#KeithPrimeau

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CANTLON: NEW YORK RANGERS MADE THEIR FIRST ROUND OF CUTS

By: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT - The New York Rangers made their first round of cuts on Thursday and Friday, sending plenty of players to the Hartford Wolf Pack. Physicals for these players will be Sunday, with training camp beginning on Monday, with the lineup in flux with more cuts in New York coming until the regular season starts. Among the forwards returning to Hart City are; Tanner Fritz, Austin Rueschhoff, Patrick Khordorenko, Bobby Trivigno, Alex Whelan, and Cristiano DiGiacinto. Newcomers include off-season signees Zach Jordan and Ryan Lohin. Also making their way to Head Coach Kris Knoblauch's training camp are Junior draftees Ryder Korczak, Matt Rempe, and Swedish import Karl Henrickson. Heading to training camp after being sent to Hartford by the Rangers are Defensemen returnees; Zach Giuttari, Matthew Robertson, Brandon Scanlin, and Hunter Skinner. Newcomers and off-season signees include Louka Henault, Blake Hillman, and Luke Martin. The club also assigned goaltenders Talyn Boyko, Parker Gahagen, Olof Lindbom, and Dylan Garand. Unless something unusual happens, the four goalies are earmarked with different destinations. Garand is ticketed for Hart City, while Gahagen and Lindbom are likely headed to the franchise's ECHL affiliates, the Jacksonville Icemen. Lindbom may go back to Europe or be one of the two potentially reassigned to another ECHL club. Because of his age, the 6'8 Boyko will be heading back to junior and the Kelowna Rockets (WHL) at the end of camp. The NHL contract agreement with the CHL (Canadian Hockey League) mandates that 19-year-olds cannot play in the AHL until their junior season ends. Newcomer forwards C.J. Smith, Turner Elson, defenseman Andy Welinski and returning top player Tim Gettinger must pass through waivers before they can be formally assigned to Hartford. Adam Edström, a 21-year-old, 6'4 center, heads home to play for Rögle BK (Sweden-SHL) on loan from the Rangers. Surprisingly, also sent to Europe was last year's first draft pick Adam Sýkora. He also returns home to play for HK Nitra (Slovakia-SLEL) on a loan basis. The thought was that the 18-year-old, the first overall selection in the CHL Import Draft, would be heading to the Medicine Hat Tigers. Brennan Othmann was returned to juniors and the Flint Firebirds (OHL). The Wolf Pack's roster currently has four goaltenders, seven defensemen, and thirteen forwards. Several of these assignees will be heading to Jacksonville with only so many openings for GM Ryan Martin and limited ice time available for the recently arrived Knoblauch and his staff to carry on the roster. Monday, the team will release the training camp roster. As of late Friday, the team was still finalizing those players they will invite to camp on Professional Try-Out contracts. Given the collapse in the second half of last season, this training camp in Hartford is expected to be highly competitive with a comprehensive screening of the competitors. The Rangers presently have 34 players still in training camp, including 20 forwards, 11 defensemen, and three goaltenders on the roster. Another round of cuts is expected either late this weekend or as late as mid-week after the team plays in Boston against the Bruins. A final cut to get to the CBA-mandated roster of 23 and keep within cap space compliance will occur just before the season starts. Final rosters must be submitted by October 9-10 to certify all contracts. The Rangers will likely go with 22 or 23 players depending on those two factors' status. Several players are informally skating at the XL in preparation for the opening of training camp. Ice was laid down ice last week. The Wolf Pack will have a closed-to-the-public exhibition game next Thursday in Bridgeport against the Islanders and then have a game against Bridgeport at the Koeppel Community Center at Trinity College next Friday (6 PM). It will give fans their first look at the Wolf Pack as part of the Annual Ryan Gordon Foundation event with a suggested $5 donation. NOTES: The Rangers have already sent two players back to juniors. Bryce McConnell-Barker was sent to Sault Ste. Marie (OHL), where he had current new Hartford assistant coach Jamie Tardif as his assistant coach last year. Also returning to junior hockey is third-round-draft-pick forward Jayden Grubbe. He goes to Red Deer (WHL), where he will captain his Rebels team again for the second year in a row. He is WJC eligible, whose 20th birthday is a week after the tournament ends. Former Wolf Pack/Bridgeport Sound Tiger Matt Lorito and his wife are expecting their first child shortly, so his next hockey destination is on hold. Instead, expect he will likely head to Europe as an injury roster replacement/last import quota player. Jake Elmer is the only other ex-Wolf Pack from last season who is still waiting on a new destination. He is said to be unofficially heading to the Greenville Swamp Rabbits in South Carolina, the former ECHL affiliate for Hartford. Released and assigned to AHL camps were ex-Pack's Ty Ronning (Minnesota-Iowa - AHL), Darren Raddysh and Daniel Walcott (Tampa Bay-Syracuse-AHL), and Peter Diliberatore (QU) and Mason Primeau, nephew of ex-Hartford Whaler Keith Primeau, who both head to (Vegas/Henderson-AHL). After singing with Adirondack Thunder (ECHL), Luke Stevens (Yale) signs a training camp try-out PTO with the Coachella Valley Firebirds (Palm Springs)-AHL and Callum Booth (Salisbury Prep) (Seattle/Coachella Valley-AHL). Goalie Spencer Knight (Darien/Avon Old Farms) signs a one-year ELC contract extension with the Florida Panthers. Jeff Kubiak was sent to Bridgeport by the New York Islanders. They signed Matt Maggio, a fifth-round Islanders draftee this past summer in Montreal, from Windsor (OHL) to a try-out PTO deal. He is a younger cousin of former Sound Tiger and Ranger draftee, the retired Daniel Maggio. He signed a provisional contract with the Adirondack Thunder (ECHL) to cover his bases last week. Another junior PTO signee for Bridgeport is Daylen Kuefler from the Kamloops Blazers (WHL). Shane Sellar (Canterbury School-New Milford) signs a try-out deal with the Hershey Bears and already has a contract with the Reading Royals (ECHL) to start the year. AHL players to Europe have risen to 108 as ex-Pack as Josh Wesley, the son of former Whaler Glen Wesley departs the Springfield Thunderbirds for HC Litvinov (Czech Republic (Czechia)-CEL). He is the first Thunderbird from last season to go to Europe, and now 29 of 31 AHL teams have lost at least one player overseas. Former Wolf Pack Tyler Brown is named scout for the Barrie Colts (OHL) covering the GOJHL after being the head scout last year for Stratford (Ontario) Warriors (GOJHL) and was a regional scout for Nanaimo Clippers (BCHL) as well. If this report from Eliott Friedman of Rogers SportsNet is on the mark, the NHL and AHL future will change in a big way salary-wise in two years. He is usually very accurate with such info. The league's salary cap, which will set a record of $82.5 million this year in the 2022-23 season, could rise around nearly $10 million over the next three years, sources told Friedeman and SportsNet, the Canadian TV rights holder. However, teams have reportedly been given guidance on the cap's future, and upward is the word. Our long-time source confirmed this is the word on the street. "I've heard its going up, how much and when, I'm not sure, With the TV deals kicking in, the money will start coming in." According to Friedmann, the cap could elevate another $1 million in 2023-24, then jump up another $4 million in each of the following two seasons. That would place the spending limit at approximately an astonishing $92 million by 2025-26. In addition to the cap, the NHL will have a spending floor, which is $61 million this year. That would primarily affect the Arizona Coyotes, who will play at the new 5,000-seat college-level ASU-Arizona State University Mullett Center starting this year for the next three years. How they can exist in that world is anyone's guess. "I don't have first-hand knowledge. In the short term, they're staying in Arizona in Phoenix. Long-term, they have challenges as they always have. Some of this is above my pay grade. If all goes well, you're still looking at five years for this team. They're committed to the (ASU) arena for three years, and IF Tempe approves their new building plan, and that's not a given, a new building will still take two years to build, despite the good weather for construction out there. The other factor is fielding a competitive, winning team, which they don't have presently. The current new building handicaps them from signing free agents. Players want to be paid, and they want a winning team, and they will wrestle with that, and that's part of the equation going forward," remarked our source, who requested anonymity. The league instituted a $39 million cap for the 2005-06 season. However, the cap has risen steadily before freezing at $81.5 million for the three pandemic-affected seasons, beginning with 2019-20. The NHL hit $5.2 billion in revenue last season on the strength of the new media deals as they returned and finally had a full schedule. The league took in $5.1 billion in revenue 2018-19, and the escrow is still a thorny and complicated issue. Disney, owners of ESPN/ABC, is paying the league $400 million annually, while Turner Sports, the other holder of the US broadcast rights, is forking over $225 million per season. Both were seven-year deals signed last year. HARTFORD WOLF PACK HOME Read the full article

