Last night, the Battle of Connecticut visited Hartford for the first time this season. The Hartford Wolf Pack aimed to snap their three-game losing streak against the Bridgeport Islanders. However, the Wolf Pack couldn’t claw themselves out of an early hole and fell to their in-state rivals 5-4.
A Humbug Start
Hartford very quickly found themselves in a deficit. Connor Mackey took a cross-checking minor just over two minutes into the opening period. William Dufour quickly made Hartford pay, ripping a low wrist shot off the post to break the ice.
Bridgeport doubled the lead on their second powerplay of the night. Matt Rempe went to the box for tripping. On the ensuing powerplay, Otto Koivula fired a shot from behind the net that bounced around the net. The puck clipped Ruslan Ishakov, ricocheted off Louis Domingue, and snuck over the red line. Officials initiated a lengthy review before awarding Ishakov the tally, pushing the Bridgeport lead to two.
Dufour scored his second goal of the night during a four-on-four sequence just over three minutes later. Brian Pinho picked off a Mackey pass and found Dufour in the slot. Domingue denied the initial attempt, but Dufour buried his own rebound on the backhand to triple the lead. Bridgeport took the three-goal lead into the first intermission.
Koivula made it four unanswered goals just over a minute into the middle stanza. Robin Salo fired the puck on net, and Koivula managed to deflect it by the blocker of Domingue to push the lead to four.
A Miracle on Trumbull Street?
Slowly but surely, the Wolf Pack began to claw their way back into this one. Brandon Scanlin got Hartford on the board about six minutes into the second period. Scanlin snuck in behind the defense and deflected a pass from Matthew Robertson into the Bridgeport net.
At 6:30 of the second period, Samuel Asselin was awarded a double minor for high-sticking. This gave the Wolf Pack a four-minute man advantage. Hartford quickly cashed in, with Robertson cutting the lead in half. Ryder Korczak won a faceoff in the offensive zone, and Robertson collected the puck. Robertson skated to the point before ripping a shot through traffic that Ken Appleby never saw. Just like that, the Wolf Pack were right back in it.
Dufour took a boarding minor at 19:09 of the second period, and the ensuing powerplay carried over into the final frame. Jeff Kubiak won the opening faceoff, but the Islanders couldn’t corral the puck in their zone. Brennan Othmann won a footrace to the loose puck and snapped a pass to Alex Belzile. The veteran forward quickly pushed the puck into the Bridgeport net, and suddenly, the lead was down to one.
A Blue Christmas
Just when it looked like Hartford had all the momentum, Bridgeport pushed the lead back up to two. Cole Bardreau joined a scramble in front of the Hartford net and managed to jam the puck home, putting the Wolf Pack down two with just over seven minutes to play in regulation.
Belzile scored his second goal of the night to cut the lead back down to one. Belzile collected a loose puck behind the Bridgeport net and tucked it under the bar, giving Hartford some life with just over three minutes to play. It was Belzile’s second multi-goal game and sixth multi-point game of the campaign.
The Wolf Pack lifted Domingue for the extra skater as they sought the equalizer in the waning minutes of regulation. However, Hartford couldn’t force overtime, and Bridgeport picked up a 5-4 win.
Speaking to AHL News Now after the game, interim head coach Steve Smith said his team wasn’t mentally prepared early on, which led to the disappointing loss.
“We took some foolish penalties…and they ended up with a couple powerplays that we never should’ve given them. You give them those kind of odds, and eventually, teams are gonna score,” Smith told AHL News Now.
Up Next
The Wolf Pack will travel up I-91 for a matchup with the Springfield Thunderbirds on Wednesday, December 27th. Puck drop is set for 7:05 pm. The Wolf Pack will play their final game of 2023 on Saturday, December 30th, hosting the Islanders for the third installment in the Battle of Connecticut this season. Puck drop is set for 6:00 pm.
