As time ticks away on the American Hockey League’s regular season, the race for the Calder Cup Playoffs tightens. The Hartford Wolf Pack’s recent struggles leave them right in the middle of a tight Atlantic Division.
Tuesday – Charlotte Checkers 2, Hartford Wolf Pack 1 (OT)
The Wolf Pack made their first voyage to North Carolina last Tuesday for a midweek series with the Charlotte Checkers. Coming into the series, the two teams were separated by just four points in the standings, adding to the intrigue.
Charlotte found the icebreaker in this contest. Patrick Giles swiped a pass at neutral ice and carried the puck into the Hartford zone. The Checker forward used a screen to snap a shot by Dylan Garand to give Charlotte the game’s first lead nearly 15 minutes into the opening frame.
The Wolf Pack answered back about halfway into the second period. Adam Edström fought off Charlotte’s pressure in the Hartford zone and slid the puck down the ice. Brennan Othmann raced for the loose puck, grabbing it along the boards. Othmann slid a backward pass to Karl Henriksson, who powered into the slot. The Swedish forward lifted a shot over the glove of Magnus Hellberg to tie the contest at one. It was Henriksson’s tenth goal and 18th point of the season, both new career-high totals.
The Atlantic Division rivals remained deadlocked for the rest of regulation time. Garand made ten saves in the third stanza, while Hellberg turned nine bids aside. As a result, the sides met in overtime for the second time this season. The point proved crucial for the Wolf Pack, as it guaranteed they would exit Charlotte leading the Checkers in the standings.
The extra frame didn’t last long, with Mackie Samoskevich ripping home the game-winner just 52 seconds into overtime. It was the second time the Newtown, Connecticut native scored an overtime game-winner against Hartford, with the first coming in the Connecticut capital on February 28th.
Wednesday – Charlotte Checkers 4, Hartford Wolf Pack 0
The Wolf Pack and Checkers met for a rematch on Wednesday night. Hartford got a big return up front, as forward Riley Nash played his first game since February 21st vs. Bridgeport.
The division rivals played a scoreless first period. Making his sixth straight start, Garand turned aside twelve shots from Charlotte. Meanwhile, the Wolf Pack had trouble generating chances in the opening frame, recording just four shots on goal, all of which Spencer Knight denied.
The Checkers finally broke the ice about three and a half minutes into the second period. Former Hartford forward Will Lockwood deflected a shot by Garand to give Charlotte a lead they’d maintain. The goal was Lockwood’s first goal against his former team and stood as the eventual game-winner.
Charlotte added a pair of goals in the remainder of the middle stanza. Wilmer Skoog doubled the lead about four minutes later, jamming his own rebound by Garand. Patrick Giles followed up just over the eleven-minute mark, burying a feed from Jamieson Rees into the Hartford net.
Samoskevich capped off the scoring, potting a powerplay goal early in the third period. Knight made 20 total saves in the contest, earning his third shutout of the campaign as Charlotte swept the midweek series.
Saturday – Utica Comets 4, Hartford Wolf Pack 2
The Wolf Pack made a brief stop at home on Saturday night, welcoming former Hartford Whaler Kevin Dineen and the Utica Comets to town.
Hartford found the icebreaker in this contest. Austin Osmanski was whistled for tripping about six minutes into the game, giving the Wolf Pack the contest’s first powerplay opportunity. Alex Belzile took a feed from Othmann and fired a shot from the slot. Akira Schmid made the initial save, but the puck deflected off Brett Berard‘s stick and trickled across the red line to give Hartford the game’s first lead. The goal was Berard’s 23rd of the season, good for second among AHL rookies.
However, the Comets soon captured the lead for good. Just over six minutes later, Graeme Clarke tied the game with a quick shot by Olof Lindbom‘s glove. Just two minutes later, Ryan Schmelzer gave the Comets a lead they would never lose. With Anton Blidh in the box for boarding, Schmelzer fired a shot that clipped off Lindbom’s stick and the post before entering the Hartford net.
Schmelzer put the game out of reach about thirteen minutes into the middle stanza when a shot from Clarke ricocheted off him and into the net.
The Wolf Pack did not go down without a fight, however. A delayed penalty call against the Comets allowed Hartford to send out an extra skater. Karl Henriksson carried the puck into the Utica zone and slid a pass to Adam Sýkora. The rookie forward ripped a shot from the left circle that Schmid never saw, drawing Hartford back within one.
Hartford lifted Lindbom late in the third period, searching for the equalizer. However, Kyle Criscuolo nailed the empty net, delivering the victory to Utica.
Sunday – Hershey Bears 4, Hartford Wolf Pack 0
The Wolf Pack wrapped up their week on the road in Hershey, taking on the league-leading Bears in a matinee matchup.
However, this was a matchup Hartford would like to forget. Jake Leschyshyn went off for slashing just 1:11 into the game. Eight seconds later, the Bears secured the lead as Ethen Frank snapped a shot by Garand to break the ice.
Alex Limoges doubled the lead in the final seconds of the middle frame. Limoges took a shot that Garand initially denied, but the Hershey forward jammed his own rebound into the net to put the Bears up by two.
The Bears tacked on a pair of goals in the third period. Riley Sutter was first, converting on a wraparound attempt to give Hershey a three-goal lead about eleven minutes into the final stanza. Ryan Hofer capped off the scoring just three minutes later with a shot through Garand’s five-hole. Hunter Shepard made 26 saves in the victory, and Hartford’s losing streak reached five straight games.
The Playoff Picture
Let’s take a look at the playoff picture in the Atlantic Division.
Despite their recent struggles, the Wolf Pack are in a good position as the regular season heads into its final weeks. Hartford currently sits in fifth place in the Atlantic Division with 67 points. They have a seven-point buffer on sixth-seeded Lehigh Valley and an eight-point lead on seventh-seeded Springfield. In front of the Wolf Pack are the third-seeded Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and fourth-seeded Charlotte Checkers, with 71 and 68 points, respectively. However, the Wolf Pack have two games in hand over both teams, giving them ample opportunity to jump up in the standings.
You can track the chase for the Calder Cup Playoffs with the AHL’s Playoff Primer, which is updated daily.
Scanlin’s Shining Opportunity
On Monday, the New York Rangers recalled defenseman Brandon Scanlin from Hartford.
With both Jacob Trouba and Ryan Lindgren dealing with injuries, the Rangers needed an extra defenseman and opted to give Scanlin his first NHL promotion. The call-up is the culmination of a lot of hard work from the second-year defenseman. After Scanlin signed a two-year extension with the Rangers in February, I asked Wolf Pack interim head coach Steve Smith for his reaction to the news. Smith told The Calder Times:
[Scanlin] might be our most improved player from the beginning of last year to where he is now.
Wolf Pack interim head coach Steve Smith on defenseman Brandon Scanlin, 2/16/24
Now, Scanlin gets an opportunity to showcase his two years of improvement at the NHL level.
Up Next
The Wolf Pack continue their four-game road trip this week, taking on a trio of North Division opponents. First, the Pack will visit the Rochester Americans on Wednesday. Puck drop is set for 7:05 p.m.
Over the weekend, the Wolf Pack will make their second visit to Canada of the season. On Saturday, they’ll take on the Toronto Marlies, with puck drop set for 4:00 p.m. They’ll wrap up the road trip on Sunday in Belleville for a matinee matchup against the Senators, with puck drop set for 2:00 p.m.
