The Hartford Wolf Pack won their Nov. 15 game, 4-2 against the Charlotte Checkers – they needed the victory to turn their month around. They were 1-4 in their last five and entered a back-to-back homestand in sixth place in the Atlantic Division. They took care of a good Checkers team with all four goals coming from defensemen.
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The defensive unit is far from a Wolf Pack strength. They allow 3.46 goals per game and entered their homestand allowing 10 goals in the previous two games. However, there are some great skaters on the defense who can turn the unit around, especially with Victor Mancini being recalled from the New York Rangers recently. The unit carried the Wolf Pack against the Checkers and will be a key part of their success this season.
Wolf Pack’s Two-Way Play
A noticeable difference in how the defense played in the recent game was how they put the puck on the net. They were shooting the puck from the blue line and hoping for the best and the best was what they ended up seeing. Connor Mackey scored in the first period by flipping the puck from the blue line to the top corner of the net and Brandon Scanlin scored in the third period by firing the puck from the point.
Mancini’s goal epitomized the good luck that comes from putting the puck to the goal as he shot it from behind the net and it deflected off of Checkers goaltender Chris Driedger into the goal. Then came the exclamation point, where captain Casey Fitzgerald took the puck from deep in the defensive zone and fired it into the empty net to secure the 4-2 victory.
It wasn’t just the scoring surge, but how the defense used offense and possession to take over the game. Head coach Grant Potulny noted after the game that “They can’t score when we have the puck,” and the ability of the defensemen to handle it into the offensive zone and keep it away from the Checkers went a long way in this game.
The skill on the offensive end of the ice will make a difference for the Wolf Pack, a team eager to climb in the Atlantic Division. However, the strong play from the defense goes beyond the skill. They have to shut down opponents the way they did in their latest game, allowing only two goals on 23 shots.
Wolf Pack Shutting Down Opponents
“I was fully aware they were averaging 4.50 goals per game,” Potulny noted about the Checkers, a team with one of the best offenses in the American Hockey League (AHL). The Checkers are the Stanley Cup-winning Florida Panthers‘ affiliate and have plenty of forwards capable of adding offense to the NHL team. Stopping their offense was a priority and the Wolf Pack did just that.
The defense created a lot of turnovers and limited the shots on the net in part because of how they played in the defensive zone. “We kept them on the ice on the outside,” and Potulny had the skaters prevent the Checkers from finding high-danger chances. With Louis Domingue in the net, the goal was to force difficult shots on the net and play with structure to prevent the Checkers from finding easy scoring chances.
The defensemen are stepping up on both ends of the ice but the bottom line is that they must shut down great offenses if they hope to become a strength. They play with speed and can create turnovers but the big thing is blocking shots and being in a good position in the defensive zone. It’s something the Wolf Pack are still working on.
Where The Defense Can Improve
The inconsistency is an issue, not just from game to game but within games as well. The Wolf Pack will eliminate the Syracuse Crunch in a 2-1 victory on Nov. 6 and then allow six goals on Nov. 8 to the Rochester Americans. Moreover, the defense will create a turnover in the defensive zone and allow the opponent an easy shot on the net or the positioning will allow the opposition an easy goal.
“We’re still not always where we’re supposed to be,” Potulny mentioned when talking about the AHL as a league compared to the NHL, but it couldn’t be more true about the Wolf Pack defense. They will allow teams to find shooting lanes and overwhelm the goaltenders and it’s why the defense, despite the strong showing, is still one of the worst in the league.
The AHL compared to the NHL is fresh on every defenseman’s mind, especially Mancini’s. “That half step up in speed, you have to make your decisions quicker,” and it’s the small gap for the Wolf Pack that can have their defense go from good to great, and a lot of the skaters on the unit can become NHL caliber if they take their play up another notch.
How This Group Will Help The Rangers
The Rangers still have a third pair and seventh defenseman spot up for grabs. Zachary Jones has stepped up and Chad Ruhwedel was called up from the AHL as an extra defenseman, but there are a lot of prospects who can come in and play those roles as well.
Scanlin is a 25-year-old who has stepped up throughout the season. Fitzgerald was named the Wolf Pack captain and along with scoring empty net goals from distance, he’s proven he can add a leadership presence to the lineup. Mancini was with the Rangers early on in the season and he’s playing with the Wolf Pack like a skater on a mission.
The Rangers have one of the best defenses in the NHL. Adam Fox is a perennial Norris Trophy candidate while K’Andre Miller is a shutdown defenseman. However, they can always use another depth skater to round out the unit and the Wolf Pack have a few to choose from.
