Hartford Wolf Pack Good Team But Not As Good As AHL Penguins – Hockey Writers – Hartford Wolf Pack

With 22 games into the 2024-25 season, it's clear that the Hartford Wolf Pack, the New York Rangers American League Hockey (AHL) team, are good. They are good enough to make the playoffs and have players in the middle of the Atlantic Division to finish the season.

Related: Wolf Pack Forwards Win at Both Ends of the Ice

The problem is that they are not in the same league as the other top teams in their AHL division. There is a noticeable gap between the Wolf Pack and the Hershey Bears and the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins, the top two teams in the division. The game on December 7 showed that as the Penguins looked like the better team, finishing in a 6-2 victory. There are some key issues that have kept the Wolf Pack from being at the same level and will keep them regressing throughout the season.

Wolf Pack Don't Move the Puck

Having good puck handlers and passers goes a long way in the AHL. The Penguins can harass teams with their passing and run scores on any team. They average 3.50 goals per game and scored three goals in the first half against the Wolf Pack and six in the game.

Despite the top line, which includes the injured Benoit-Olivier Groulx, Alex Belzile, and Anton Blidh, the Wolf Pack lacks a big passing game. They can score a goal with an offense averaging 3.00 per game but most of those are bad goals when Matt Rempe or Jaroslav Chmelar find the net and shoot loose shots.

Some of the struggles are due to the absence of Brennan Othmann and Brett Berard. Othmann scored 21 goals and 28 assists last season but has only played three games this season as he is still injured. Meanwhile, Berard was the leading player who scored seven goals and six assists in 13 games but was called up to the Rangers and is out due to injury. That said, puck movement is nonexistent in the bottom six and outside of a handful of forwards entirely. It explains why the power play only benefited from 14% of their chances, the worst mark in the Atlantic Division.

Wolf Pack penalties are a glaring weakness

Head coach Grant Potulny wants the Wolf Pack to set the tone every game and that comes with a good forecheck and strong, physical play. “You want to go (early),” he said after the Dec. 7 game, and forcing opponents to adjust to the Wolf Pack's style of hockey gives them a chance.

The downside to their style of hockey is that they take a lot of penalties, especially in the first half. The Wolf Pack led by three in the first half against the Rockford IceHogs on Dec. 6 but didn't call it quits in a 4-0 victory. They also took three in the first 20 minutes against the Penguins the next night and it cost them as they went down 3-0 and the game was out of reach.

The key is finding a balance between playing physical hockey and not being the target team. “What you get points for is hooking up, cross-checking, and fouling,” Potulny said after the Penguins game, a sign that he, along with most coaches, is OK with a boarding penalty or roughing being called but not other fouls. Casey Fitzgerald was called for kneeling and Case McCarthy was called for hooking, both penalties in the first half resulted in goals for the Penguins.

Penalties could be the highlight of the season for the Wolf Pack and it's important for them to eliminate those that don't come from physical play, especially since the penalty kill still requires possession. “We're still trying to get our penalties to be killed properly and you can't give people four or five chances,” Potulny said after a game in which they allowed six penalties and a night off in which they allowed five. The IceHogs.

Penguins have shutdown protection

The penguins showed on Dec. 7 what a good defensive unit can do and the difference it can make to get a win. Their goalie Joel Blomqvist made 28 saves but the defense stepped up and shut down the Wolf Pack. Filip Kral had three assists but played shooting lanes in the defensive end of the ice and likewise, Nikolai Knyzhov turned defense into offense as he created turnovers and moved the puck up the ice.

The Wolf Pack has a good defense and the good play from the unit was on full display in the win on December 6th. The team had to call on both McCarthy and Christian Berger but Connor Mackey was the one who stood out as he forced many times and also cut off a quick chance with a poke check. The defense is good and can play on both ends of the ice, a key for any AHL team, but they are not as good as the Penguins, a team that consistently defends well and moves the puck up the ice to stop the offense. .

Why The Wolf Pack Is Built For Success

The Wolf Pack are fifth in the division with a 10-9-2-1 record and a middle of the pack team at the moment but the pieces have gotten better than that. They can count on Dylan Garand in net if needed, a forward who is having a much better season than Louis Domingue. Garand has a .917 save percentage (SV%) and 2.42 goals-against average (GAA) on 324 shots while Domingue, a 6-2 starter, has a .881 SV% and a 3.80 GAA on 352 shots.

The Wolf Pack asked Garand to start back-to-back games this week and he did. On Dec. 4 against the Bridgeport Islanders, he stopped 31 of 32 shots in a 6-1 victory, and on Dec. 6 against the IceHogs, he tallied 24 shutouts. The Wolf Pack can depend on him late in the season and in the playoffs, when the games matter most.

Another thing the Wolf Pack has in common is that their style of hockey is built for the playoffs. They have a forward unit that can look forward and defend while making an impact in all three positions. The play-offs are where games slow down and teams need to win through physical play. “We are training for the end of the year,” commented Potulny after the loss to the Penguins and it is reflected in the team's performance. They might lose a game or two in the winter months but it will help them later in the season, as Potulny said, “You want to win games in April or May,” which is when the Calder Cup Playoffs start.

In keeping with the style of hockey, the Wolf Pack has some top goalies to raise later in the season. Berard will return to the lineup as will Othmann. Both skaters will not play for the team in the coming weeks but they will have an impact in the play-offs as they can raise this offense.

The Wolf Pack aren't as good as the Penguins and by the end of the season, they won't be anywhere near them in the standings. However, if these two meet in a playoff series, the Wolf Pack could go toe-to-toe with them, even if recent play suggests otherwise.

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