TWO MINUTES FOR THOUGHTS: MARCH 11TH, 2022
Mar 11, 202229. That is the current magic number for the Hartford Wolf Pack to clinch their first playoff berth since the 2014-15 season. With just 22 games left in the 2021-22 regular season, what was originally the club’s goal is ever so close to becoming their reality. With a solid finish to the campaign, the Hartford Wolf Pack will bring playoff hockey back to the XL Center. It’s something head coach Kris Knoblauch said was overdue back on media day in October.
After a strong weekend with a pair of wins, the club faces a stiff test over the next two weeks. The Wolf Pack will embark on a five-game road trip, starting this weekend with a pair of games against two desperate clubs in the Lehigh Valley Phantoms and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.
Staying Consistent
One thing about this Wolf Pack team is that they never get too high or too low. The Wolf Pack have not had a losing streak of longer than four games this season and haven’t gone more than three in a row without collecting a point. After a loss to end February in Providence, the Wolf Pack dropped a heartbreaker on March 2nd to kick off their three-game homestand.
Leading 1-0 after two periods, the Wolf Pack surrendered two quick goals to the Belleville Senators and found themselves trailing 2-1 late in regulation time. Both goals came off tough bounces against, and most teams would have been mentally discouraged by the events. The Wolf Pack, however, battled back. While they still lost the game, the Pack found a way to collect a point by forcing the game into overtime with a late goal.
Over the weekend, Hartford played two of its better games all year. The Pack knocked off the Hershey Bears 3-1 on Saturday night, then scored a 4-1 victory over the Bridgeport Islanders on Sunday afternoon. In both games, the Wolf Pack got strong goaltending from the duo of Keith Kinkaid and Adam Húska in addition to balanced scoring.
The ability to shake off a tough loss on Wednesday night and rebound with two very strong performances against teams fighting for playoff positioning is quite impressive. It’s the way this team has played all season long for Knoblauch. Never too high, never too low. Just consistently playing their game, regardless of what happened the game before, or who has gone up or come down from the NHL club.
Taking Care of Business
Last week saw two key bits of business taken care of by the organization. First, the New York Rangers announced a new two-year contract for Wolf Pack captain Jonny Brodzinski. Hartford’s leader, and leading goal and point scorer, will be in the organization through the 2023-24 season. His play on the ice has been at an extremely high level this season, evident by his 39 points (18 g, 21 a) in 36 games. He’s handled top-line duty for almost his entire time in Connecticut and has been a key cog for both the powerplay and the penalty kill when here.
His on-ice play is valuable, but Brodzinski brings so much more than just that. He’s a key leader for this team, wearing the “C” on his jersey and helping the young players on this roster adjust to not just the professional game, but the professional lifestyle. Good organizations don’t just draft well, they develop well too. Having strong leaders who can produce at the AHL level is part of that.
Brodzinski wasn’t the only player to put pen to paper. Veteran forward Tanner Fritz inked a one-year contract extension with the Wolf Pack last Friday, meaning he’ll be sticking around for the 2022-23 season. Fritz has fit in extremely well in his first year with the Pack, playing a consistent top-nine role for the club and scoring 29 points (9 g, 20 a) in 45 games. He’s currently third on the team in scoring and has provided strong two-way play all year.
Like Brodzinski, Fritz is a player who is both valuable on and off the ice. He too is a key leader for this group and will be a great asset for the next group of prospects who find their way to Hartford in the spring and the fall.
This N’ That
Congratulations to Wolf Pack General Manager Ryan Martin on being named the General Manager of the 2022 United States Men’s National Team. Martin was named to the position on Wednesday. The team will compete in the 2022 IIHF Men’s World Championship in Tampere and Helsinki, Finland. The tournament is slated to take place starting on May 13th, with its conclusion set for May 29th. Joining Martin on the staff is Rangers Hockey Operations Advisor Mike Grier, who will serve on the player personnel staff with USA Hockey.
Wolf Pack fans, way to show up last weekend! Over 9,000 fans made the trip to downtown Hartford and into the XL Center for the two games over the weekend. The atmosphere was outstanding, you could feel a playoff-like buzz in the air. It’s great to see that fans are back in the building after a closed off 2020-21 season, and it’s refreshing to feel the electricity through the arena once again. The support does not go unnoticed by the team, either. Excellent work this past weekend, Wolf Pack Nation. I speak for everyone when I say we can’t wait to see more of this down the stretch and into the postseason.
The Wolf Pack return home for a season-long four-game homestand starting on Wednesday, March 23rd. It opens a stretch in which six of seven games will be on home ice. The first two games in that stretch? March 23rd and 25th, both against the Springfield Thunderbirds. Talk about two huge games. After that, it’s another date with the Bears on March 26th, before Kevin Dineen and the Utica Comets come to town on March 28th.
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.