WOLF PACK UNLEASHED: NOAH LABA
Sep 4, 2025HARTFORD, CT – There’s an old saying that you never get a second chance to make a first impression. Luckily for Noah Laba, he made good on his first opportunity.
The young forward electrified the crowd in Hartford in his professional debut late during the 2024-25 season, scoring shorthanded against the defending Calder Cup Champion Hershey Bears.
It was the first of an eleven game stint for Laba with the Wolf Pack. With his NCAA career behind him, the fourth round draft choice (111th overall) in 2022 by the New York Rangers was able to gain some extremely valuable experience with the Wolf Pack ahead of his rookie campaign.
“Obviously, coming here (to Hartford) at the end of the season was great and I feel like I learned a lot,” Laba said when asked about the experience. “The most important thing for me was to come here, learn from the older guys and kind of see what it’s like. It’s a fast game, guys are really good and it’s a hard league, but there was a lot to be learned, and I feel like I did learn here.”
Laba played a key role for the Wolf Pack down the stretch. He saw extended time with veteran forwards like Nathan Sucese, Anton Blidh, and Alex Belzile. Playing with proven players at the AHL level helped the young forward adjust and learn.
“Just their hockey IQ, it’s super high. It’s a group that made a lot of smart little plays, whether it be on a breakout along the boards or just in-zone stuff,” he said of playing with Hartford’s established core of veterans. “To be able to kind of learn from their collective hockey IQ was nice.”
Sometimes, it takes a little longer to learn lessons, especially at the professional level. For Laba, however, the results began to show quite quickly. He and Blidh teamed up just 8:17 into his professional debut. While killing the only penalty of the night, Blidh sprung Laba ahead for a shorthanded breakaway.
Against Clay Stevenson, Laba made a nice move and buried his first career professional goal on his first career shot.
“That was awesome,” he said, with a smile. “Obviously, getting that one out of the way in the first game is cool. It was nice to get it in game one, that was a special feeling, especially in a big win for our team.”
Often, players adjusting from the NCAA or junior levels struggle to provide offense immediately in the pro ranks. Laba’s debut highlight wasn’t his only contribution. He ended the season finding his offensive stride, scoring four points (2 g, 2 a) in the season’s final three games.
“Yeah, I mean the more games you play, the more comfortable you are,” he said when asked about finding his offensive footing. “I definitely kind of felt like I started to understand the league a little more towards the end, which was good.”
With training camp just weeks away, Laba is ready for another new experience. As an NCAA player, this will be his first taste of a professional training camp. He’s got the unique experience of eleven professional games to help him prepare for a new season and a new challenge.
Despite the whirlwind of going from Colorado College to the AHL, Laba was able to pick up on things that he feels will allow him to succeed as a rookie this fall. He also knows that there is still plenty of work to do to ensure success.
“I don’t think I can really hone it down to just one thing,” he said when asked about what he feels he needs to improve on ahead of the season.
“I like to kind of cover all of my bases. Whether it be getting better at skating, edges, working on my shot and my hands, working to become more physical, getting bigger, faster, and stronger, just trying to touch on all the aspects of my game.”
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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 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, YouTube, Flickr, and TikTok.