THE HART BEAT - VOLUME 1, ISSUE 26
Jul 22, 2026HARTFORD, CT – The halfway point of the summer has come and gone. In just about two months, the Hartford Wolf Pack will be on the ice for training camp and will be preparing for the 2026-27 season.
The 30th season of Wolf Pack hockey is right around the corner. Free agency has come and gone. A large portion of the summer’s business has concluded.
For fans, one of the most exciting days of the summer has come and gone as well. That day? Schedule release day.
The 72-game slate is here for the Hartford Wolf Pack. After a little time to digest the season’s road map, we thought it might be a good time to take a look at what lies ahead for the Pack this coming season.
Faces Come and Faces Go:
Three opponents from the 2025-26 season have come off the board for the Wolf Pack.
The most prominent subtraction? The Bridgeport Islanders. The ‘Battle of Connecticut’ is no more after the Islanders relocated to Hamilton, ON, following the season.
The sides faced off 12 times during the 2025-26 season, so this move significantly impacted the Wolf Pack’s schedule matrix.
Also coming off the board are two North Division opponents. The Calder Cup Champion Toronto Marlies and the Cleveland Monsters will not face the Wolf Pack this season. The Pack and Marlies met twice a season ago, while Hartford and Cleveland battled four times.
Replacing those three teams are four new opponents in 2026-27. The Hamilton Hammers will make their first appearance on the schedule. The Wolf Pack and Hammers will play just twice, once in Hamilton and once in Hartford (10/29/26 at Hamilton, 3/10/27 at Hartford).
For the third time in the last five seasons, the Wolf Pack will see Western Conference foes on the schedule.
They’ll return to the Midwest to renew their rivalries with the Milwaukee Admirals and Rockford IceHogs. The Pack faced both teams in the 2022-23 and 2024-25 seasons.
In both of those campaigns, the Grand Rapids Griffins were the third opponent in the Midwest for the Pack. That won’t be the case this time around. Instead, the defending Western Conference Champion Chicago Wolves will be the third foe.
It’ll mark the first time since the 2002-03 season that the Wolf Pack and Wolves will meet.
The Breakdown:
With four teams added and three teams coming off, the Wolf Pack will face 15 opponents from three divisions this season. It’s one of the club’s more diverse schedules in recent seasons, giving fans the opportunity to see a number of different teams.
The club will play six games against the Central Division, with a home-and-home series against the Admirals, IceHogs, and Wolves.
From the North Division, the Wolf Pack will play a home-and-home set with the Hammers, Belleville Senators, Syracuse Crunch, and Rochester Americans. They’ll play four games against the Laval Rocket and the Utica Comets, hosting both teams twice and visiting both twice.
Last season, the Wolf Pack only played two games each against the Rocket and Comets.
The Pack will open 2027 in Laval, facing the Rocket at Place Bell on Jan. 2 and 3. The Rocket will come to town on Oct. 11 and Jan. 23.
As for the Utica series, it’ll be a back-to-back in Hartford on Mar. 19 and 20. Thanksgiving Eve (Nov. 25) will be spent in Utica this year, while a second date in the city is scheduled for Dec. 12.
As for the Atlantic Division, there is no change to the Wolf Pack’s series with the Charlotte Checkers (eight games), Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (six games), and Lehigh Valley Phantoms (six games).
They’ll be seeing more of the Providence Bruins, Springfield Thunderbirds, and Hershey Bears this season, however.
In previous seasons, the Wolf Pack met the Bruins and Thunderbirds ten times each. That will be up to 12 meetings this season. There will be six home dates and six road dates in those rivalry series.
As for the Bears, the Wolf Pack will see them six times this season instead of the four times that has been standard over the last few campaigns.
So…Wanna Road Trip?:
One of my personal favorite things in recent years has been taking summer trips with my father to different baseball stadiums to see our favorite team, the Boston Red Sox, play.
For Wolf Pack fans, there will be plenty of opportunity to do the same this season.
