HARTFORD, CT – The Hartford Wolf Pack played their biggest game of the season thus far on Wednesday night. The team traveled to Springfield to take on a Thunderbirds team they’re chasing in the Calder Cup Playoff race. The Wolf Pack put forth an impressive effort, outshooting the T-Birds 40-22. However, three power play goals from the home side resulted in a 5-3 defeat for the Wolf Pack.
Blidh’s Best Season Continues
The Wolf Pack were significantly shorthanded coming into the contest. The New York Rangers recalled goaltender Dylan Garand on Tuesday. Additionally, forwards Brennan Othmann, Brett Berard, and Jake Leschyshyn, plus defenseman Matthew Robertson, spent the day at the Rangers’ practice. Furthermore, defensemen Chad Ruhwedel, Erik Brännström, and Brandon Scanlin all sat out of the game with injuries.
As a result, the Wolf Pack recalled forwards Brett Budgell and Blake McLaughlin plus defensemen Ryan Siedem and Carter Berger from ECHL Bloomington. Finally, the Rangers reassigned netminder Talyn Boyko to Hartford from ECHL Tulsa.
Things didn’t get any easier for the Wolf Pack in the opening minutes of the contest. Bo Groulx suffered an injury on his first shift of the game after a collision with teammate Alex Belzile and would not return. Seconds later, Dylan Roobroeck took an offensive zone penalty to give Springfield a power play bid just 40 ticks into the game. Nikita Alexandrov opened the scoring, stuffing a backhander by Louis Domingue.
Blade Jenkins took a hit up high just over the 13 minute mark which should’ve sent the Wolf Pack to their first power play. However, a controversial instigator call against Budgell kept the teams at even strength.
The Wolf Pack ultimately wouldn’t need the power play to tie the game. Anton Blidh snuck into the slot undetected and tipped a feed from Nathan Sucese by Vadim Zherenko to draw the teams even at one.
The goal was Blidh’s 16th of the season, continuing his career year in the scoring department.
However, the Thunderbirds countered with another power play goal. Aleksanteri Kaskimäki blasted a feed home from the slot to put Springfield up 2-1 heading into the first intermission.
Big Mack, Big Goals
Matthew Peca gave Springfield their biggest lead of the night about 13 minutes into the middle frame. Peca took a drop pass from Matt Luff and beat Domingue by the pad.
The Wolf Pack refused to go away, however. They continued to pressure the Thunderbirds, eventually drawing a penalty as Scott Harrington took a tripping minor. On the ensuing power play, Connor Mackey cut the lead back to one with his fourth goal of the campaign. Roobroeck screened Zherenko as Mackey let a shot fly from the blue line. The Springfield netminder never saw the shot and it sailed into the net.
The goal gave Mackey his first power play goal as a member of the Wolf Pack.
Hartford continued to pepper Zherenko in the remainder of the frame. However, the netminder hung on and allowed the T-Birds to take a 3-2 lead into the second break.
Thunder Struck
The Thunderbirds went back to the power play at 5:26 of the final frame after Jaroslav Chmelař took a tripping minor. For the third time, the Springfield power play struck, with Alexandrov potting his second man advantage goal of the game. Alexandrov snapped a shot from the left circle that clipped a stick in front and ricocheted by Domingue.
Once again, the Wolf Pack showcased impressive resilience. They cut the lead to one for the second time in the final minutes of the third period. Grant Potulny opted to lift Domingue for the extra skater, and Belzile cashed in on the move. Sucese sent a rink-wide pass to Belzile in the left circle, and the Wolf Pack’s leading scorer hammered a shot by Zherenko to give the Wolf Pack a puncher’s chance.
However, the intrigue ended there. Luff nailed the empty net to secure a 5-3 victory for the Thunderbirds. As a result, the Wolf Pack now sit seven points behind Springfield for the final Calder Cup Playoff spot in the Atlantic Division.
Mapping Out the Path
This was a game the Wolf Pack really needed to win. They’re chasing Springfield in the Calder Cup Playoff race, and earning points in the head-to-head matchup is paramount.
The loss last night doesn’t make things impossible, but it does make the path much more difficult. Springfield leads Hartford by seven points in the standings and has two games in-hand. The Wolf Pack are staring at a steep mountain to climb.
The Wolf Pack have 22 games remaining in the season. They’ll need to win at least 15, if not more, if they want a chance at returning to the Calder Cup Playoffs. It’s a big ask, but for this group it’s doable with this effort level.
Things in the AHL can change on a dime. All it takes is one winning streak from the Wolf Pack and one losing streak from a team like Springfield or Lehigh Valley and you’ve got an interesting situation developing.
That said, I’m not blind. I recognize that it’s gonna take a near perfect two months of hockey to dig out of this hole, and even then, the playoffs are not guaranteed. But I’ve said it over and over again – this is a team that has the talent and effort to not only make the Calder Cup Playoffs, but make noise in them.
Here’s the deal: you can’t get seven points in one game. A consistent effort is absolutely necessary if the Wolf Pack want a chance at the dance. They’ll have the chance to start that effort on Friday.
Up Next
The Wolf Pack return home for a weekend set, hosting the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on Friday. Puck drop is set for 7:00 pm.
