Wolf Pack Beaten by Rocket 5-2

The Hartford Wolf Pack continued their six-game home stand at the PeoplesBank Arena on Saturday night. They welcomed the Laval Rocket to town for the only time this season as Hartford sought to snap their six-game losing streak.

However, the unfortunate streak would reach its seventh game. Three late goals by the visitors ended up being the difference, and the Wolf Pack fell to Laval by a 5-2 score.

Behind the 8-Ball

Laval controlled the play in the opening frame, outshooting the Wolf Pack by an 11-5 margin. That allowed the Rocket to find the net twice in the first 20 minutes of action. Florian Xhekaj opened the scoring, taking advantage of a hooking call against Brett Berard and hammering a shot home on the back door. Owen Beck followed up just over four minutes later, poking a loose puck by Dylan Garand after an extended sequence in the Hartford zone. Laval took the 2-0 lead into the first intermission.

PoweRoobroeck

The Wolf Pack came out hot in the middle frame, tilting the ice in their favor. They'd earn an early power play bid as well, with Filip Mešár sitting for hooking.

Hartford would need just eight seconds of power play time to get on the board. Connor Mackey held the puck at the blue line and slid a pass to Trey Fix-Wolansky. Fix-Wolansky sent a feed to Dylan Roobroeck in the high slot, and Roobroeck ripped a shot by Kaapo Kähkönen to cut the Laval lead in half.

The goal was Roobroeck's fifth of the season, putting him in the lead among active Wolf Pack players. He ties Gabe Perreault for the overall lead in goals.

Laval would storm back, controlling the second half of the frame. However, Garand stood tall, fighting off some premium chances to keep the deficit at one heading into the second intermission.

Trey Ties It

Early in the first period, Xhekaj instigated a fight with Jaroslav Chmelař after the Providence College product laid a big hit behind the net. The extra call against Xhekaj sent the Wolf Pack to another power play.

On the ensuing man advantage, Brennan Othmann knocked down a clearing attempt and found Fix-Wolansky alone in the slot. Fix-Wolansky rocketed a shot that breezed by Kähkönen, tying the contest at two.

The goal was Fix-Wolansky's fifth of the season, tying him with Roobroeck for the active team lead.

Self-Inflicted Wounds

The Wolf Pack had momentum going following Fix-Wolansky's game-tying goal. However, old ghosts came back to haunt them when Brendan Brisson took a hooking call just over seven minutes into the final frame.

On the ensuing man advantage, Lucas Condotta batted a loose puck into the net during a scramble in front of Garand. The goal reinstated the Laval lead with just over eleven minutes to play.

Hartford wouldn't go away just yet, continuing to pepper Kähkönen with shots. The Laval netminder continued to stand tall, however, making some impressive saves on premium chances by Justin Dowling and Brett Berard.

Late in regulation, Othmann was whistled for a holding call. Old friend Alex Belzile put the game out further out of reach, deflecting a shot by Laurent Dauphin into the net.

Condotta nailed the empty net in the waning minutes of the contest to secure the 5-2 decision.

The Wolf Pack have continued to deal with self-inflicted wounds, especially late in games. They took eight penalties, and a ended up being the difference in the contest. Simply put, you can't win hockey games continuing to play an undisciplined and sloppy game.

Up Next

The Wolf Pack continue their home stand on Tuesday, hosting the Springfield Thunderbirds in the latest installment of the I-91 Rivalry. Puck drop is set for 11:00 am.