Another week is in the the books, and the Hartford Wolf Pack picked up four huge points. Despite dropping a close game to league leader Manchester, The WolfPack put a beating on Springfield, and did just enough to beat a good Devils team. The Pack currently sit in 12th place with 56 points, and are 14 points out of a play off spot, gaining two points since last week, with 17 huge games left.
The Week Ahead:
Hartford has taken five out of a possible 6 points from Adirondack over the last three games. While the Pack have struggled mightily with the devils, they have taken two in a row from them. Providence has taken all four meetings from the pack this year, while out scoring them 23-11 in those four game. Bridgeport has taken three in a row and four out of five against the pack.
Other important games this week:
Friday March 14th: St Johns vs Portland, Manchester vs Bridgeport, Springfield vs Albany, Syracuse vs Hershey, Providence vs Worcester
Saturday March 15th: St Johns vs Portland, Bridgeport vs Worcester, Hershey vs Adirondack, Syracuse vs Hamilton
Sunday March 16th: Bridgeport vs Adirondack, Worcester vs Manchester, Albany vs Syracuse
Wednesday March 19th: Albany Vs Binghamton.
Keys to this week:
Win on the Road
The Wolfpack have won four straight on home ice but have struggled lately on the road. The pack haven’t picked up points on the road since a February 25th win over Portland. To make matters worse, they have been outscored 8-3 in that stretch. It goes with out saying, but in order to gain ground, they need to start winning on the road, and earning those points.
JT Miller
Last weekend during a three game stand, the Wolfpack scored a total of 11 goals and went 2-1 in those games. JT Miller had a total eights points in those three games, and was far and away the best player on the ice in everyone of those games. Miller took a huge step both as a player and as a leader, with four massive games this week, JT Miller needs to continue to blossom, and lead this team.
The Asham-Hensick-Hrivik line
While this may seem like a odd combination for a line, these guys have shown instant chemistry with each other. This past weekend, they combined for 4 goals and 3 assists for seven points. With everyone looking at the Miller/Bourque/fast and Linderg/Powe/Kristo lines for results, Hensick Asham and Hrivik extend the line up and can add a third line that teams need to worry about. At this point in the season, depth wins you games, and it would be a great time to get these three guys flying.