SPRINGFIELD – The Springfield Thunderbirds kept their postseason hopes alive with a 6-3 win against the Hartford Wolf Pack before a sold-out crowd of 6,793 inside the MassMutual Center on Friday night.
Colten Ellis secured his third T-Birds victory behind 38 saves on 41 shots. Meanwhile, Adam Gaudette scored twice to record his 27th league-leading goal.
The Thunderbirds finished Friday night, generating offensive improvement on the powerplay as they went 3-for-4 on the man advantage.
Behind those efforts, Springfield is now tied with Charlotte with 53 points each, while they trail Hartford for fourth place with 58 points and 23 regular-season games left.
“We’ve had some good opportunities over this stretch,” Interim Thunderbirds coach Dan Tkaczuk said. “This was the first time we’ve had any five-on-three power plays for over two months. It was nice to know that tonight, all aspects of our game and execution contributed to the win.”
A full-throttle first period, which featured a combined eleven penalties between both teams, was just the tip of the iceberg, as the I-91 rivalry once again showed the physical and offensive glory between the two Atlantic division rivals, which foreshadowed a night like no other.
Hartford wasted no time jumping out to an explosive 2-0 lead as the T-Birds fell victim to apparent signs of rust and the lingering flaw of miscommunication.
Lighting the lamp first for the Wolf Pack was Tyler Pitlick, who intercepted the puck as Hugh McGing attempted to clear the defensive zone, resulting in the early 1-0 lead for the road team at 9:03 remaining in the opening frame.
That goal led Hartford to a newly found momentum as the Wolf Pack didn’t let the T-Birds catch their breath.
Seconds later, Matthew Robertson buried a loose rebound, which relinquished the hometown momentum to the road team and doubled their cushion to 2-0 at 8:25 left on the clock.
“It boils down to turnovers,” said Tkaczuk, reflecting on Hartford’s early lead after Friday’s victory. “Anytime you turn the puck over, you’re going one way, and they’re coming back at you the other, and those miscues tend to bite you a little bit.
“But you know, they’re (Hartford) a good team and well-coached. They have a motivated roster of guys willing to compete because they want to either move up in their lineup or stay in the league. So they gave us all we could handle tonight.”
The Thunderbirds quickly regained their footing towards the end of the 1st period.
Hartford’s Blake Hillman and Brandon Scanlin were called for roughing and cross-checking, giving the Thunderbirds a prime opportunity.
Dylan Coghlan used that chance.
Riding the momentum of the five-on-three powerplay opportunity, Coghlan entered the offensive zone with the puck glued to his stick. He then fired a one-timer that blanked Wolf Pack netminder Dylan Garand’s stick side, getting the home team on the board 2-1 at 7:30 remaining in the opening frame.
Once play transitioned to five on four in favor of Springfield, Coghlan notched his second point of the night when he located Adam Gaudette in the slot. He quickly fired the loose puck that landed in the back of the net, evening the score at 2-2 with 5:39 left.
As Jakub Vrana fired on Garand, the T-Birds continued to thrive on the man advantage. But it was to no avail until Ryan Suzuki buried the rebound, which allowed Springfield to regain the 3-2 lead during the second period at 12:14.
“Anytime your specialty teams get power play goals on one side or cut them off while on the penalty kill, you give yourself a really good chance to win in this league Tkaczuk said.”
Springfield neutralized Hartford’s momentum as the Wolf Pack finished 0-for-4 on the power play and went 2-for-7 on the penalty kill during the latest I-91 matchup.
Once the third period drew to an open, Tyler Pitlick recorded his second point of Friday’s matchup, tied the score at 3-3.
Springfield regained its 4-3 lead in the latter half of the third period as Zachary Dean recorded his fourth point in five games.
In addition, Antom Malmstrom also recorded his first career AHL assist on the play. Joseph Duszak added an insurance goal before Gaudette’s empty netter to extend the T-Birds cushion further.
The T-Birds return to the home ice on Saturday to host the Providence Bruins for their annual Military Appreciation Night. The puck drop is set for 7:05 p.m.
“We had a good start,” Tkaczuk said. “But unfortunately, we found ourselves down 2-0.
“But that’s the nature of hockey. Sometimes, if you stick to your game plan and play the right way over 60 minutes, you should find ways to win.”