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CANTLON: PACK HIT THE ROAD FOR THREE-IN-THREE

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings CROMWELL, CT - The Hartford Wolf Pack have passed the halfway mark on the 2019-20 season and they do so sitting atop the Atlantic Division with a 19-8-2-5 (45 points) record. It's hard to imagine that back in September anyone would have picked this group to be heading into the second half of the season in first place in the Atlantic Division and among the best teams in the AHL. One of the factors for the Pack resurgence and current position in the race to the Calder Cup is their persistence and growth as a team-unit. It cannot be overlooked. “The biggest thing is, we have won so many one-goal games and a big factor is a mature team wins a majority of those games. We have handled leads well late (in games) and have had very strong third periods." Pack head coach Kris Knoblauch said. The Pack are unbeaten with the lead after two periods with a 15-0-1-2 record. Hartford has also scored their share of miraculous goals late in games and did that twice to send it to overtime. "The other big reason (for the turnaround) is our goaltending of Igor (Shesterkin) and Adam (Huska). They have made stop-after-stop and our defense has done such a good job with blocks like we did Tuesday (a 3-2 win over Bridgeport). Right now we're a little fortunate,” Knoblauch stated. Knoblauch is enthusiastic about his team, but does not want to be over-confident. Because the Pack are in first place, Knoblauch was honored by being named one of the AHL All-Star game's coaches. The game will be played at the end of January in Ontario, CA. Before that though, the Wolf Pack have a lot of work to do starting Friday when they head to Providence to take on the Bruins. The game will be their seventh of the season, and they won’t see the Baby Bruins, who they've been trading first place with back-and-forth for the past month, until March 1st. Shesterkin will start Friday night, making it his first three-consecutive-game-starts for the Wolf Pack as he transitions and adjusts to North American rinks. “We're going to enjoy Igor for as long as we have him, because he will be in the NHL at some point. Providence is a very good team, well-coached and they have very good structure. Our records are similar, but Shesterkin has been the difference in several games.  We also have capitalized in key situations against them, and that has been the difference.” After the trip to the Dunkin Donuts Arena in Providence, the Wolf Pack travel to Utica to play the red-hot Comets who are 7-2-1-0 in their last 10. The Comets are in second place in AHL North Division percentage points behind the Rochester Americans. Each team has 44 points. Next Wednesday, the Wolf Pack complete this road game grouping with a drive down to Hershey to face the Bears before they return home on January 10th against the Charlotte Checkers where they will seek to improve on their home record of 14-1-0-2. NOTES: Knoblauch would neither confirm nor deny that defenseman Libor Hajak would be making a rehabilitation assignment in Hartford. The Rangers are on a four-game Canadian road trip. “We haven’t received any notifications or instructions at this point," is all the head coach would say on the subject. So far, Hajak has missed 13 games with a right knee injury he suffered on December 5th after playing the first 27 games. When Hajak does eventually come to Hartford on his rehab assignment, as is being highly speculated among beat writers in New York, somebody will either sit in Hartford or a player will head to New York. The Rangers have dropped three games, including last night’s 4-3 loss to Calgary to ex-Wolf Pack and Ranger goalie Cam Talbot. The team completes the Canadian trip in Vancouver on Saturday night. The Rangers did make two transactions from the Wolf Pack. They recalled center, Ryan Dmowski (Old Lyme/Gunnery Prep) from their ECHL affiliate, the Maine Mariners. In return, after two games, forward, Dillan Fox, was released from his PTO deal and returned to the Mariners. Forward, Patrick Newell, will return to the lineup after a three-game absence the result of an upper-body injury he suffered against Providence. Wolf Pack’s leading scorer, Vinni Lettieri, (11 goals and 24 points in 34 games) and defensemen Joey Keane, and Yegor Rykov, spent nearly a half-hour post-practice working on their shooting techniques. Lettieri has one point, an assist, in his last five games. Former Qunnipiac Bobcat, Brogan Rafferty, was named CCM/AHL Rookie of the Month with three goals and 16 points in 13 games. Rafferty signed as a free agent by the Vancouver Canucks after his junior season. He's third in assists with 25 and leads all defensemen in scoring with 30 points in 34 games, He's also sporting a healthy plus-17 so far. Forward Kieffer Bellows of Bridgeport was named the AHL Forward of the Month with 10 goals in 11 games. Bridgeport sent defenseman, Mike Cormell, and right-wing, Ben Thomson, who's coming off an injury suffered early in the season, to the Worcester Railers (ECHL). Providence got defenseman Jeremy Lauzon back from his recall to the Boston Bruins. Mason Marchment, the son of former Hartford Whaler, Bryan Marchment, was recalled from the Toronto Marlies by the Maple Leafs. Ex-Sound Tiger, Aaron Ness, was returned to the Tucson Roadrunners by the Arizona Coyotes. Goalie, Parker Milner, (Avon Old Farms) was sent to the South Carolina Stingrays (ECHL) by Hershey. Dalton Smith, the nephew of former Whaler, Keith Primeau, was released by Rochester. Ex-Wolf Pack/Ranger, Dale Weise, was recalled from the Laval Rocket by the Montreal Canadiens and got into a first period scrap against the Tampa Bay Lightning’s Patrick Maroon. Rangers President, and one-time New Haven Nighthawk, John Davidson, was selected to enter the Alberta Sports Hall-of-Fame along with six other inductees. The ceremony will be held on July 19th in Canmore, Alberta. The only other CT connection is former Whaler and Ranger, Mike Rogers, who was inducted last year. The WJC semifinals are set, and the US will not be in it. Finland upset the US 1-0 despite a strong game from goalie Spencer Knight (Darien/Avon Old Farms) who made 26 saves. The Canadians took care of business on the Slovaks winning 6-1. Sweden's team saw Rangers prospect, Nils Lundkvist, get an assist and have the second best ice time of 19:30. He shutout and knocked out the host Czech Republic, 5-0 and then Russia upended Switzerland 3-1. The Russians play Sweden in the first semi-final at 3:00 PM local time. The Finns play the Canadians in the other semifinal on Saturday. Finland is coached by ex-Ranger and New Haven Nighthawk, Raimo Helminen, who was in a record-setting six Olympics. He led Finland to a silver as a player in the 1984 WJC, and was the tournament's top scorer. He could gain gold by the end of the weekend. Read the full article

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CANTLON'S CORNER: GORD MURPHY IS HERE IN HARTFORD

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT - As the Hartford Wolf Pack gets set for their first three-games-in-three-days this weekend with the Laval Rocket coming to Hartford on Friday night at the XL Center. Then the Pack plays a home-and-home with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Saturday and then on Sunday afternoon at 3 pm at the Webster Bank Arena. Pack Associate Head Coach, Gord Murphy’s hiring in the off-season, where he was accompanying his last year's fellow Philadelphia Flyers assistant, Kris Knoblauch, who were both relieved at the end of last season, coming to the AHL was a new interesting option. “I really like it so far. When I was researching the position, I talked to a number of former and current AHL coachers, and the one thing they all said was, 'You will like the time you have to really teach and develop.' In the NHL you don’t have all the time to practice. In fact, you're manufacturing time to talk to a player about certain things. "I really appreciate the time so far where a player can learn, process, and prepare for a game at the American (Hockey) League level,” Murphy, who spent 17 years as an assistant coach after retiring from playing, said. Murphy recognizes there's a learning curve. “I know this isn’t going to happen overnight. It takes time to set up and implement procedures and the structure the organization is looking for. We're all new (the coaching staff) and many new players with a lot of skills with leadership and veterans added to the mix.” One of the big mantras is defense-first. “I don’t care what level of hockey you're at, you have defense first, and that’s just not your defensemen. The goal is to keep the puck out of the net. That gives you a chance to win the game. If you don’t have the defense, it's not a recipe for success.” The team saw its shootout loss last Sunday against Rochester in which the Americans scored late to force overtime, and then the team defensive core held against the Springfield Thunderbirds in a 1-0 shutout win. The six-on-five is a part of a defensive strategy that all teams work at as the season starts to progress especially with the Wolf Pack heading into its first heavy dose of games with six games over the next eleven days. “It’s a learning experience. It’s an area we haven’t really touched on yet, only briefly. We obviously have had talks now about what our setups should be. We have been practicing this, and like everything else, it takes time.” The changes in defensive combinations last weekend is all part of the plan to build a stronger team defensively. “Changes are inevitable in this game, especially on defense. There will be injuries and call ups at some point, so it's better we learn, so we'll know how the players work together, finding the strengths and weaknesses will make the team and the player better.” The sport that he mastered playing in 735 NHL games has changed, especially from his early days with the Hershey Bears back in 1987-88. “There weren’t the skills coaches, the nutrition aspect, or the systems that we have today. Back then, we were taught certain positioning, but we were left on our own to use our skills all that we had. The dynamics now is the players are simply so much faster than in our day. We might have had three or four really top skaters, today is like closer to 15. The skill sets are far different today in what goes into making a 'player.'” Among Murphy's teammates were ex-Hartford Whalers, Kevin Maxwell, Don Nachbaur, Ray Allison, Kevin McCarthy, Nick Kypreos, and John Stevens. He also played with ex-New Haven Nighthawks, Brian Dobbin, and Mark Lofthouse, and former Wolf Pack assistant coach, JJ Daigneault. Teaching the new generation trust is an important component. “I’m trying to help them, and I can relate my experiences. The kids can Google about my past and that’s what is the past. Now I can share my knowledge. The kids have been very receptive and have worked very hard, but at the end of the day I have to earn their trust and respect.” For Murphy, the relationship with his troops now is akin to a parent-child relationship, in some ways. “Its like when they’re riding a bike learning that they’ll fall and skin their knee, but you get right back at it. We're helping to shape them, not only as players but as young men. Many are out on their own for the first time and learning to make good decisions on-and-off ice is a part of the equation of their professional growth and development.” Murphy’s experience is hopefully going to produce up top in New York for the Rangers and hopefully for Hartford when next April rolls around. NOTES: The Rangers recalled Ty Ronning to Hartford from the team's ECHL affiliates, the Maine Mariners. Ronning had five points in four games. Laval will be without Michael McCarron who is serving the second of his two-game suspension for a major interference penalty in Providence. He missed Wednesday’s game in Belleville. Not only are the Lindgren brothers, Ryan (Hartford) and Charles (Laval), playing against each other tonight, but two former members of the St. Cloud Huskies (NCHC) who were college teammates will be facing each other, in Patrick Newell (Hartford) and Ryan Poehling (Laval). In addition, ex-Pack/CT Whale, Dale Weise, makes his first appearance back in Hartford since 2010-11. Bridgeport has recalled highly-regarded Czech-born netminder, Jakub Sharek from the Worcester Railers. Sharek posted a 1.42 GAA in two games. The team reassigned another European goalie they like in Swedish Linus Soderstrom to Worcester. Riley Stillman, the grandson of ex-Nighthawks and Springfield Indians player, Bud Stefanski, was recalled from Springfield by Florida. Ex-Pack, Daniel Walcott, is assigned to Syracuse by Tampa Bay. Mitch Eliot, the son of former Nighthawk, Daren Eliot, is reassigned from Utica to Kalamazoo (ECHL). Ex-Pack, and Sound Tiger, Jack Combs signs a deal with Wichita (ECHL). Ex-Pack, and Ranger, Connor Brickley, signed a deal today with EC Salzburg (Austria-EBEL) for the rest of the season. He will report to the Red Bulls next week. Brickley played 13 games in Hartford last year after being acquired. Josh Primeau, the nephew of ex-Whaler, Keith Primeau, signs with HC Sierre (Switzerland-LNB) his eighth Swiss team in his career, all spent in Switzerland. Read the full article

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CRAWFORD: WOLF PACK WEEKLY: October 21-27, 2019

