HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack hosted their final home game of 2024 on Saturday night. The team welcomed the Providence Bruins to town, aiming to bounce back from a tough loss in Springfield the day prior.
Unfortunately for the Wolf Pack, their struggles continued on Saturday night. Brandon Bussi denied 36 of the 37 shots he faced as Providence took a 4-1 decision in the Connecticut capital.
First Period Fire
For the second time in as many nights, the Wolf Pack had a great start to the game. Hartford fired 15 shots on Bussi in the opening frame. However, the Bruins’ netminder stood strong, denying all 15 bids.
Also for the second time in as many nights, the Wolf Pack would concede the icebreaker. John Farinacci forced a turnover in the right-wing corner and walked to the front of the Hartford net. Farinacci fired a quick backhand shot by Louis Domingue to give Providence a lead they’d never lose.
The Wolf Pack refused to go away, however. Hartford’s best chance came roughly twelve minutes into the contest. Nathan Sucese and Adam Sýkora sped into the Providence zone on a partial odd-man rush. Sucese fed Sýkora in the slot, but Sýkora pushed the shot high.
The Wolf Pack also earned a pair of power play bids in the opening frame. First, Michael Callahan went off for boarding at 12:50, but the Providence penalty kill prevented the Wolf Pack from tying the contest. A scrum late in the frame saw Jaroslav Chmelař and Jeffrey Viel both go to the box for roughing. Viel’s penalty was a double minor, giving the Wolf Pack their second man advantage, but once again they failed to capitalize. As a result, the rivals entered the first intermission with the score 1-0 in favor of Providence.
Bruins Bury Hartford
Georgii Merkulov put the game out of reach just 55 seconds into the middle stanza. Merkulov took a quick feed from Brett Harrison and snapped a shot from the right circle over the blocker of Domingue.
Max Jones tripled the lead just over a minute later. Farinacci won a faceoff in the Hartford zone, and Jones controlled the puck. Jones walked to the high slot before flinging a shot on net that snuck by Domingue and in.
Later in the frame, Ben Harpur attempted to get the Wolf Pack fired up by dropping the gloves with Viel. The two had an entertaining tilt at center ice.
Unfortunately, the fight failed to produce a spark throughout the remainder of the middle frame. As a result, Providence took the 3-0 lead into the final period.
Jake’s Office
The Wolf Pack were forced to the penalty kill just 26 seconds into the final frame when Jake Leschyshyn went off for cross-checking. However, the Hartford penalty kill prevented Providence from capitalizing on their only man advantage of the contest.
Roughly 13 minutes into the third period, Jones and Connor Mackey took matching roughing minors, setting up a four-on-four sequence. With the Wolf Pack trailing by three and time ticking away, head coach Grant Potulny opted to lift Domingue for the extra skater.
The gamble ended up paying off. Victor Mancini controlled the puck at the blue line and fired a point shot. The puck clipped Bo Groulx in the slot before Leschyshyn, stationed in front of the net, deflected it through the five hole of Bussi.
The goal was Leschyshyn’s eighth of the campaign, matching his total from last season.
Riding the Rollercoaster
Hartford pulled Domingue again in the final minutes of the frame. Vinni Lettieri attempted to set up Matt Poitras for an empty net goal, but Alex Belzile tipped the pass away. However, Poitras won a footrace to the loose puck and buried it into the open net for the dagger. The goal delivered a 4-1 decision to the Bruins.
The loss was the Wolf Pack’s fourth in their last five games. All four of those losses have come against division opponents, with three coming against Providence. As of now, the Wolf Pack sit in seventh place in the Atlantic Division and are on the outside looking in. It might be a bit too early to be looking at the playoff picture, but the Atlantic has become the AHL’s tightest division. Each game matters a ton to the final standings.
However, let’s take a more positive outlook – the Wolf Pack have deserved better in both their losses this past weekend. The Wolf Pack haven’t played bad, their opponents have just played a bit better. On Friday, it was the Thunderbirds capitalizing on their chances. On Saturday, it was Bussi allowing just one goal on 37 shots. The effort is there, and logic suggests the execution will eventually come.
“The thing I will say is that I never question our effort,” Potulny told The Calder Times after Saturday’s contest. “Do I wish our execution was better at times, yeah. But you control what you can control. Attitude and effort are things that are controllable, and those have been good all year.”
Up Next
The Wolf Pack wrap up the 2024 portion of their schedule on the road on New Year’s Eve. They’ll visit the Springfield Thunderbirds for the sixth installment of the I-91 Rivalry this season. Puck drop is set for 3:05 pm.
