Game 1: Springfield Allows Goals In First Ten Minutes Of Each Period In 6-1 Shellacking

SPRINGFIELD, MA – Coming off a weekend that concluded the regular season with a loss to the Providence Bruins, the Springfield Thunderbirds entered game one of the Atlantic Division First Round Playoff Series hoping to mow down their opponents one round at a time, and repeat as Eastern Conference Champions.

However, they were unable to get off on the right foot, as the Hartford Wolf Pack was able to score in the first ten minutes of each period – leading them to a 6-1 victory in game one on Wednesday night in Springfield.

“It doesn’t matter if you’re losing 5-1, or 6-1, a loss is a loss in the playoffs,” head coach Drew Bannister said of his team’s performance.

Going into the game, Thunderbirds goaltender Joel Hofer had shut out the Wolf Pack in three consecutive starts, and that streak extended for just over three and a half minutes into the third period; however, it came to end at the 3:37 mark in the first period when Lauri Pajuniemi took a feed from Tanner Fritz and wristed it past Hofer from the right point.

After the goal, Hofer stopped every other shot that came his way, including multiple odd-man rushes where he had to make some key saves sprawling to both sides – finishing the period with 10 saves early on.

Despite allowing the six goals, he did make 30 saves in the losing effort. Bannister, however, said unequivocally that he would be starting Hofer in game two of the series.

The second period was all Wolf Pack to say the least. Just under four minutes into the second period, Zac Jones was found guilty of interference after knocking down a Springfield forward breaking into the zone.

However, as soon as the penalty concluded, Jones sprinted out of the box, picked up a loose puck, and beat Hofer with a double move down low. The beat down continued in a similar fashion after Pajuniemi was sent to the sin bin himself for hooking.

Pajuniemi picked up a loose puck of his own, and, in deja vu-fashion took a wrist shot that beat Hofer on the glove side from the center point.

While Hartford was able to take a 4-0 lead by the end of the second period on Blake Hillman’s first goal with the Wolf Pack, the story of the second period was really the physicality – namely the 14 minutes of penalties committed by both teams combined.

One penalty in particular irked the crowd, and Bannister alike, a penalty assessed to Matthew Highmore for delay of game on a play that clearly deflected off his stick and out of play.

The officials huddled together, and finally decided it would be delay of game. Much to the chagrin of assistant captain Tyler Tucker.

“It’s a tough call, our sticks were in the air,” Bannister said. “I don’t know if he swatted it… I think it could have gone either way, but I’m not going to question the refs right now.”

In the third period, Hartford scored their fifth goal when Ryan Carpenter took a one-timer feed from Will Cuylle and deposited it past Hofer – the Wolf Pack’s third goal to open the third.

With under ten minutes left in the game, Adam Gaudette put the T-Birds on the board with a power play goal, but it wasn’t able to spark a rally as Ty Emberson was able to put the final nail on Springfield’s coffin on the board with 1:22 left to play when he potted an empty net goal on a cross-rink dump.

Game two of the series will be on Friday at the XL Center in Hartford. A win for the Thunderbirds sends the series back to Springfield for a decisive, winner-take-all game three, but a win for the Wolf Pack clinches the series.

Puck drop on Friday is at 7:05 p.m.