The Wolf Pack wrapped up the 2023 portion of their schedule this week. Hartford’s losing streak did extend to a season-long five games, but the Wolf Pack bounced back and ended the year on a high note with a win.
Wednesday – Springfield Thunderbirds 3, Hartford Wolf Pack 1
The Wolf Pack returned from Christmas break with a road trip up Interstate 91 to visit the Springfield Thunderbirds. Hartford grabbed the game’s first lead just under 13 minutes into the contest. Dylan Coghlan turned the puck over to Bobby Trivigno behind the Springfield net. Trivigno snapped a pass to Turner Elson, who snapped a shot under the bar to break the ice.
The T-Birds tied the contest at 2:25 of the middle stanza. Joseph Duszak fired a shot from the right circle, and Jakub Vrana tipped the puck past Dylan Garand, evening the score. At the time, it was Vrana’s third goal through his first five games in Springfield.
Mikhail Abramov put the Thunderbirds in front for good, ripping a wrist shot that Garand couldn’t fully glove early in the third period. Searching for the equalizer late in the period, the Wolf Pack lifted Garand in favor of the extra skater. However, Matthew Peca delivered the dagger, scoring on the empty net to hand Springfield a 3-1 win. It was Hartford’s first loss at the MassMutual Center this season, and their losing streak reached a season-long five games.
Saturday – Hartford Wolf Pack 3, Bridgeport Islanders 2
The Wolf Pack returned to the XL Center on Saturday night, hosting the Battle of Connecticut for the second time in eight days. In like manner to the contest on December 22nd, Hartford got off to a slow start. Nikolas Brouillard was whistled for closing his hand on the puck at 3:09 of the opening period. On the ensuing powerplay, Samuel Asselin beat Louis Domingue to give the Islanders the game’s first lead. Ruslan Iskhakov followed up, doubling the lead nine minutes later. Bridgeport took the two-goal lead into the first intermission.
Karl Henriksson cut the lead in half early in the second period. Officials sent Seth Helgeson to the box at 2:35 for slashing. In the waning moments of the powerplay, Henriksson ripped a shot from the left circle by Ken Appleby to put Hartford on the board.
Brett Berard evened the contest with another powerplay goal just over three minutes later. With Asselin in the box for hooking, Brennan Othmann sent the puck down low to Berard. Berard’s initial shot was denied by Appleby. However, the rookie forward stuck with it, jamming away before finally slipping the puck over the red line to tie the score.
The teams remained even until the final stanza. There, Cristiano DiGiacinto picked the perfect time to tally his first goal of the campaign. Connor Mackey took a shot from beyond the left circle. DiGiacinto managed to deflect the puck into the Bridgeport net, putting the Wolf Pack in the lead for good.
Bridgeport pulled Appleby for the extra skater in the waning moments of regulation. However, Domingue stood strong, and the Wolf Pack earned a much-needed victory to close out 2023.
DiGiacinto Dominates Bridgeport
Every team faces that one player that just has their number in every meeting.
For the Bridgeport Islanders, that player is Cristiano DiGiacinto.
The Hamilton, Ontario native has skated in 86 AHL games with the Wolf Pack, and has tallied ten goals in those games. Of those ten goals, six have come at the expense of the Islanders, including last night’s game-winner. The goal was also DiGiacinto’s second game-winning tally in the AHL; his first came against the Rochester Americans on January 21st, 2023.
Between injuries and recalls, the Wolf Pack are playing significantly short-handed right now. If players like DiGiacinto can step up when called upon, it bodes well for the future of this Wolf Pack team.
Injury Report
Speaking of injuries, we have an updated injury report.
Jake Leschyshyn returned to action on Wednesday. The veteran forward was dealing with an upper-body injury and hadn’t seen game action since November 10th at Bridgeport. Leschyshyn also picked up his first point since returning on Saturday, assisting on Karl Henriksson’s goal.
A new addition to the injury report is Riley Nash. Nash suffered a lower-body injury in the final sequence of Hartford’s game against the Islanders on December 22nd. He did not play in either contest this week, and is listed as week-to-week.
Remaining on the injury report are Ben Harpur and Zach Berzolla. Harpur is out indefinitely after undergoing pectoral surgery. Berzolla remains week-to-week with a lower-body injury.
Sýkora Leads Slovakia
Adam Sýkora hasn’t played an AHL game since the Wolf Pack’s December 17th contest against the Toronto Marlies. That’s because he’s in Gothenburg, Sweden, captaining Team Slovakia at the 2024 World Junior Championships. Sýkora’s crew went 3-1 in group play, earning all nine possible points and finishing second in Group B. It’s a fantastic experience for Sýkora, who came into the 2023-24 season as the youngest player in the AHL.
Up Next
The Wolf Pack will kick of 2024 with a trio of road games. They’ll visit Bridgeport for the fourth installment of the Battle of Connecticut on Thursday, January 4th. Puck drop is set for 7:00 pm.
The Wolf Pack will make their first trip to Hershey this season on January 6th for a matchup with the AHL’s best team, the Bears. Puck drop is also set for 7:00 pm.
Finally, the Wolf Pack will wrap up the weekend by visiting the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins for a matinee matchup on Sunday. Puck drop is set for 3:05 pm.
