Wolf Pack Stumble Early, Can’t Recover in 4-1 Loss to Penguins
WILKES-BARRE, PA - The Hartford Wolf Pack found themselves in a deep hole early on Saturday night, and despite a spirited push, couldn’t climb out. A three-goal first period by the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins proved to be the difference, as the Pack dropped a 4-1 decision at Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza.
It didn’t take long for the Penguins to get rolling. Gabe Klassen opened the scoring less than eight minutes in, cashing in on a power play with a laser from the right-wing circle that beat Callum Tung high on the glove side. It was Klassen’s third goal of the weekend and his ninth of the season - a hot hand the Wolf Pack couldn’t cool down.
Just over two minutes later, Tristan Broz doubled the lead. After taking a crisp feed from Rafael Harvey-Pinard, Broz found soft ice between the circles and let it rip, beating Tung clean for his 14th of the year. The Penguins were buzzing, and before the period was out, they’d strike again.
Harvey-Pinard, who had already picked up an assist, found a loose puck off a blocked shot and used a Hartford defenseman as a screen. The shot slipped through traffic and past Tung, capping a three-goal outburst in under eight minutes. At 3-0, the Wolf Pack were chasing.
But Hartford didn’t fold. Just 87 seconds into the second period, veteran forward Trey Fix-Wolansky gave the visitors life.
Brendan Brisson set him up beautifully, and Fix-Wolansky went to the backhand to beat Joel Blomqvist for his team-leading 12th goal of the season. The Pack had cut the deficit to 3-1 and looked ready to make a game of it.
They pushed hard for a second goal, generating quality looks and testing Blomqvist, but the Penguins’ netminder stood tall. Then, midway through the frame, the Penguins delivered a dagger.
Rookie Finn Harding, playing in just his first AHL season, found himself on the receiving end of a slick backdoor pass from Aidan McDonough and buried it for his first career goal. That made it 4-1 and took the wind out of Hartford’s sails.
The Wolf Pack didn’t stop fighting. Brett Berard rang one off the post on a late second-period power play, and Connor Mackey hit iron early in the third. The chances were there, but the finish was missing.
With the loss, Hartford wraps up their six-game season series against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton with a 2-4-0-0 record - a mark that doesn’t quite reflect how competitive some of those games were.
The road trip isn’t over just yet. The Pack will look to bounce back on Tuesday night when they face the Hershey Bears to close out their five-game swing away from home. Puck drops at 7:00 p.m.
They’ll return to the newly renovated PeoplesBank Arena on January 23 to host the Bridgeport Islanders. That one’s set for a 7:00 p.m. start, with pregame coverage beginning at 6:45 p.m. on AHLTV and Mixlr.