BY: Bob Crawford, Hartford Wolf Pack HARTFORD, CT - The Wolf Pack (5-0-0-1, 11 pts.) continued their unbeaten-in-regulation start to the season this past week, with a pair of one-goal wins.  On Friday night at the XL Center, in the last of five straight home games to begin the year, Igor Shesterkin stopped 36 Springfield Thunderbird shots for his first North American pro shutout, in a 1-0 Wolf Pack win.  Phil DiGiuseppe’s second-period goal was the only scoring in that game, and DiGiuseppe posted his third game-winner in as many goals-scored Saturday night in Binghamton, capping a Wolf Pack comeback from a 3-1 deficit in a 4-3 overtime win over the Devils, in Hartford’s first road game of the season.  Vinni Lettieri had a goal and two assists in that game, and Joey Keane and Filip Chytil had a goal and an assist apiece. This week: The Wolf Pack face their first three-game weekend of the season this week, with two of the three games at home. The Wolf Pack host the Laval Rocket this Friday night, with faceoff at 7:15 PM, and then play a home-and-home with their in-state rivals the Bridgeport Sound Tigers Saturday and Sunday.  The Sound Tigers come to the XL Center for a 7:00 game on Saturday night, and the rematch is a 3:00 faceoff in Bridgeport on Sunday. Friday, October 25 vs. the Laval Rocket (Montreal) at the XL Center, 7:15 PM This and every Friday-night Wolf Pack home game features $1 hot dogs, and $2 draft beers and fountain sodas, through the start of the second period, presented by Nomads Adventure Quest. The Rocket, coached by former Wolf Pack and New York Rangers defenseman Joel Bouchard, is off to a 3-4-0-0 start and has won three of its last four after losses in the first three. Laval rookie goaltender Cayden Primeau, son of former Hartford Whaler Keith Primeau, is 2-1-0 in his first three pro appearances, with only five goals-against on 87 shots (1.68 GAA, 94.3% save percentage). This is the first of four meetings this year between the Wolf Pack and the Rocket, and the first of two XL Center visits for Laval.  The two teams split a two-game series last year, the Wolf Pack winning 3-1 in Hartford October 7 and dropping a 5-2 decision on the road October 17. At this and every Wolf Pack Friday or Saturday home game, fans are encouraged to come early for “Hockey Happy Hour” in the XL Center’s Coliseum Club.  From 5:15 PM until puck drop, a $5 wrist band gives fans access to the “Chill Zone” of the Coliseum Club, which features an appetizer buffet and $2 beers, presented by Minuteman Press. Tickets for this and all 2019-20 Wolf Pack home games are on sale now at the Sunwave Gas & Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, on-line at hartfordwolfpack.com and by phone at (877) 522-8499.  Tickets purchased in advance for kids 12 or younger start at just $10 each, and all tickets will have a $3 day-of-game increase. Broadcast – live with Bob Crawford and Mark Bailey on on-line at hartfordwolfpack.com.  Video streaming at ahllive.com. Saturday, October 26 vs. the Bridgeport Sound Tigers (Islanders) at the XL Center, 7:00 PM This is the Wolf Pack’s “Witches & Wizards night”.  There will be all kinds of Halloween fun, including trick or treating on the concourse, an intermission costume parade, and a youth backpack giveaway to the first 1,000 fans 12 or younger, courtesy of Carvel. This is the second encounter of the season between the Wolf Pack and their Connecticut rivals.  In the first, October 6 at the XL Center, the Wolf Pack pulled out a 4-3 overtime win. Bridgeport has at least a standings point in three of its first five games, but only one win on the season, having gone 1-2-1-1 thus far.  The Sound Tigers’ last action was a 3-2 shootout loss Saturday night in their home opener vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Matt Lorito leads the Bridgeport club in points and goals through the first five games, with 3-1-4. At this and every Wolf Pack Friday or Saturday home game, fans are encouraged to come early for “Hockey Happy Hour” in the XL Center’s Coliseum Club.  From 5:00 PM until puck drop, a $5 wrist band gives fans access to the “Chill Zone” of the Coliseum Club, which features an appetizer buffet and $2 beers, presented by Minuteman Press. Broadcast – live with Bob Crawford on-line at hartfordwolfpack.com.  Video streaming at ahllive.com. Sunday, October 27 at the Bridgeport Sound Tigers (Islanders) at Webster Bank Arena, 3:00 PM This is the first of six visits on the year to Bridgeport for the Wolf Pack, who were 2-2-1-0 in five games at the Webster Bank Arena last season. After seven of the Wolf Pack’s eight games of the season were at home, this contest starts a stretch of four straight and six out of eight on the road. Broadcast – live with Bob Crawford on-line at hartfordwolfpack.com.  Video streaming at ahllive.com. Wolf Pack Community Appearances: The Wolf Pack have the following appearances scheduled this week.  For further information on these, or any other Wolf Pack community initiatives, contact Wolf Pack community relations manager Frank Berrian, at (860) 541-4728: Thursday, October 24, 9:00 AM, Corpus Christi School, 581 Silas Deane Highway, Wethersfield, CT Sonar, the Wolf Pack’s lovable mascot, attends Corpus Christi’s Walk-a-thon event to help raise funds for the school. Saturday, October 26, 1:00-2:00 PM, Lessard Lanes, 136 New Britain Ave., Plainville, CT Sonar hits the lanes for Junior Achievement’s bowling event. Recent Transactions: None Pack Tracks: The Wolf Pack’s home game Saturday, November 9, when the Belleville Senators visit the XL Center for a 7:30 PM start, will feature the Wolf Pack’s annual “Teddy Bear Toss”.  Fans are invited to bring soft toys to the game and fling them on to the ice when the Wolf Pack scored their first goal.  All the toys collected will be donated to Operation ELF and Toys for Tots. On Saturday, November 16, when the Wolf Pack battle the Providence Bruins at 7:00 PM, it’s “Hockey Fights Cancer Night” at the XL Center.  The Wolf Pack will be teaming up with Hockey Fights Cancer to support those who are battling cancer, and their families.  Also, the first 2,000 fans will receive a free Wolf Pack lanyard, courtesy of CM Concessions. The Wolf Pack’s annual “Sonar’s Edu-skate” school-day game is coming up Wednesday, November 20 vs. the Syracuse Crunch, with faceoff at 11:00 AM.  Lots of educational fun will be on tap throughout the day, and for information on bringing a school group to the Edu-Skate game, contact the Wolf Pack ticket office at (860) 722-9426. Once again this season, fans can enjoy $1 hot dogs, and $2 draft beers and fountain sodas, at every Friday Wolf Pack home game, through the start of the second period, presented by Nomads Adventure Quest.  After this Friday, the Wolf Pack’s next Friday-night home outing is November 8, when they entertain the Hershey Bears in a 7:15 PM game. Each of the Wolf Pack’s Sunday and Wednesday home games will feature the Wolf Pack’s “Click It or Ticket Hat Trick Pack”.  The Hat Trick Pack includes two tickets, two sodas, and a large popcorn, all for just $40.  The next Hat Trick Pack game is the “Sonar’s Edu-skate” school-day game Wednesday, November 20 vs. the Syracuse Crunch, with faceoff at 11:00 AM. In partnership with the Hartford Chamber of Commerce, the Wolf Pack this year will be offering “Suit to Sweater Wednesdays”, to wash away the mid-week work blues.  Any fan showing a company ID at the Sunwave Gas & Power Ticket office can purchase Blue-Level tickets to Wolf Pack Wednesday home games for only $15 each (limit two tickets per ID).  The Wolf Pack’s first Wednesday home date is November 20, the 11:00 AM “Sonar’s Edu-skate” school-day game vs. the Syracuse Crunch. Wolf Pack home game tickets can be purchased at the Sunwave Gas & Power Ticket Office at the XL Center, on-line at hartfordwolfpack.com and by phone at (877) 522-8499.  Tickets purchased in advance for kids 12 or younger start at just $10 each, and all tickets will have a $3 day-of-game increase. To speak with a Wolf Pack representative about season or group tickets, or any of the Wolf Pack’s many ticketing options, call (860) 722-9425, or click here to request more info.  To visit the Wolf Pack online, go to hartfordwolfpack.com. TRACK THE PACK ONLINE AT HARTFORDWOLFPACK.COM Read the full article

