Hartford Wolf Pack facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Hartford Wolf Pack |
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| City | Hartford, Connecticut |
| League | American Hockey League |
| Conference | Eastern |
| Division | Atlantic |
| Founded | 1926 (CAHL) |
| Home arena | PeoplesBank Arena |
| Colors | Blue, red, white |
| Owner(s) | Madison Square Garden, Inc. |
| General manager | Ryan Martin |
| Head coach | Grant Potulny |
| Captain | Casey Fitzgerald |
| Media | MSG Network AHL.TV (Internet) Mixlr (Internet) |
| Affiliate(s) | New York Rangers (NHL) Bloomington Bison (ECHL) |
| Franchise history | |
| 1926–1976 | Providence Reds |
| 1976–1977 | Rhode Island Reds |
| 1977–1980 | Binghamton Dusters |
| 1980–1990 | Binghamton Whalers |
| 1990–1997 | Binghamton Rangers |
| 1997–2010 | Hartford Wolf Pack |
| 2010–2013 | Connecticut Whale |
| 2013–present | Hartford Wolf Pack |
| Championships | |
| Regular season titles | 1: (1999–00) |
| Division Championships | 4: (1999–00, 2003–04, 2008–09, 2014–15) |
| Conference Championships | 1: (1999–00) |
| Calder Cups | 1: (1999–00) |
 Current season |
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The Hartford Wolf Pack is a professional ice hockey team located in Hartford, Connecticut. They are part of the American Hockey League (AHL) and play their home games at the PeoplesBank Arena. This team started way back in 1926 as the Providence Reds.
Over the years, the team moved a few times before settling in Hartford in 1997. The Hartford Wolf Pack is one of the oldest professional hockey teams still around. It's also the oldest minor league hockey team in North America that has played every season without stopping!
In October 2010, the team changed its name to the Connecticut Whale. This was done to honor the old Hartford Whalers team from the National Hockey League (NHL). But after the 2012–13 AHL season, they changed back to their original name, the Hartford Wolf Pack. The Wolf Pack is the main team that helps train players for the New York Rangers in the NHL.
Contents
History of the Wolf Pack
The team that became the Wolf Pack began in 1926 in Providence, Rhode Island. They were called the Providence Reds and were one of the first five teams in the Canadian-American Hockey League. In 1936, this league joined with another one to form a bigger league, which later became just the American Hockey League (AHL).
The Providence Reds, also known as the Rhode Island Reds for their last season, stopped playing in 1977. Soon after, the team was bought and moved to Binghamton, New York. There, they were called the Binghamton Dusters.
In 1980, the team partnered with the Hartford Whalers and changed their name to the Binghamton Whalers. Then, in 1990, they partnered with the New York Rangers, which is a partnership that still exists today. With this new partnership, they changed their name again to the Binghamton Rangers.
After the 1996–97 NHL season, the Hartford Whalers NHL team moved away from Hartford. So, the Binghamton Rangers moved to Hartford and started playing at the empty Hartford Civic Center. This arena is now known as the PeoplesBank Arena.
The team held a contest to pick a new name, and "Hartford Wolf Pack" was chosen. This name was picked to honor Connecticut's strong naval history, especially with submarines. The mascot for the team was named "Sonar," keeping with the submarine theme.
The Wolf Pack's first coach was E.J. McGuire. Their first home game was on October 4, 1997, with a huge crowd of 12,934 fans. P.J. Stock scored the first goal for the Wolf Pack at home. The team made it to the playoffs for their first 12 years in a row!
In 2000, they won the Calder Cup, which is the championship trophy for the AHL. They beat the Rochester Americans in the finals. Derek Armstrong was named the MVP (Most Valuable Player) of the playoffs.
In 2010, the team changed its name to the Connecticut Whale. This was done to bring back memories of the old Hartford Whalers. The last game as the "Wolf Pack" was on November 26, 2010. The first game as the "Whale" was on November 27, 2010, and they won!
The Connecticut Whale even hosted a special outdoor game called the "Whale Bowl" in 2011. It was played at Rentschler Field in East Hartford.
In 2013, after about two and a half seasons as the Whale, the team decided to change back to the "Wolf Pack" name. This was announced in May 2013, and they have been the Hartford Wolf Pack ever since.
