TWO MINUTES FOR THOUGHTS: FEBRUARY 9TH, 2023
Feb 9, 2023
Refreshing, isn’t it? The All-Star Game has come and gone, and earlier today the All-Star break ended for the Hartford Wolf Pack as the club took to the ice for a practice at the XL Center in Hartford. Tomorrow night, the stretch drive truly begins as the Pack hosts the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in a crucial Atlantic Division tilt.
With 27 games remaining on the schedule, one goal remains for the Wolf Pack. That goal? Return to the Calder Cup Playoffs.
Onto the blog, which once again this week features a crisp six-pack of thoughts!
1.) Last week in the blog, we discussed the need for the Wolf Pack to start stringing together victories on home ice down the stretch. Message received. On Friday night, the Wolf Pack scored a 4-3 comeback victory over the Utica Comets, then on Saturday club crushed the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins by a score of 8-2. Both wins had massive positives that the team can build on starting tomorrow night.
Friday night’s victory marked the first time this season that the Wolf Pack trailed after two periods yet found a way to win the game in regulation. Sammy Blais tied the game early in the frame, then won it late with a real pretty move down the slot after Akira Schmid kicked away Ryan Carpenter’s initial bid. As Tanner Fritz told us on Saturday, the Wolf Pack felt like they had outplayed the Comets for a majority of that game, but a few tough bounces went against them. A good sign that the team was able to shake it off and defeat a strong opponent.
On Saturday, Hartford scored just eight seconds into the game and never looked back on their way to an 8-2 rout of the Penguins. The eight goals marked a season-high for the Wolf Pack, surpassing their previous season-high of seven in Bridgeport on December 27th. It was the first time the club had scored eight goals in a game since January 30th, 2015, against the Bridgeport Sound Tigers. That game was a wild 8-6 affair at the XL Center.
Suffice to say, outside of maybe Hartford’s 4-0 victory over Grand Rapids on December 10th, this was the team’s most complete victory of the season.
2.) Some history from Hartford’s victory on Saturday night! First, let’s start with Jonny Brodzinski and Tim Gettinger, who tied the franchise record for the best +/- in a game with a +5 rating. It was the first time in franchise history that two players recorded a +5 rating in the same game. The only other players to hit the +5 mark in a game? Matt Kinch, who did it on both December 18th, 2002 and February 14th, 2002, Bryce Lampman, who did it on April 3rd, 2005, and Dwight Helminen, who did it on March 31st, 2006.
Brodzinski also finished the night with four points (1 g, 3 a), a new career-high. It was the first time this season that a Wolf Pack player hit the four point mark, and the first time since April 10th, 2022, when Anthony Greco did it in Charlotte (1 g, 3 a).
Oh, and remember that goal we told you about just eight seconds into the game? Well, that tally from Tim Gettinger was the fastest goal to start a game in franchise history. It eclipsed the old mark of nine seconds, done by Nigel Dawes on April 15th, 2007, in a game at Portland.
3.) Speaking of Saturday night, what a night it was for Tanner Fritz. The veteran forward skated in his 300th career AHL game in the victory. For good measure, he scored his first goal on home ice this season and tacked on his team-leading 20th assist. The goal Frtiz scored would stand as the game-winner, his first of the year. Tanner caught up with us on the broadcast from the Wolf Pack locker room at the first intermission. You can hear what he had to say here.
4.) There’s no easing back into the post-break schedule. The Wolf Pack face a challenging weekend that starts with the end of their season-long five-game homestand on Friday night. The Lehigh Valley Phantoms come to town for the second and final time this season. Currently, Hartford trails Lehigh Valley by just two points in the standings. You don’t need me to tell you just how important this game is. It’ll also be this week’s AHLTV free game of the week, so all eyes will be on this crucial tilt.
Hartford will face a difficult travel setup as the club makes the trip to Hershey on Friday night following the game against the Phantoms. They’ll finish up the season series against the Bears before returning to Hartford for a well-deserved day off on Sunday.
5.) Last week in this space, we alluded to the importance of stringing together victories at home. Wolf Pack defenseman Ty Emberson, our intermission guest on Friday night, agreed with that sentiment. The team responded with two big victories at home to even their record at 2-2-0-0 on this five-game homestand. A win tomorrow gives them a 3-2-0-0 homestand, with crucial victories over the Penguins and Phantoms. Despite the start to the homestand, no one would argue against it being a success with a win tomorrow.
Currently, the Wolf Pack are 10-8-0-5 at home this season. In their final 27 games, the team will play at the XL Center 13 times. Winning eight or nine of those games might be required to make the postseason. If recent home play and the recent atmosphere is any indication, that should be an attainable goal.
6.) Atmosphere. I wanted to take some space in this week’s blog to address that. Wolf Pack fans, you’ve been amazing. Talking to players and coaches, your support is both noticed and appreciated. The building has been electric this season, and it’s been pushing the team. This is a determined group ready to reward this city with playoff hockey for the first time in eight years. I speak for everyone with the Wolf Pack when I say I can’t wait to experience this building for the final 13 home games of the regular season. Keep showing up, keep being loud. This has been a fun ride and it feels like everything is hitting its stride at the right time. Let’s have some fun together, shall we?
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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.