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CANTLON: ROCHESTER COMES TO HARTFORD AND LEAVES WITH TWO POINTS

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT - The Rochester Americans' Tage Thompson return back home ended perfectly for him and his teammates, but not so good for the Hartford Wolf Pack. Thompson’s goal, the only one scored in the shootout session, gave the visiting Americans a 3-2 win after overcoming a 2-0 deficit at the start of the third period. The loss ended the Wolf Pack’s modest opening season success of a three-game winning streak. “There are going to be some growing pains. Everything will not be easy. The lesson tonight was that we have to keep pressing even though we have the lead. We have to play smart, and keep putting the pressure on," said Pack head coach Kris Knoblauch. Thompson scored the winning goal against his former UCONN teammate, Pack netminder, Adam Huska. “It was pretty special to play my old teammate,“ a smiling Huska said. “The shootout is 50/50. Hopefully, I’ll make the save next time.” For Thompson, it meant a lot more than just a win. His father Brent, the current Bridgeport Sound Tiger head coach and ex-Wolf Pack player, and his mother, Kim, were both in attendance. He was receiving post-game medical attention and was unavailable for comment. For the Wolf Pack, it was another third period where they let an opponent hang around and were unable to put the game away. Early in the third period, Huska was under pressure as Rochester pushed and finally broke through. Thompson was on the left-wing side, put a deftly-delivered soft-pass to rookie Remi Elie, who put on a burst of speed and slipped behind Pack defenseman, Mason Geertsen, and deposited his first pro goal at 4:42. The Americans cut the lead to one as they took advantage of their high-end, offensive firepower with some serious quality chances on Huska. Long-time Pack-killer, Jean-Sebastien Dea, was stopped on a right-wing bid and then at the end of his shift at 9:59. Dalton Smith was stopped with 5:51 remaining. Andrew Ogilvie was denied with 5:51 left in regulation. Danny O’Regan had a solid quality chance, but fired wide on his opportunity to make it a two-goal cushion. With 1:48 remaining, Rochester used their timeout. They elected to pull Andrew Hammond from the net, and with the extra attacker, they kept the puck in the Wolf Pack end of the ice. Dea and Thompson both had shots rejected by Huska before Thompson, on the left-wing, put a superb pass across to Roman Elie. Huska responded by turning it away. The Wolf Pack were unable to clear the puck, which found it's way over to the last guy the Pack wanted to have it, Zack Redmond. He entered the contest as last season's league leader in game-winning goals. He was on the left-wing and the righthanded shot went down to one knee and fired it past Huska with 12.6 seconds remaining. “We defended it well, but we just could never get the clear we needed there,” said Knoblauch. Early in Overtime, Rochester tried to end the three-on-three quickly. Porter and Thompson sought to end it, but Huska was equal to the task. In a critical defensive zone draw that was won by Boo Nieves, he saw his stick blade snap off and that left him in a very vulnerable position trying to defend a ton of space. “That was so tough because you're out there on an island with all that open ice. Boo couldn’t put a stick down in the lane for a block, or handle the puck to receive or clear out an outlet pass,” said Knoblauch. Chytil, who has gotten better each game, summed it up best. “We played a good game, unfortunately, we just couldn’t score in overtime.” In the second period, the Wolf Pack scored twice. Huska was strong in goal and the team seemed in control. It felt like a fourth straight win to start the season seemed assured. The Wolf Pack gained the 1-0 lead because of a missed shot. Danny O’Regan was in the slot and went to take his shot, but fanned on it. The puck was bouncing around and he swiped at it, sending it off the backhand over to Chytil, who was wide open with the whole net to shot at and scored his second goal in as many games at 9:47. “I was in the right place. He made the play (happen)and I'm not going to miss the (open) net." He said. The Pack extended their lead to 2-0 as Matt Beleskey banked a pass off the left-wing boards that caught Nieves speeding away behind the Americans defense for a clean breakaway. Eric Cornel tried to catch him in vain. Nieves moved in on Andrew Hammond, yes that Andrew Hammond, who was leading Ottawa in the playoffs two years ago as, "The Hamburglar" as he was dubbed. Nieves zoomed in and fired a shot saved by Hammond, but Nieves had his stick on the ice and got off a shot off the rebound. It went off the inside of Hammond’s right pad and into the net for his first goal for the season at 16:44. “I thought the Nieves goal was a good team play,“ Knoblauch said, speaking of one of his assistant captains. “Both Beleskey and Kravtsov made impressive passes on the breakout to make it happen.” Huska continues to impress and stopped several top-shelf Rochester scoring attempts. He stopped Kevin Porter’s left-wing shot, then kicked the puck to the right-wing corner where C.J. Smith attempted as well. Rasmus Asplund’s strong scoring chance from 15-feet out aimed for the short-side. The first period was a better skating version of last night’s game, but again quality chances were spaced out. Early on Casey Fitzgerald had solid chances for the Americans and Raddysh stepped into one that was denied by Andrew Hammond. Huska made a nice blocker save and did his best for the Wolf Pack to get the game’s first goal. LINES O’Regan-Di Giuseppe-Chytil Fogarty-Lettieri-Ryan Gropp Nieves-Beleskey-Kravtsov Jones-Newell-Gettinger LoVerde-Lindgren Day-Raddysh Ebert-Geersten SCRATCHES: Jeff Taylor Joey Keane Gabriel Fontaine Ville Meskanen. NOTES: Darren Raddysh has always worn number 24 and had received it, but Ebert is now wearing his former number 22 The Wolf Pack off to an undefeated start is stopped at three here is the top seven in team history. The 2003-04 squad went 8-0-3-1 and the following season the Wolf Pack won their nine games all in regulation (9-0-0). The 1998-99 team went 5-0-0 and 2013-14 squad went 5-0-1, and the 1999-00 team was 2-0-3-1. Thompson and Huska are the first two UCONN players to play against each other in this building as professionals. Rochester’s Dalton Smith is the nephew to former Whaler, Keith Primeau. Wolf Pack Fan jersey of the game: 18 Tyler Brown (Reading-ECHL player-assistant coach), 21 Bobby Sanguinetti (EHC Munich Germany-DEL), 30 Cederick Desjardins (Jonquiere-LNAH/Levis- QMAAA goalie coach), 32 Hubert Labrie (Belleville-AHL) and 41 Taylor Beck (Avangard Omsk-KHL). -Our condolences on the passing in Edmonton of former New England Whalers great Ted Green 79, who jumped from the Big, Bad brawling Bruins to tryout the upstart, renegade WHA. Green was the team’s first captain the first three years with the Whalers (two in Boston and one in Hartford) winning the first of his three Avco Cup titles before being traded to Winnipeg in his home province. As a young man he won a Memorial Cup with the Winnipeg Braves team. Green won the Stanley Cup in 1971-’72 when he was a member of those physically intimidating and also high scoring Bruins teams in their early form.  Green is known as “Terrible Ted” then was involved in one of hockey’s most violent episodes with him at the epicenter that changed his career playing style and cost him a whole year of hockey from 1969-’70. In an exhibition game in Ottawa against the St. Louis Blues on September 21, 1969, he got into a bloody stick fight with Wayne Maki where he suffered a fractured skull and suffered brain damage, remember very few players wore helmets in those days, which is hard to imagine today. Each player was charged with assault, the first NHL players ever to be charged for their on-ice behavior, both were acquitted. Maki was suspended for 30 games and Green was suspended for 13 games, but missed the whole season and missed out on the first Bruins Stanley Cup win. The players voted him a share of the playoff money and his name was engraved on the Stanley Cup. He did hoist the Cup for real when the Bruins won in 1972. Maki tragically died of brain cancer five years later. Green was teammates with Glen Sather in Boston who made him an assistant coach with the Edmonton Oilers winning five more Stanley Cup titles for seven in total. Sather hired him with the New York Rangers as an assistant. Green was a 2nd team NHL All-Star in 1969 and at one time held the record for assists for a defenseman at the now comically low 36. After the incident, he had just two major fighting penalties the last with Rangers great Rod Gilbert. Read the full article

