Recap: Wolf Pack 5, Islanders 3
Apr 12, 2025
The Bridgeport Islanders (15-47-4-3), American Hockey League affiliate of the New York Islanders, stormed back from an early four-goal deficit on Saturday, but came up short in a 5-3 loss to the Hartford Wolf Pack (29-32-7-2) at Total Mortgage Arena.
Brian Pinho scored his team-leading 25th goal of the season, while Tyce Thompson and Alex Jefferies also lit the lamp. Marshall Warren logged two helpers for his third professional multi-point game. Hunter Miska (2-8-0) stopped 22 of the 26 shots he faced.
Noah Laba led Hartford’s offense with a goal and an assist, while Alex Belzile recorded the game winner on the power play. Dylan Roobroeck, Jake Leschyshyn, and Jackson Dorrington (empty net) also scored. Callum Tung (1-1-0) registered his first pro win, but left early in the second period with a lower-body injury. He made 11 saves on 12 shots in 21:19 of work.
BOX SCORE
Hartford got off to a hot start, potting three goals in the opening eight and a half minutes. Roobroeck made it 1-0 just 1:10 in after his cross-ice pass meant for Belzile hit an Islanders’ skate and redirected under Miska.
Laba swept Casey Fitzgerald's rebound behind Miska at the 5:52 mark to make it 2-0 before Leschyshyn tipped Connor Mackey’s chance from the blue line at 8:27, giving Hartford the early three-goal advantage.
At 17:14, Joey Larson was assessed a hooking penalty and Hartford capitalized 11 seconds later when Brendan Brisson fed the puck to Belzile, who got the better of Miska on a wrister for his sixth power-play goal.
Thompson put the Islanders on the board 26 seconds later with his eighth goal of the season, and his first in nine games. After Warren launched a wrist shot into Tung’s pads, Thompson recovered the rebound and flipped a backhand shot over Tung's left blocker to make it 4-1.
At 1:19 of the second period, Tung went to make a diving save on another lengthy shot from Warren and suffered an injury that caused him to exit the game. Talyn Boyko (no decision) entered in relief for Hartford and made 20 saves in the final 38:41.
The Islanders kept their momentum alive from Thompson’s goal, racking up two goals in a span of 1:04 early in the second. Warren sent a brilliant centering pass to Pinho at the doorstep, where he redirected home his 25th goal of the season from the side of the crease at 3:53. Shortly after, Jefferies gathered Liam Foudy’s pass down the right wing, skated through the circle, and beat Boyko at 4:53 to make it 4-3. It was Jefferies’ 12th goal of the year.
Bridgeport applied even heavier pressure through the rest of the second period and into the third, but couldn’t pull back even. Instead, Hartford clinched its victory with 21 seconds remaining when Dorrington scored into an empty net for his first professional goal.
Tempers boiled over following Dorrington’s goal which led to chaos in front of Hartford’s bench and 142 combined penalties minutes handed out in the final half minute.
Bridgeport’s power play went 0-for-4, while the penalty kill was 3-for-4.
Next Time Out: The Islanders face the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in their 2024-25 home finale tomorrow afternoon at 3 p.m. inside Total Mortgage Arena. It's "Fan Appreciation Weekend!" The game can be heard for free via the Bridgeport Islanders Radio Network or seen live on AHLTV on FloHockey, beginning with the Connecticut Lottery Pregame Countdown at 2:45 p.m.