Wolf Pack Blanked by WBS Penguins 3-0
Despite a strong effort, the Wolf Pack simply couldn't find the net in the midweek matchup.
The Hartford Wolf Pack made a brief stop at the PeoplesBank Arena on Wednesday night. They welcomed the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins to town for a midweek matchup.
The Wolf Pack played a strong game, but they simply couldn't find the net. A trio of goals from the Penguins led to a 3-0 decision in the contest.
Tough Luck
The Wolf Pack peppered Sergei Murashov to the tune of 20 shots in the opening frame. However, they were simply unable to solve the Penguin netminder, who denied all 20 to keep Hartford off the board. At the other end of the ice, Spencer Martin stopped the six bids he faced as the game entered the first intermission in a scoreless tie.
The Penguins finally broke the ice in the opening minutes of the middle frame. Phil Tomasino danced through the defense, went to the backhand, and stuffed a shot by Martin to give the Penguins the game's first lead.
Avery Hayes struck just over six minutes later, converting on a partial breakaway to double the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton lead. The Penguins took the two-goal margin into the second intermission.
Aidan McDonough capped off the scoring in the final frame, taking a drop pass from Hayes and beating Martin on an open net. Murashov would withstand a late push from the Wolf Pack to cement the 3-0 final.
"[The first period] is probably as good of a period as we played all year," Wolf Pack head coach Grant Potulny told Blueshirt Banter following the contest. "You come in after the period, you're a little disappointed it's still 0-0, but you feel pretty good about how you're playing. We're disappointed with the outcome, but not disappointed with the effort."
Wolf Pack captain Casey Fitzgerald echoed the comments from his coach, telling Blueshirt Banter, "We had a great first period. Sometimes you don't get the puck luck you want. It was tough, the outcome."
While Potulny commended his team's effort, he also acknowledged that the team had areas for improvement. The Wolf Pack bench boss told Blueshirt Banter, "We're in a place where every point matters. We kinda gotta get back on the right side of it again. I'm glad we're playing again on Friday."
Up Next
The Wolf Pack will head on a two game road trip this weekend. They'll make their only visit to Utica this season on Friday for a matchup against the Comets. Puck drop is set for 7 pm.
