Hartford, CT. – The Utica Comets defeated the Hartford Wolf Pack by a score of 5-1 Sunday night at the XL Center.
Reid Boucher put the Comets up 1-0 at the 4:35 mark of the first period, blasting a loose puck past Alexander Georgiev. David Dziurzynski and Jalen Chatfield tallied the assists. The assist was Dziurzynski’s first point as a Comet. Boucher struck again with a power play marker with 5:59 to go in the first. Philip Holm and Michael Carcone picked up the assists.
Darren Archibald extended the lead to 3-0 with a power play strike of his own with 12:20 remaining in the middle frame. Carcone and Boucher had the assists.
Ryan Gropp cut the lead to 3-1 with a power play goal 12 minutes into the third period. Peter Holland and Neal Pionk were credited with the assists. Boucher netted the hat trick a minute later, tipping a shot from Dylan Blujus. It was the first Comets hat trick since March 13, 2016. Carcone notched the empty netter to secure the win. Dziurzynski had the lone assist.
Richard Bachman made 31 saves to improve his record to 3-7-2. Georgiev stopped 20 shots. His record falls to 4-10-5. The Comets power play went 2-6, while the penalty kill gave up one goal in six attempts.
The Comets are back in action Wednesday night as they take on the Laval Rocket. Puck drop at Place Bell is at 7:30 p.m. The game can be heard on 94.9 KROCK and viewed on AHL Live.
