Hawryluk's 5 Points, Power Play's 4 Strikes Wipe Out Wolf Pack

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - The Springfield Thunderbirds (6-0-0-2) once again flexed their offensive muscles with four power play goals and a combined 11 points from one line in a 6-2 triumph over the Hartford Wolf Pack (4-6-1-0) on Sunday afternoon at the MassMutual Center.

 

After going scoreless on their first three shots of the game, the Wolf Pack scored first eight minutes into the first period off the stick of Tim Gettinger, who redirected a shot from the point by Brandon Crawley. Steven Fogarty picked up a secondary assist on the play to put the Wolf Pack ahead 1-0 at 8:45.

 

Playing in his first game after returning from a lower-body injury to start the season, Bobby Farnhamimmediately made his presence known, giving the team some added physicality as well, raising energy through a fight just seven seconds after Hartford scored its first goal.

 

12:25 into the first period, Springfield was able to equalize after Henrik Borgstrom put home a rebound from point-blank range off shots by Joel Lowry and Jayce Hawryluk, both of whom picked up helpers on the play and also took shots from close range.

 

The Wolf Pack began the second period on the power play after Ian McCoshen was called for kneeing with 1:13 left to play in the first period, but the T-Birds killed off the remaining 47 seconds easily. From there, it was the Thunderbirds power play that took over.

 

After Peter Holland picked up a five-minute major penalty, a two-minute penalty for instigating and a 10-minute misconduct all for picking a fight with Riley Stillman, Springfield went on the attack. Stillman had just delivered a thunderous body check to Lias Andersson, sparking that reply from Holland.

 

The Thunderbirds used the man-advantage to their benefit and scored 13 seconds after, as Dryden Huntmuscled a shot through Dustin Tokarski at 13:00 of the second.

 

After Rob O’Gara was called for cross-checking at 17:27, Springfield once again took advantage of a power play -- this time via a 5-on-3.

 

With 1:42 left in the period, the T-Birds collected their second power play goal of the game and increased their lead to two when Julian Melchiori collected a perfect feed from Hawryluk and ripped a one timer off a Hartford stick and past Tokarski at 18:18.

 

After O’Gara was called for high-sticking 1:48 into the third period, Springfield tallied yet another power play goal courtesy of Hawryluk, who was set up on a perfect slap pass at the top of the crease by Borgstrom.

 

Two and a half minutes later after Jake Horton was called for interference, Crawley scored off a slap shot from the blue line, beating Chris Driedger on the glove side to make it 4-2 at 4:56 of the third.

 

After Hartford took another trip to the box, at the 14:05 mark of the period, Hunt picked up his second goal of the night, banking it past Tokarski from the right corner to make it 5-2. Hunt’s two goals topped his prior total of just one in his first seven games.

 

With under two minutes to play in the period, Borgstrom picked up a turnover in Hartford’s defensive zone and threw it into an empty  Wolf Pack net, giving the T-Birds the final tally of the game and making it 6-2. Borgstrom finished with two goals and two assists, while Hunt added two goals. The star of the night proved to be Hawryluk, who tallied the first five-point game in Thunderbirds history with a goal and four helpers.

 

Driedger got his second win in three starts with 28 saves on 30 shots against.

 

The T-Birds will look to extend their win streak to six games and their point streak to nine games when they take on the Bridgeport Sound Tigers at MassMutual Center in the first of a home-and-home series on Friday, November 2 at 7:05pm.

 

Springfield Thunderbirds fans are encouraged to visit www.SpringfieldThunderbirds.com to learn more about 2018-19 Thunderbirds Season Ticket Memberships. Packages include a wide range of benefits, including the lowest prices for the 2019 Lexus AHL All-Star Classic presented by MGM Springfield. For more information or to order now, call (413) 739-GOAL (4625) or visit www.SpringfieldThunderbirds.com.