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AHL Springfield Thunderbirds

Domingue, Wolf Pack Deny T-Birds 7th Straight Home Win

November 24, 2023 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Springfield Thunderbirds News Release


Hartford Wolf Pack's Bobby Trivigno and Matt Rempe battle Springfield Thunderbirds' Malcolm Subban
Hartford Wolf Pack's Bobby Trivigno and Matt Rempe battle Springfield Thunderbirds' Malcolm Subban
(Springfield Thunderbirds)

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. -- The Springfield Thunderbirds (9-8-1-0) launched 41 shots on net, but the Hartford Wolf Pack (11-4-2-0) escaped with a 4-2 win inside the MassMutual Center on Friday night.

Malcolm Subban got the start in the net for the T-Birds and had another terrific performance with 32 saves, but Hartford goaltender Louis Domingue outdueled his veteran counterpart with 39 stops.

In the opening stanza, Hugh McGing was whistled for a tripping penalty just 38 seconds into the game. On the ensuing faceoff, Hartford captain Jonny Brodzinski got the puck at the point and ripped a shot that hit the crossbar and almost gave his team a 1-0 lead. However, the T-Birds penalty killers held strong, denying the man advantage opportunity for the Wolf Pack.

The Thunderbirds had a legitimate scoring chance of their own at the 11:25 mark of the period. Mackenzie MacEachern made a slick pass to linemate Zach Dean, who weaved his way past the Hartford defensemen before cutting towards the goal. Dean tried to put the shot past Domingue, but the Hartford netminder came up clutch with a huge stop in tight on the Springfield centerman. The duo was able to orchestrate another scoring chance later in the period as well. Dean fed MacEachern at the circle off a give-and-go passing play, but the hulking winger's shot was stopped by Domingue. The T-Birds penalty kill was a perfect 3-for-3 in the first period, as both teams went into their dressing rooms scoreless.

Unfortunately, a parade of penalties would catch up to the T-Birds in the second. Following a bench minor penalty for too many men on the ice, Riley Nash broke the deadlock, tipping home a beautiful three-man passing play off feeds from Alex Belzile and Brodzinski at the 6:00 mark in the second.

The T-Birds soon found a way to get past Domingue, thanks to the dogged play of McGing out in front. After Zachary Bolduc flipped a shot from the blue line that ricocheted off Mikhail Abramov, McGing located the puck to the left of the net and was able to tuck it in off Domingue's pads, giving him a goal in back-to-back games and tying the score, 1-1, at 10:17.

It only took 1:19 for the deadlock to break in the third period. Subban saw an initial Brodzinski shot rocket off the end glass, but in a stroke of bad luck, the puck skipped in front of the net right to Brett Berard, who batted it home past Subban to make it a 2-1 Hartford lead.

However, the T-Birds power play cracked its lengthy 0-for-26 struggle to equalize. After Nash was sent to the box for tripping, in the closing seconds of the advantage, McGing spotted Joey Duszak across the ice, and the blueliner one-touched a snapper through Domingue's glove side, deadlocking the game, 2-2, at the 10:29 mark.

Less than two minutes later, though, a Springfield defender lost an edge and fell in the neutral zone, allowing Matt Rempe to fly in on a breakaway. Rempe calmly backhanded the puck over Subban's blocker, giving his team a 3-2 lead at 12:12.

In the closing minutes of the game, Springfield had another golden opportunity on the man advantage, as Hartford's Brandon Scanlin was sent to the penalty box for a delay of game penalty. Despite putting together a barrage of shots on Domingue with the net empty and a 6-on-4 attack, the T-Birds could not break the veteran backstop, and Adam Edstrom put the finishing touches on the game with an empty net goal in the final minute, rounding out the scoring.

The T-Birds will return home tomorrow night for our Hockey Fights Cancer game, as the team will take on the Utica Comets for the second time this month. Springfield will also be wearing specialty lavender jerseys for the Bitsy's Army cause to honor the late cousin of Will and Sam Bitten, Martin Piche. Fans are invited to stay postgame for a jersey auction, where proceeds will benefit both Bitsy's Army and local cancer charities.

Fans can reserve their seats to be a part of the Thunderbirds' hockey action for the 2023-24 season by calling (413)-739-GOAL (4625) or visiting www.SpringfieldThunderbirds.com.

-- SPRINGFIELD THUNDERBIRDS -

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Images from this story

Hartford Wolf Pack's Bobby Trivigno and Matt Rempe battle Springfield Thunderbirds' Malcolm Subban
Hartford Wolf Pack's Bobby Trivigno and Matt Rempe battle Springfield Thunderbirds' Malcolm Subban
   



American Hockey League Stories from November 24, 2023


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