Hartford Jr. Wolfpack
The Hartford Jr. Wolfpack were a junior ice hockey team that most recently played in the United States Premier Hockey League (USPHL). The team played their home games at the Champions Skating Center located in Cromwell, Connecticut.[1][2] From 2003 to 2017, the Jr. Wolfpack were members of the Eastern Hockey League (EHL) and its predecessor, the Atlantic Junior Hockey League (AJHL), while sanctioned as a Tier III junior team by USA Hockey before it joined the unsanctioned USPHL. The team was removed from the USPHL schedule at the beginning of the 2019–20 season.[3]
| Hartford Jr. Wolfpack | |
|---|---|
 | |
| City | Cromwell, Connecticut |
| League | USPHL-Premier |
| Division | Mid Atlantic |
| Founded | 2003 |
| Home arena | Champions Skating Center |
| Colors | Navy blue, red, white, silver |
| Owner(s) | Dan McCarthy Bob Crawford |
| General manager | Mike Tenney |
| Head coach | Mike Tenney |
| Franchise history | |
| 2003–2010 | Hartford Jr. Wolfpack |
| 2010–2013 | Connecticut Jr. Wolfpack |
| 2013–2019 | Hartford Jr. Wolfpack |
The organization also fielded a developmental team in the USPHL Elite Division as well as youth hockey select teams at the Midget U18, Midget 16U, Bantam, Peewee, and Squirt and other various levels.[4] The Elite team played in the former Tier III Junior B level Metropolitan Junior Hockey League until 2016.
From the 2010–11 to the 2012–13 season the Jr. Wolfpack changed their moniker from Hartford to Connecticut.
Season-by-season records
| Season | GP | W | L | T | OTL | Pts | GF | GA | Regular Season Finish | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atlantic Junior Hockey League | ||||||||||
| 2003–04 | No information | 1st of 6, AJHL[5] | Lost Semifinal game, 2–3 vs. Philadelphia Little Flyers[6] | |||||||
| 2004–05 | 41 | 9 | 27 | 0 | 5 | 23 | 112 | 193 | 4th of 4, North 8th of 8, AJHL | Did not qualify |
| 2005–06 | 42 | 20 | 19 | 0 | 3 | 43 | 137 | 170 | 6th of 11, AJHL | Won Quarterfinals, 2–1 vs. Northern Cyclones Lost Semifinal game, 4–7 vs. New York Bobcats |
| 2006–07 | 44 | 17 | 24 | 0 | 3 | 37 | 135 | 182 | 5th of 6, North 10th of 12, AJHL | |
| 2007–08 | 45 | 10 | 27 | 0 | 8 | 28 | 138 | 210 | 5th of 6, North 10th of 11, AJHL | |
| 2008–09 | 42 | 27 | 10 | 0 | 5 | 59 | 143 | 98 | 2nd of 6, North 3rd of 12, AJHL | |
| 2009–10 | 42 | 18 | 20 | 0 | 4 | 40 | 138 | 140 | 4th of 6, North 7th of 12, AJHL | |
| 2010–11 | 44 | 25 | 14 | 0 | 5 | 55 | 175 | 136 | 4th of 6, North 5th of 12, AJHL | |
| 2011–12 | 44 | 21 | 16 | 6 | 1 | 49 | 147 | 106 | 6th of 12, AJHL | |
| 2012–13 | 44 | 28 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 59 | 149 | 107 | 3rd of 12, AJHL | Won Quarterfinals, 2–0 vs. New York Bobcats Lost Semifinals, 0–2 vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Knights |
| Eastern Hockey League | ||||||||||
| 2013–14 | 44 | 20 | 16 | 4 | 4 | 48 | 125 | 121 | 3rd of 6, Central 7th of 17, EHL | Won Round 1, 2–0 vs. New Jersey Rockets Lost Quarterfinals, 0–2 vs. Philadelphia Little Flyers |
| 2014–15 | 44 | 24 | 17 | — | 3 | 51 | 167 | 133 | 4th of 5, Central 8th of 19, EHL | Won Round 1, 2–0 vs. Philadelphia Junior Flyers Lost Quarterfinals, 0–2 vs. Philadelphia Little Flyers |
| 2015–16 | 41 | 26 | 10 | — | 5 | 57 | 159 | 146 | 3rd of 9, South Conf. 5th of 18, EHL-Premier | Won First Round, 2–1 vs. Philadelphia Junior Flyers Lost Second Round, 0–2 vs. Connecticut Oilers |
| 2016–17 | 48 | 17 | 29 | — | 2 | 36 | 125 | 162 | 2nd of 4, Central Div. 6th of 8, South Conf. 14th of 17, EHL-Premier | Lost First Round, 0–2 vs. Philadelphia Junior Flyers |
| United States Premier Hockey League | ||||||||||
| 2017–18 | 44 | 10 | 33 | — | 1 | 21 | 117 | 221 | 8th of 9, Mid Atlantic Div. 40th of 44, USPHL-Premier | Lost First Round, 1–2 vs. New Jersey Rockets-Premier |
| 2018–19 | 44 | 11 | 31 | — | 2 | 24 | 108 | 198 | 7th of 7, North East Div. 45th of 52, USPHL-Premier | Did not qualify |
Alumni
The Jr. Wolfpack have produced a number of alumni playing in higher levels of junior hockey, NCAA Division I, Division III college and professional programs, including:[7]
- Rob Bellamy (drafted by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft) - Adirondack Phantoms (AHL)
- Kurt Reynolds - Basingstoke Bison (EIHL)
- Jordan Samuels-Thomas[8] (drafted by the Atlanta Thrashers in the 2009 NHL Entry Draft) - Ontario Reign (AHL)
References
- http://juniorhockeymagazine.com/publication/?i=26123&p=16
- http://www.jrwolfpack.com/juniora/about.php
- "Weekly Sports League and Franchise Report". OurSports Central. September 16, 2019.
- http://juniorhockeymagazine.com/publication/?i=28453&p=16
- "EHL History". EHL. Archived from the original on August 8, 2015. Retrieved September 3, 2015.
- https://web.archive.org/web/20040414042002/http://www.jrnats.com/
- http://hartfordjrwolfpack.com/pages/alumni.php?last=a
- "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-07-13. Retrieved 2010-06-07.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)