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CANTLON: (FEB 7) UCONN BEATS NORTHEASTERN IN OVERTIME 

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT - The UCONN Huskies reversed what could have been another looming one-goal loss and instead in dramatic fashion, turned it into a thrilling 3-2 overtime victory over the 13th ranked, Northeastern Huskies 3-2. UCONN improves their record to 8-17-2 overall (3-12-2 in Hockey East) while Northeastern's record slips to 16-9-1 overall (9-6-1 in the conference). UCONN will play Merrimack on Saturday at 5 pm at the XL Center in an extremely critical Hockey East matchup for both teams. UCONN moved into a tie for the tenth spot with one less loss, and one less win than Merrimack. UConn is now seven points behind eighth spot holding Maine. “We're excited with the win and we have been playing pretty well during this homestand. We just haven’t gotten the results, and tonight we stayed with it,” UCONN head coach Mike Cavanaugh said with a clear sigh of relief. The OT game-winner came when Northeastern‘s Jordan Harris lost control of the puck as a result of pressure from Sasha Payusov from behind and just outside the crease area. The puck found the right player for UCONN, as Jachym Kondelik wasted little time feathering a perfect pass to Payusov, who corralled a rolling puck and went upstairs with it on 6’4 netminder, Cayden Primeau, ending the game at the 1:05 mark of the extra session. “We just made eye contact and he got it right to me. It was rolling a bit, I just got it on the net,” Paysusov said. After four other of Paysusov's previous bids stopped by Primeau, he observed something he was able to use. “He (is) so good down low. I wasn’t getting one there, so I tried to go upstairs and that worked better,” Payusov said with a very broad smile. For Paysusov, it was his team-leading 14th goal and first game-winner of the season. Kondelik picked up his team-leading 20th assist and completing a two-point effort for the game. Northeastern head coach Jim Madigan was red-faced and direct in how he felt regarding his team play over the final period and overtime in what was just a twelve-second press conference, likely a new post-game record. “Our puck management sucked, any questions?” Madigan said, then stood up and charged out of the room. The Huskies tied the game late after pulling starter Tomas Vomacka with 1:37 remaining. They got a double screen on Primeau with the 6'7, Kondelik, and 5'8, Brian Rigali. The shorter of the two got the deflection of Ruslan Iskhakov’s right point shot. “I just showed my stick on the play. He (Iskharov) put it right there and was able to get it,” said a smiling Rigali. “We have been working all week on this type of play, the six-on-five and it paid off,” Rigali said. Karl El-Mir's hard work resulted in a forced turnover in the Northeastern zone. It got the whole play started. “That’s the only way to beat him,” Cavanaugh said chuckling while offering his analysis of the Hockey East goaltending. “There are a lot of good goalies in this league, Joe Woll (BC), (Tyler) Wall (UMASS-Lowell), (Jake) Oettinger (BU), who’ll we'll face next week. If you don’t take their eyes away from them it's going to be awfully hard to beat (any) of them.” Cavanaugh's two goalies, Adam Huska, and Tomas Vomacka also rank right up there with the names he mentioned. Knowing the team's post-season hopes are slim, Cavanaugh was very happy with the team character they showed in the third period, even while trailing and seeing several good shots go wide that would have tied it earlier in the period. “I liked how we stuck with it, staying with it no matter what happens. Miles (Gendron, the team captain) challenged the team to score the first goal and we did. When they scored early in the third period, I liked how we stayed with our game plan and it's a good win. We're very happy with,” Cavanaugh remarked. The early part of the third period saw the Huskies come out flying and with their feet moving in the offensive zone. Isharov hit the post at 1:28 on a quick breaking two-on-one. Payusov was denied a bid on the right wing try. Isharov was then denied on a left-wing rush at 4:56. The first solid scoring chance Northeastern got they buried in the net. On a strong cycle off the left wing, Grant Josezek, before he circled the UCONN net, reversed the puck back to the left side to Eric Williams, who was wide. Williams easily fired his third goal of the year past an unsuspecting Vomacka at 2:03 to give Northeastern the lead. “That was some blown coverage when you have guys get two players chasing one, but I like our mindset. We have played good third periods in our last three games, and that wasn’t the case early in the year. We have made it a focal point of our team in the second half that we want to win third periods.” Tyler Madden, who was quiet for Northeastern in the first period, but was very noticeable in the second. He was stopped twice and was a forechecking menace throughout the second frame. One of those chances came in the last minute of play and he got into two skirmishes as well. UCONN had a stellar chance on a redirect by El-Mir, but Primeau, the son of the ex-Hartford Whaler and NHL’er, Keith Primeau, did a great job tracking the puck. UCONN’s Tomas Vomacka (31 saves) was equal to Primeau 29 saves) knocking aside a redirect by Zach Solow. Jeremy Davies of Northeastern was at the left point and chipped the puck down the wall to Solow. He was able to come out of the left wing corner uncontested on Vomacka. He deked and swept the puck past Vomacka scoring his 12th goal of the season at 6:15 of the second period. The goal tied the game at one. UCONN was able to start generating some quality offensive pressure late in the period and collected the first goal of the game. A beautiful three-way passing play started by Roman Kinal at the right point to El-Mir in the lower left wing corner. He sent it to Kondelik in front, who put it past Primeau at 15:21. The UCONN Huskies really started to apply some offensive zone pressure to get Primeau to move, but UCONN’s Marc Gatcomb and Jordan Timmons were denied. NOTES: Offensively, UCONN is ranked last with 30 goals for, but they're also first in goals against with 67. Northeastern is in fourth place in the conference. They are tied for the third-best in scoring offense and fourth best in scoring defense. Their PP is seventh while UCONN’s is tenth.  The Northeastern PK is seventh and UCONN is tenth. El-Mir has six powerplay goals are is second in Hockey East and ninth in the nation. Kondelik has 22 points, good for third among freshmen and fifth in the nation. Madden is the son of the former NHL’er, John Madden, who is now the head coach of the Cleveland Monsters (AHL). He also attended Avon Old Farms for one year. Besides Primeau, there is one more son of a former NHL’er on the team. He is the fourth-line center, Eutu Selanne, the son of NHL great Teemu Selanne, but not nearly as much of an offensive threat as his father with no points in 13 games. Former UCONN goalie, Garrett Bartus, who's currently with the Greenville Swamp Rabbits (ECHL), has signed to play this summer with the Sydney Ice Dogs (Australia-AIHL). Last summer, former UCONN Husky, Trevor Gerling, scored the overtime game-winner to help his CBR (Canberra) Brave win the Australian Goodall Cup championship. Read the full article

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CANTLON: (FRI) PACK TAKE REMATCH WITH T-BIRDS

