The good times keep on coming, at least for the Hartford Wolf Pack in the last week. While the New York Rangers had quite a week off the ice, their American Hockey League (AHL) team is having a great week on the ice, outscoring their opponents 10-1 in the last two games.
Related: Hartford Wolf Pack’s Offense Will Be Fine Without Brett Berard
The Wolf Pack defeated the Bridgeport Islanders 6-1 on Dec. 4 and then took care of the Rockford IceHogs on Dec. 6 with a 4-0 shutout victory. The strong play has notably been in the forward unit in recent games. They’ve taken control of games and against Rockford, they were dominant on both ends of the ice to put together their best performance of the season.
The Goals Keep Coming for Hartford
The forwards have shown that they can score and find the back of the net throughout the lineup. It’s one thing to pile up the goals against the Islanders, one of the worst teams in the AHL. Likewise, it’s not a surprise when the offense comes from the top-line skaters. Against the Islanders, Alex Belzile scored a hat trick and Benoit Olivier-Groulx added four assists.
Constantly finding the back of the net against the IceHogs, a team that isn’t great but no pushover in the Central Division, is a surprise. The Wolf Pack scored two goals against them in the second period and added two more in the final frame to put away the game.
Moreover, the depth stood out both in the recent game and has throughout this season. Jaroslav Chmelar, Ryder Korczak, and Dylan Roobroeck combined for three goals and three assists with their ability to crash the net and take advantage of loose pucks, leading the way for the Wolf Pack. The three skaters are known for their defense but they have stepped up on the offensive end of the ice as well.
It’s not just this trio, as this team is finding goals throughout the lineup with five skaters scoring five goals or more early on in this season. But it’s not just the scoring that is on full display in the victories, it’s the great all-around play that the forward unit has put together.
Hartford Is Forechecking & Defending
“Those are the things that great teams can do,” head coach Grant Potuly noted after the Dec. 6 game. The Wolf Pack have been forechecking well throughout the season and it’s given them an advantage, especially at the XL Center. The home ice is slower and tougher to move the puck on so having a great forecheck is key. For this team, it’s helped them go 9-3-1 in Hartford (conversely, they only have one win on the road).
That said, the forwards have taken it up a notch, especially with the defensive unit losing a few skaters in recent games. With the Jacob Trouba trade, the Rangers called up Victor Mancini and Matthew Robertson. On top of that, Brandon Scanlin and Casey Fitzgerald were both out with injuries, forcing the Wolf Pack to sign Christian Berger and call up Case McCarthy. “You want to help them out a bit,” Roobroeck mentioned after the game against the IceHogs, one where his line led the scoring and played exceptional defense.
Matt Rempe is the first player who comes to mind as the premier forechecker on the Wolf Pack but it’s the entire forward unit that has won with the forecheck while also stepping up on the defensive end of the ice. “The message doesn’t change,” Potulny stated after the Wolf Pack forwards helped shut down the IceHogs offense, an offense that entered the game averaging 3.05 goals per game. It was goaltender Dylan Garand’s first shutout this season but as he said after the game “It was a team shutout, that’s for sure.”
Where the Wolf Pack Can Improve
The Wolf Pack take too many penalties. They took three in the first period against the IceHogs and five in the game. The penalty kill stepped up but the aggressive play that results in penalties will eventually come back to bite them. It’s a trade-off with how Rempe, Chmelar, and the power forwards play but there must be a balance if this team hopes to compete for the Calder Cup.
The puck movement also has been non-existent outside of the top line. To be fair, Brett Berard and Brennen Othmann being out of the lineup has sapped the Wolf Pack of two of their best playmakers. That said, the passing hasn’t been great and it’s resulted in the occasional ugly goal instead of a surplus of well-executed ones.
The Wolf Pack play the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on Dec. 7 as part of the second game of a back-to-back. The Penguins are the type of team that can and will run up the score as they have throughout the season. The Wolf Pack need their forward unit to go toe-to-toe with them to win a crucial divisional matchup.
