd, 2023, Mac Hollowell officially made the move. After parts of five seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs organization, Hollowell agreed to a one-year contract with the New York Rangers as an unrestricted free agent.
The skilled defenseman from Niagara Falls, ON, would go from being a key cog for the Toronto Marlies to being Hartford’s puck-moving quarterback. The adjustment seemed easy for the veteran rearguard, who quickly proved to be an impact addition.
Hollowell opened the season with a ten-game point streak, rattling off a goal and nine assists in the team’s first ten games. After an injury kept him out of the lineup for roughly two weeks, Hollowell returned to post a career-high four assists in the Wolf Pack’s 6-4 victory over the Providence Bruins on November 22nd. Those four assists were just one shy of the franchise record for assists in a single game.
“I think a big part of what has allowed me to have a successful season is the coach’s trusting me early on to play pretty big minutes and in key situations,” Hollowell said when asked what allowed him to have that early success. “When they show faith in me to be a top guy, it really drives me to want to be better.”
There’s better, and then there is best. This season, the Wolf Pack has received the very best of Hollowell. He turned his hot start into, statistically, the best season of his career. Hollowell has already set new career-best marks in assists with 38 and points with 40.
As part of that, Hollowell collected the 100th point of his AHL career in his first season with Hartford. Fittingly, it came in Toronto, against his former team the Marlies, on March 23rd.
“It meant a lot to me,” Hollowell said of hitting the 100-point milestone in the building he once called home. “It was my first time back there since I left. It’s where I started my pro career and really developed my game, so to me, that building and city will always be very special.”
He was also named to the AHL All-Star Classic in San Jose in February, the first time in his career he was selected to participate in the event.
If those accolades weren’t enough, as of this writing Hollowell is leading the league in assists by a defenseman with 38. He’s also eight assists away from tying the franchise record for assists by a defenseman in a single season. Thomas Pöck (2005-06) and Andrew Hutchinson (2007-08) both recorded 46 helpers in a single season.
“It’s definitely cool to be at the top of any list or set any franchise record,” Hollowell said when asked about those two accolades. “Honestly, I had no clue about either of these until you mentioned them now, so for me, it would be a good feeling. I’m just going to continue to do what I have been and continue to try to help us win each night.”
Helping the Wolf Pack win each night is the biggest goal right now. With just eight games remaining in the season, the club has a magic number of ten to clinch a spot in the 2024 Calder Cup Playoffs. It’s all hands on deck for the Wolf Pack now as they try to earn their second straight berth in the dance.
Hollowell will be a big part of things if the Wolf Pack are to return to the playoffs and enjoy some success in the postseason for the second straight spring.
“For me, personally, I just want to give it my best effort each night so that we can win hockey games,” Hollowell said when asked about his end-of-the-season goals. “Getting this close to the playoffs, the game changes and you really have to fight for each inch out there. We know we have a really good, deep roster. We are capable of big things as long as we have the right attitude and mindset.”
The team’s mind is set on a return to the playoffs. It’s also set on giving the fan base in Hartford more playoff action this spring at the XL Center, a building that has seen the crowds continue to grow after a renaissance last season.
“It would mean everything to us,” he said of playing playoff games in downtown Hartford. “Our crowd has been buzzing, and we feed off that.”
A playoff berth, a potential franchise milestone, and a possible league lead in a statistical category.
It’s been an impact first season for Mac Hollowell with the Wolf Pack, and it isn’t close to over yet.
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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.