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT - Dustin Tokarski’s 26 saves, a strong two-point game from Lias Andersson, and a game-winning powerplay tally by John Gilmour combined to propel the Hartford Wolf Pack to their fourth win in a row and second consecutive victory over the Springfield Thunderbirds, 3-1 before 3,798 fans on Friday night at the XL Center. “I liked our start," a relaxed Pack head coach Keith McCambridge said. "We created some good energy to start the game and both teams traded chances back and forth on special teams. We liked the type of game we played tonight." The Wolf Pack record improves to 16-15-12-2 (36 points) and the team sits in sixth place. They are now just one point behind Springfield (15-12-4-3). The Pack will entertain the third-place Lehigh Valley Phantoms Saturday at 7 pm. In the third period, the Wolf Pack penalty kill continued its strong play. Andersson nearly had a shorthanded tally on the PK while the overall team defense handled the high octane Springfield offense quite well. “We weren’t happy with how many penalties we took, but we're happy how we defended against them. Springfield has a lot of offense over there. We did video before the game so we know how good they are.” While Tokarski did not face a lot of shots, the ones he did were high-quality scoring chances and led to two big third period saves on Jonathan Ang at 12:31 and then 15 seconds later on Matt Mangene. The Pack pushed back hard on their next shift as Chris Bigras and Steven Fogarty had great chances stopped by the Thunderbirds' Samuel Montembeault. “We know we have to close out games in the third period and tonight we really did just that.” The second period was filled with a series of power plays for each squad with limited five-on-five play. The save of the game, and perhaps the season, would rank with any of the best from some made by other Wolf Pack greats including J.F. Labbe, Jason LaBarbera, Dov Grumet-Morris and Yann Danis. Tokarski's magic came when Springfield’s Blaine Byron was at the left point and ripped a low slap-shot that the Pack netminder handled. The rebound came right to Mangene who fired a bullet that Tokarski somehow found, and gloved on the ice, Mangene reacted by holding his head in his hands as he skated around the net in frustration. The entire XL Center crowd and the Wolf Pack players were blown away as well. “To be honest, I thought it was going in because you saw how the rebound popped out. He got all the wood on that one, and we all were silent for a second, then we all went nuts. It was a great save and he has shown he is capable of doing that every night,” Gilmour said. McCambridge has named Tokarski his starter for Saturday. Each team had seven shots on net with few serious quality chances, with the Pack's best coming off the stick of Dawson Leedahl. The Wolf Pack grabbed a 2-0 lead and had good control of the game in the first period. The Pack made it 1-0 when Andersson, on his second shift, was alone on the right wing side and converted a rebound from Ryan Gropp, who was in the lower left wing circle, at 7:08. “It just bounced out to me. It was really nice play by him and it felt good putting one in,” Andersson remarked. The Pack made it 2-0 on the powerplay. Ville Meskanen made a perfect diagonal pass from the left side to point to Gilmour, who will represent that Wolf Pack at the AHL All-Star game. Gilmour's blast at 10:59 was his tenth of the season and went over Montembeault's glove to the short-side and just inside the post. “He‘s a very deceiving, shifty player out there," Gilmour said of Meskanen. "He shot the puck out there flat to me, and I just wanted to get everything behind the shot and it went in I was pretty ecstatic about it.” Gilmour gave an extra fist pump after the goal horn went off. The Pack was strong in controlling play. The only issue was penalties they were taking. The last near the end of the period came back to bite them. Jason MacDonald was at the left point and took a feed from Mangene, his defensive partner. MacDonald whistled a low wrist shot with all sorts of traffic in front of Tokarski, who was thoroughly screened by Paul Thompson, just as MacDonalds shot came and it eluded him at 18:25. Just before the Thunderbird goal, the Pack almost made it 3-0 with Beleskey's shorthanded bid where he used MacDonald and Mangene as a screen. His shot hit Montemebeault in his right shoulder. WOLF PACK LINES Fontaine-Butler-Leedahl Andersson-Gropp-Lettieri Holland-Meskanen-Beleskey Fogarty-Schneider-Gettinger Gilmour-Hajak Bigras-O’ Gara Day-Lindgren SCRATCHES Shawn O’Donnell (Flu/Injury) Brandon Crawley (Healthy) Shawn St. Amant (Healthy) Terrence Wallin (Healthy) NOTES: McCambridge said he has no plans to change his lineup for Saturday’s game. The Wolf Pack's Vince Pedrie has seen his time with the New York Rangers organization come to an end. The defenseman was placed on unconditional waivers with the purpose of terminating his contract. Congratulations to Ryan Graves of the Colorado Avalanche. The ex-Pack scored his first NHL goal (ironically) at Madison Square Garden against the Rangers. The goal put the cap on a 6-1 win and came unassisted out in front of the Rangers net. The US World Junior (U-18) team beat Russia 2-1 in Vancouver to advance to the gold medal game. The Americans will play in the final for the second time in three years and take on  Finland who rolled past Switzerland 6-1 in the other semi-final. Cayden Primeau, the son of ex-Whaler Keith Primeau, made 32 saves and was a standout during the final four minutes in handing the Russians their only loss of the WJC tournament. Several AHL players have returned to the league from their various World Junior teams, among them are, Martin Necas (Charlotte/Czech Republic), Tobias Geisser (Hershey/Switzerland), plus Erik Brunnstrom, (Chicago/Sweden) and Timothy Lilejgren (Toronto/Sweden). UCONN lost the first game of their two-game tourney in Las Vegas at the T-Mobile arena to the nationally ranked #17 team, Western Michigan Broncos, 5-1. The Broncos are 10-6-1 overall and were led by Cam Lee, and Austin Rueschhoff, who each had a goal and an assist. UCONN did have freshmen center, Jachym Kondelik, back from the Czech Republic WJC team. He picked up an assist on the lone Huskies goal. Huskie goalie, Adam Huska, stopped 36 of 41 shots in the loss for the Huskies who are now 6-12-1 overall. The Huskies will play St. Lawrence at 8 pm EST on Saturday in the consolation game of the tournament. Read the full article

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CANTLON: PACK HITTING THE ROAD AGAIN

BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings HARTFORD, CT -  Both the Hartford Wolf Pack and the New York Rangers are embarking on critical road trips with both squads not running on all cylinders. The Rangers lost to the Chicago Blackhawks, 4-1, on Thursday night with scoring and team cohesiveness a trademark issue currently for both teams. The Wolf Pack's shoddy performance Wednesday night included another lackluster start to the game and has been the case the past three years and covering two different coaches and basically three different teams each of those seasons. At this point, it's on the players. They need to be prepared, and the youngsters who want to get to the NHL must show they are ready for prime time. This present Wolf Pack team is .500 (4-4-1-0) and with the exception of a couple of players, clearly not ready to make the leap to, "The Show." Dustin Tokarski's goaltending on Wednesday night was shoddy at best. For a solid AHL veteran, he was laconic and beaten easily on two of the three goals he surrendered in just 4:36 of action before getting the hook. Mazanec was slightly better, but two of his goals were eerily similar to goals surrendered by Magnus Hellberg when he flamed out here two years ago. Both netminders are very well compensated this season and the team was hoping they would be the rock on which they could build the foundation of the team as the younger players went through the expected growing pains. Wednesday's top line of Lias Andersson-Ryan Gropp-Mikael Lindqvist had a rough night putting up a combined minus-8 while the fourth line, with Shawn O’Donnell leading the way with two goals, finished a plus-5. Not to diminish a great effort by the fourth line, but when they are the best line on the ice, something is clearly very wrong with that picture. Expect Saturday's game, the first of the season against in-state, divisional, and franchise rivals, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, to come complete with some new line combinations and defensive pairings as head coach Keith McCambridge looks to shake things up to change the current fortunes that have seen the team drop three of their last four games. On Sunday, The Pack starts a second long road trip. This one consists of five games, but not like road trips of the AHL of yesteryear. Credit Patrick Williams of the NHL.com for researching and coming up with this beauty from the Baltimore Skipjacks, circa 1989-90. The Skipjacks covered 3,400 miles with eight games in eleven days. The team started with a Saturday night game in Glen Falls, NY against the Adirondack Red Wings. The next day they played a Sunday afternoon game in Moncton, New Brunswick. Then, at the end of the trip, they had a Thursday night matchup in Halifax and then a Friday night contest in New Haven. Tack in the time change from Atlantic Standard time, it’s miracle they arrived on time for the game. The trip concluded in Utica the following night. Baltimore then followed with a four-games-in-four-days jaunt. It's no surprise they didn’t make the playoffs that season. It's reminiscent of the great New Haven Nighthawks end of the season in 1991-92 with a Canadian Maritime road trip of eight games in eleven days. The trip started in Fredericton on Wednesday. A Saturday/Sunday pair in Halifax followed. It was on to Cape Breton on Tuesday; Wednesday in Moncton, Thursday and Saturday in St. John’s and then concluding on Sunday in Cape Breton. The Nighthawks lost to eventual Calder Cup champion Adirondack Red Wings in five games in the first round. AHL FUTURE The AHL will likely be adding two more Pacific Division teams in the next two years according to several sources. The expected announcement in early December that the NHL will grant Seattle an expansion franchise to bring the NHL to 32 teams with equally split conferences at 16 teams apiece. Seattle has started the renovation process of the Seattle KeyArena, with the announcement that they will be building a brand spanking new 180,000 square foot, $70 million, three-rink training facility, at the soon-to-be-renovated Northgate Mall. It will be called the Seattle Ice Center. The next piece will be their AHL team. The two most likely candidates are the Tacoma Dome which is located 30 miles south of Seattle. It's undergone a $30 million makeover that originally was priced at $21.3 million. The building last hosted hockey with the now-defunct West Coast Hockey League's Tacoma Sabercats from 1997-2002 and the WHL's Tacoma Rockets (1991-1995). The arena is the fourth largest in the US and seats 19,106 for hockey. It opened in 1983 with renovations starting this year. They have had five NHL preseason games, mostly in the 1980’s and two in the 1990’s. The last one was in 1996. The other candidate could be Everett, WA at the Angel Wings Arena. It is the current home to the WHL Everett Silvertips (2003-present). It's 40 minutes North of Seattle and the arena was opened in 2003 and seats 8,149. It's a perfect size for the AHL. The building is part of Spectra family of buildings who operate in the US and Canada, including the XL Center. Originally, the arena was known as the Everett Events Center and it was the Xfinity Arena up until a year ago when the Stillaguamish Tribe signed a 10-year, $3.4 million dollar naming rights deal to change it to the Angel Wings Arena. That new AHL team will likely come in two years. The Vancouver Canucks will likely move from Utica after this season, the last of their five-year lease. Utica has been a model AHL citizen. It's very well run and did everything you can do to make it a good place for prospects. The combination of geography and money make it likely the Canucks make a true Pacific rival coming into the NHL while saving money on its AHL recalls when they move the farm team closer to home. Canucks owner Francis Anquillini has hinted that they are looking at Abbotsford, about 45 minutes from downtown. They exited the AHL five years ago after a disastrous run with Calgary that saw the city write a check for $5.5 million for the Flames to leave. The Abbotsford Entertainment & Sports Centre is another Spectra run facility that holds 7,046 seats for hockey - again, perfect for the AHL. The other possibility floated by Acquillini is the now vacant, and the original Canucks home, the PNE Coliseum. It was built in the late 1960’s. The WHL Vancouver Giants moved out two years ago to a smaller arena in nearby Langley, BC. So if they go to the PNE Coliseum, the Canucks will have to get new chillers or repair those that have not been in operation for two years. They'll need to renovate the locker rooms and training facilities and section off the seating as well as fix up the building. It seats 16,281, far too large for AHL hockey. The mayor of Abbotsford, Henry Braun, is on record as saying he wants the Canucks AHL team to come to Abbotsford. It looks like they will come to some sort of satisfactory lease arrangement for both sides. The AHL Pacific Division travel only plays 68 games which makes it much more palatable to return the AHL to Abbotsford. Seattle’s new team nickname is down to the final two - Sockeyes and the Totems. The Totems was the name of the old Western Hockey League franchise (1958-1975) and in this PC era will likely raise a ruckus with the use of a Native American symbol. Sockeyes refers to the fish and longtime Maritime fishing industry in the Pacific Northwest. Very shocked Sea Lions didn’t make the cut in the Seattle Times name the team contest. Canlton's Corner endorses Sockeyes with no black uniforms. NOTES: Ex-Pack, Ryan Sproul’s, odyssey for finding an AHL place to play is on its third stop. He spent training camp with Stockton was released, signed with the Toronto Marlies, played one game got where he got an assist and was let go from PTO deal. He is now with the Laval Rocket on a PTO deal. Paul Carey (Salisbury Prep) is sent to Belleville by Ottawa. Alex Biega (Salisbury Prep) is recalled from Utica by Vancouver. Ex-Sound Tiger, Matt Finn, was assigned to Florida (ECHL) by Grand Rapids. Shane Starrett (South Kent Prep) is reassigned by Bakersfield to Wichita (ECHL). Former Wolf Pack, Rory Rawlyk, opts not to play in Poland and signs a deal with Evansville (SPHL). Enfield’s Robbie Baillargeon departs Tulsa (ECHL) and signs with Milton Keynes Lightning (England-EIHL). Ex-Pack, Danny “Monte” Kristo, finally officially leaves Brynas IF (Sweden-SHL) and signs with HC Rapperswil-Jona (Switzerland-LNA). Ex-Pack, Zdenek Bahensky, signs with ASC Corona Brasov (Romania-MOL). Ex-Pack and Sound Tiger, Joe Combs, signs with EHC Kloten (Switzerland-LNB). Forner CT Whale, Wojtech Wolski, had his contract brought out by Metallurg Magnitogorsk (Russia-KHL) and is looking to Switzerland or maybe another KHL team. Former New Haven Senator, Harijs Vitolins, is doing some work as an assistant coach for HK Kurbads (Latvia-LHL) during the Continental Cup tournament. Last year, he was with KHL Gagarin Cup champion SKA St. Petersburg (Russia-KHL). Jordan Sims, son of the former Hartford Whaler and Nighthawk, Al Sims, was traded from Cincinnati (ECHL) to Greenville (ECHL). Former Springfield Falcon, Trent Vogelhuber, retires, and become the assistant coach for Cleveland (AHL) where he played for three years. He might be the first player to retire after going through training camp and had been assigned to San Antonio. Another ex-Falcon, Yann Sauve, signs with Medvescak Zagreb (Croatia-EBEL). Former UCONN defenseman, David Drake, was reassigned to Reading (ECHL) by Lehigh Valley. Ben Sanderson, the son of former Whaler, Geoff Sanderson, has been changing addresses frequently lately. He started the season with Dubuque (USHL) and left after two games. He heads back to play with the Okotoks Oilers (AJHL) for a game before being traded in a Junior A interleague deal to the Vernon Vipers (BCHL). Vernon’s head coach and Director of Hockey Operations is former New Haven Senator and AHL All-Star defenseman, Mark Ferner. Sanderson is a 2019-20 commit to Colorado College (NCHC) Josh Primeau, the nephew of ex-Whaler, Keith Primeau, is loaned for the rest of the season from HC Rapperswil-Jona (Switzerland-LNA) to HC Thurgau (Switzerland-LNB). Read the full article