Wolf Pack End Home Stand with 6-3 Loss to Thunderbirds

The Hartford Wolf Pack capped off their season-long six-game home stand with some Thanksgiving Eve hockey on Wednesday night. They hosted the Springfield Thunderbirds for round four of the I-91 Rivalry this season.

The Wolf Pack put forth a strong effort, but they simply couldn't get shots to fall. On the other end, Springfield exploded for six goals to take a 6-3 decision.

Bad Bounces

The Thunderbirds would take the lead just 1:29 into the contest. Callum Tung denied a shot from Matthew Peca, but he couldn't hang on to the rebound. A scramble in front of the net ensued, and the puck eventually landed on the stick of Otto Stenberg, who tapped it home to break the ice.

Peca would double the Springfield lead in the final minutes of the opening frame. With Jackson Dorrington in the box, Peca got the puck after some slick passing from the T-Birds and snapped it home on an open backdoor. Springfield took the 2-0 lead into the first intermission.

Brennan's on the Board

Springfield would take their largest lead of the night just over a minute into the second period. Aleksanteri Kaskimäki rifled a shot by Tung to make it a three-goal game.

The Wolf Pack finally answered back just over the five-minute mark in the middle frame. Brennan Othmann took a shot from beyond the circle that hit a body out in front. Hunter Skinner attempted to clear the puck, but he put it right on the stick of Othmann, who ripped it home to get the Wolf Pack on the board.

The goal was Othmann's first of the season, snapping a 12-game goalless drought.

Wheelin' and Dylan

The Wolf Pack continued to press throughout the middle frame, firing 24 shots at Georgi Romanov. They'd finally beat him for the second time just over the 13 minute mark in the period. A hard forecheck eventually wore down Springfield, with Jaroslav Chmelař forcing a turnover and Othmann corralling it. Othmann slid a pass to Dylan Roobroeck in the slot, who promptly snapped it by Romanov to cut the lead to one.

The goal was Roobroeck's sixth of the season, tying him for the team lead.

Hartford continued to press in the remainder of the frame, but Romanov stood tall from there, and the game went into the second intermission with the T-Birds ahead 3-2.

Can't Get it Done

The Wolf Pack couldn't keep their momentum going in the start of the third frame. Matt Luff potted a goal off an odd-man rush just over the six minute mark to reinstate the two-goal lead.

Samuel Johannesson struck on the power play about four minutes later, putting the contest out of reach.

Brendan Brisson would draw the Wolf Pack back within two late in regulation. Brisson tapped a feed from Derrick Pouliot by Romanov for his fourth goal of the season.

However, Calle Rosén ended the intrigue less than a minute later, sniping home a shot on a breakaway and cementing the 6-3 decision.

"You play the game to win the game, and we didn't do that," Wolf Pack head coach Grant Potulny told Blueshirt Banter following the contest. "But I thought we did a lot of things well. The second was probably as good of a period as we've had all year."

Potulny has a point - the Wolf Pack controlled play throughout the first and second periods, despite trailing. While there was a lot to like, it's hard to notice that with a 6-3 final and another tally in the loss column. Potulny noted this, saying:

"At the end of the day, you play to win the game. We couldn't find a way to get it done."

Up Next

The Wolf Pack hit the road this weekend for a pair of games against the Cleveland Monsters on Friday and Saturday. Puck drop for both games is set for 7 pm.