Here are my top five road trips that Wolf Pack fans should consider doing this season, excluding the day trips to Springfield and Providence:
1. Laval (Jan. 2 & Jan. 3, 2027): When people say going to a game in Montréal or Laval is a different animal, believe them. I’ve been lucky enough to call games in both cities during my career, and it’s a special experience each time. I believe every Wolf Pack fan who wants to see this team on the road should take the trip to Laval.
It’s one of the league’s best arenas, is a terrific city, and the two afternoon start times (3:00 p.m. both days) give fans the chance to explore at night. The in-game atmosphere is impressive, and for my money it’s the best hot dog in the league. The ride also isn’t bad.
2. Hershey (Feb. 12 & Feb. 13, 2027): Another gem of a place to take in an AHL game is Hershey. A beautiful arena, passionate fanbase, and some fun spots to go before and after the game.
Now, if you have a significant other, this weekend could be a tough sell, but the good news is there’s Hersheypark right across the parking lot from the GIANT Center, so there isn’t any excuse to come home empty handed on Valentine’s Weekend.
3. Rockford (Jan. 30, 2027), Chicago (Jan. 31, 2027) & Milwaukee (Feb. 2, 2027): This trip will require a flight, and you’ll need to rent a car, but driving between these three cities isn’t bad at all.
This trip allows you to see three rinks the Wolf Pack don’t get to very often, see a different part of the country, and eat some of my favorite food on the road. Pizza in Chicago and, well, cheese in Milwaukee.
4. Charlotte (Mar. 26 & Mar. 27, 2027): To me, Charlotte is one of the best cities the AHL has to offer. Plenty to do, great restaurant scene, and some of the best weather you’ll experience in the winter and spring.
While this trip is a flight and not a drive, it’s a direct flight out of Hartford and less than two hours from takeoff to landing. I think every Wolf Pack fan should make this trek at some point.
5. Lehigh Valley (Oct. 3, 2027) & Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (Oct. 4, 2027): A drive to Pennsylvania to open the 2026-27 season would be a fun trip for Wolf Pack fans. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton is on the way back from Allentown, so fans can hit both games while breaking up the ride home a bit.
Quick Hits:
- It’s a road heavy start to the season, which works for the Wolf Pack for a few reasons. One, it allows a lot of new faces and a new coaching staff to get away and spend time together right off the hop. Second, it allows the Wolf Pack to spend a lot of time at home in the second half of the season as they hope to chase down a playoff berth.
- The longest stretch of road games comes within the season’s first month. The Wolf Pack will play eight straight on the road from Oct. 24 through Nov. 10. The stretch begins with a 6:05 p.m. game in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Oct. 24. The club then visits Hamilton on Oct. 29, Belleville on Oct. 30, Springfield on Nov. 1, Hershey on Nov. 4, Rochester on Nov. 6, and Syracuse on Nov. 7. The stretch concludes on Nov. 10 in Springfield.
- The Wolf Pack will play two ‘School Day Games’ this season: Nov. 10 at Springfield (10:35 a.m.) and Nov. 17 at home against Charlotte (11:00 a.m.).
- The longest stretch of home games is a seven game stretch from Feb. 19 through Mar. 6. During that stretch, the club will face the Hershey Bears (Feb. 19 & 20), Lehigh Valley Phantoms (Feb. 24), Charlotte Checkers (Feb. 26 & 27), Rockford IceHogs (Mar. 3), and Syracuse Crunch (Mar. 6).
- After that homestand of seven games, the Wolf Pack will visit the Phantoms on Mar. 7 for a one-off road game. They then return home for six straight, meaning they’ll play 13 of 14 games at PeoplesBank Arena. Talk about home cooking.
- Nov. 7 will see the Wolf Pack in Syracuse to face the Crunch. On that day, all 32 AHL teams will be in action. That day marks the 90th Anniversary of the first AHL games played.
- This year’s AHL All-Star Break for the Wolf Pack will run from Feb. 6 – Feb. 11. The AHL All-Star Classic will take place on Feb. 7 and Feb. 8 at Rocket Arena in Cleveland.
- Games by day of the week: Monday (0), Tuesday (3), Wednesday (13), Thursday (1), Friday (17), Saturday (23), and Sunday (15).
# # #
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.