The Wolf Pack team has played every season since 1926. This makes them the oldest minor league hockey team in North America that has never missed a season. Only a few NHL teams are older than the Wolf Pack.
Team Information
Mascots
The Wolf Pack started with a mascot named Sonar, a wolf. His name fit the submarine theme of the team. Later, when the team changed to the Connecticut Whale, Sonar was joined by Pucky the Whale, who was the mascot for the old Hartford Whalers. When the team became the Wolf Pack again, Sonar returned as the main mascot.
Team Captains
The team has had many great leaders over the years. Here are some of the players who have been team captains:
- Ken Gernander, 1997–2005
- Craig Weller, 2005–2007
- Andrew Hutchinson, 2007–2008
- Greg Moore, 2008–2009
- Dane Byers, 2009–2010
- Wade Redden, 2011–2012
- Aaron Johnson, 2013–2014
- Ryan Bourque, 2015–2016
- Mat Bodie, 2016–2017
- Joe Whitney, 2017–2018
- Cole Schneider, 2018
- Steven Fogarty, 2019–2020
- Vincent LoVerde, 2021
- Jonny Brodzinski, 2021–2024
- Casey Fitzgerald, 2024–present
Retired Numbers
The Hartford Wolf Pack has honored one player by retiring his jersey number:
| No. | Player | Position | Career | No. retirement |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | Ken Gernander | RW | 1997–2005 | October 8, 2005 |
The team has also honored some former Hartford Whalers players by hanging their jerseys in the arena. These include Ulf Samuelsson (#5), Ron Francis (#10), and Kevin Dineen (#11). Their numbers are not officially retired by the Wolf Pack, but they are recognized.
AHL Hall of Famers
Some people connected to the Wolf Pack have been inducted into the AHL Hall of Fame for their amazing contributions to hockey:
| Name | Seasons | Induction Year |
|---|---|---|
| Ken Gernander | 1997-2005 (player) 2005-07 (asst. coach) 2007-17 (head coach) |
2013 |
| Jean-Francois Labbe | 1998-2001 (player) | 2016 |
| John Paddock | 1999-2002 (head coach) | 2010 |
| Brad Smyth | 1997-2002, 2005-06 (player) | 2019 |
Notable Players
Many players who played for the Hartford Wolf Pack also went on to play at least 100 games in the National Hockey League (NHL). Here are some of them:
- Artem Anisimov
- Derek Armstrong
- Drew Bannister
- Matt Beleskey
- Jonny Brodzinski
- Jason Dawe
- Nigel Dawes
- Dan Girardi
- Ryan Graves
- Micheal Haley
- Chad Johnson
- Jason LaBarbera
- Tomas Kloucek
- Lauri Korpikoski
- Oscar Lindberg
- Jamie Lundmark
- J. T. Miller
- Al Montoya
- Dominic Moore
- Mike Mottau
- Garth Murray
- P. A. Parenteau
- Corey Potter
- Dale Purinton
- Tom Pyatt
- Wade Redden
- Michael Sauer
- P.J. Stock
- Cam Talbot
- Brent Thompson
- Dale Weise
- Craig Weller
Team Records
Here are some of the best records set by Hartford Wolf Pack players:
- Single Season Records
- Goals: 50, Brad Smyth (2000–01 season)
- Assists: 69, Derek Armstrong (2000–01 season)
- Points: 101, Derek Armstrong (2000–01 season)
- Penalty Minutes: 415, Dale Purinton (1999–2000 season)
- Goals Against Average (GAA): 1.59, Jason LaBarbera (2003–04 season)
- Save Percentage (SV%): .936, Jason LaBarbera (2003–04 season)
- Shutouts: 13, Jason LaBarbera (2003–04 season)
- Goaltending Wins: 34, Jason LaBarbera (2003–04 season)
- Career Records
- Goals: 184, Brad Smyth
- Assists: 204, Derek Armstrong
- Points: 365, Brad Smyth
- Penalty Minutes: 1240, Dale Purinton
- Shutouts: 21, Jason LaBarbera
- Goaltending Wins: 91, Jason LaBarbera
- Games Played: 599, Ken Gernander
See also
In Spanish: Connecticut Whale para niños
