With Hartford dropping another game tonight, 2-9 in last 11, I wondered if the team's dip coincided with the Rangers calling up Johnny Brodinski.
Brodzinski was recalled on March 1. Since then the team has gone 4-10. The team scored 39 goals in those 14 games averaging 2.78 G/G and scoring 2 or fewer goals in 7 of the games. But the defense seems to have dropped off with the team giving up 53 goals or 3.78 or one goal more game than they score. In six of the losses the team has given up 4 or more goals including two 7 goal games and one 6 goal game.
That the team's decline in the absence of Brodzinski doesn't prove causation but I think the evidence suggests that causation is involved. Without Brodzinski the team has played Tanner Fritz, Patrick Khodorenko, Justin Richards and Mike O'Leary pretty consistently at center. Fritz is a solid AHL veteran and has scored 34 points in 55 games but probably is in over his head as the top line center. Khodorenko showed little last year and has followed up with a slightly better season this year but only has 21 points and 14 assists in 55 games. Last year Justin Richards showed himself to be a hard working player who is offensively challenged. This year the offense hasn't gotten any better with only 14 points including 8 assists in 56 games. But he has accumulated a mind blowing -26 in those games. I know that plus/minus has lots of problems but the next lowest +/- on the team was Anthony Bitetto at -11. Mike O'Leary is a hard working player but also offensively challenged with only 11 points including 5 assists in 52 games.
In 36 games, Brodzinski had 39 points. Admittedly he played with better wingers and got first team power play time but he still scored more points in 36 games than any two of Khodorenko, Richards or O'Leary scored in over 50 games apiece.
It seems more than a coincidence that Brodzinski moving to the Rangers has hurt the Pack given the lack of center depth on the team. Normally you wouldn't care that much but with the influx of the three forwards to the Rangers Brodzinski is spending time up in the press box rather than helping a floundering Hartford team and not helping the development of the kids.
Tonight, Gettinger and Lundqvist were out with day to day injuries but Justin Richards was a healthy scratch.
Nick Merkely was a big scorer before he came to the Pack but hasn't had much impact since arriving and Maxim Letunov was hardly an offensive juggernaut before coming to the Pack.
Maybe the team can turn things around but the trend is bad and there is little hope if your centers aren't generating any offense.
