BRANDON SCANLIN SCORES FIRST PROFESSIONAL GOAL, BUT WOLF PACK FALL 3-2 TO ICEHOGS
Dec 3, 2022HARTFORD, CT – Brandon Scanlin blasted home the first goal of his professional career with 4.5 seconds remaining on Saturday night to draw the Wolf Pack within one, but the Rockford IceHogs would hang on for a 3-2 victory in the first-ever meeting between the foes.
Lukas Reichel put the IceHogs ahead 3-0 just 1:58 into the third period, banking the puck off Louis Domingue for his tenth goal of the season. Reichel collected the puck behind the Hartford goal and positioned himself for a wraparound attempt. Reichel banked the puck off Domingue’s skate and into the goal for the eventual game-winner.
The IceHogs scored the first-ever goal in the head-to-head series 13:19 into the game, as Dylan Sikura buried his seventh goal of the season. A dump-in attempt from Reichel rung around the boards in the Wolf Pack end, with Domingue coming out to settle the puck. The puck bounced off the wall and off Domingue’s stick, directly into the slot area. Sikura collected the puck and fired it into the empty net to break the ice.
Cole Guttman would extend the lead to 2-0 6:14 into the middle stanza, blasting a one-timer home for his fifth goal of the season. Adam Clendening slid a pass from the right-wing point to Guttman in the left-wing circle. The rookie forward fired a one-timer that beat Domingue, sending the IceHogs to final frame with a two-goal lead.
Reichel’s goal ballooned the lead to 3-0, but the Wolf Pack would not go quietly into the night.
Bobby Trivigno got the Wolf Pack on the board 6:06 into the third, converting a pass from Tanner Fritz. Fritz forced a turnover inside the Wolf Pack zone, then burst away on a two-on-none with Trivigno. The two played catch until they reached the top of the IceHogs’ crease, where Fritz sent one final pass that Trivigno buried for his fourth goal of the season.
The Wolf Pack peppered IceHogs’ starter Jaxson Stauber in the final period, firing 15 shots on the rookie. Stauber would stand strong, however, keeping the Wolf Pack off the board again until the final seconds.
Scanlin’s shot from the point would find it’s way home at 19:55, but the Wolf Pack would run out of time in their bid for a comeback.
The Wolf Pack conclude a weekend back-to-back tomorrow afternoon in Providence against the Bruins. Puck drop is set for 3:05 p.m. The Pack is back at the XL Center on Wednesday night when they meet the Lehigh Valley Phantoms for the first time this season. Puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m. and tickets are available at www.hartfordwolfpack.com.
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ABOUT THE HARTFORD WOLF PACK: The Hartford Wolf Pack has been a premier franchise in the American Hockey League since the team’s inception in 1997. The Wolf Pack are the top player-development affiliate of the NHL's New York Rangers and play at the XL Center. The Wolf Pack has been home to some of the Rangers newest faces including Igor Shesterkin, Filip Chytil, and Ryan Lindgren. Follow the Wolf Pack on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok.