Rangers AHL affiliate bolstered with latest roster cuts

Hartford’s training camp opened on Saturday to begin preparation for the Wolf Pack’s 23rd season in the American Hockey League. The new staff that was hired in the off-season by the Rangers will coach the hopefuls, a mix of prospects and veterans. This is Kris Knoblauch’s first year in the AHL, after coming over from Philadelphia (NHL) while Gord Murphy, and David Cunniff join the organization with a wealth of experience in the Minor Pro ranks.

The three new coaches will get a crack at breaking Hartford’s playoff drought, as the team has not had playoff action since the 2014-15 season, when they lost in 4 games in the Eastern Conference Finals to Manchester. Since then, Hartford have found themselves in the bottom portion of the standings annually.

Despite gloomy performances in six of the last seven seasons, the organization is looking ahead by completely revamping things for Hartford. There are returning prospects, who now have a year or two of experience at the pro level, in addition to new veterans with strong resumes at the AHL and NHL levels. The organization has also received new prospects coming from overseas, which adds more competition in both New York and Hartford.

The high level of potential talent in the organization benefits the organization as a whole, obviously. Depending how training camp shakes out for both New York and Hartford, we should see a highly competitive season and a change in performance for the better.

Rangers First Round Cuts

Announced on Monday, New York has trimmed their training camp roster by seven. The following players will join Hartford:

Forwards: Ryan Gropp, Ville Meskanen, Ty Ronning

Goaltenders: Tom McCollum, Francois Brassard

Announced on Friday, New York has trimmed their roster by four more.

Forward: Jake Elmer

Defensemen: Brandon Crawley, Vincent LoVerde, Darren Raddysh.

Matt Beleskey is expected to join Hartford’s training camp, if he is not claimed through waivers.

Additional moves will follow as preseason continues for New York. Preseason action for the Wolf Pack will begin next Wednesday against the Springfield Thunderbirds. Stay tuned for further updates.

Wolf Pack Training Camp Schedule

Announced by Chis Drury, the Wolf Pack training camp schedule was revealed. You can follow the schedule here.