By Bruce Berlet

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – After allowing a team season-high seven goals-against in a 7-3 home loss to the Hamilton Bulldogs on Friday, the Connecticut Whale improved all facets of their game in a 5-1 road victory over the Springfield Falcons on Saturday night before 6,232 at the MassMutual Center.

Goalie Chad Johnson, pulled after allowing three goals on six shots in the loss to Hamilton, denied Chris D’Alvise’s semi-breakaway and rebound at 45 seconds after allowing two goals on the first two shots Friday night.

While Johnson was bouncing back with 35 saves, Evgeny Grachev notched his first hat trick and Devin DiDiomete his first two-goal game as the Whale (22-17-2-5) improved to 2-1-1-1 against the Falcons (19-20-1-3), who lost their fifth game in six starts.

“Things like (Friday) night happens, there are going to be games like that, and I can’t worry about, just come out and battle and help the team win games, which is what I wanted to do tonight,” said Johnson, named the game’s No. 3 star. “I just played like (Friday night’s) game didn’t happen and played for today.

“I didn’t worry about what I did positive or negative from the previous day. It’s worrying about preparing for the next game, and that’s kind of what my focus was tonight. It’s important to get that first save. (Friday) night a guy came down, shot through some traffic and beat me, and they kind of had momentum off that. We knew we had to have a good first period, and that definitely meant me having good period, too, and making saves when I had to. There were some bouncing pucks, but you just have to follow through and be smooth and crisp. We got the two points, which is most important.”

Grachev put the Whale ahead to stay with two goals in 29 seconds late in a first period off a wrist shot to the top corner and strong move for a shot into an open net off a second assist from Tim Kennedy.

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“The hat trick was nice, but I want to thank my teammates who shared the moment with me and for sure my linemates (Kennedy and All-Star Jeremy Williams),” said Grachev, who has 11 of his 12 goals and five of his six assists since returning from the Rangers on Nov. 8. “Good teams find a way to come back after a tough night, and we did tonight. And good for Chad. He really came back after a tough night. He’s a pro and knows how to handle stuff. … The last few weeks here, I’ve played better and scored some goals.”

The Falcons nearly duplicated the Bulldogs on Friday night, but Johnson made a terrific stop on D’Alvise breaking down the slot at 45 seconds. Jeremy Williams then had a quality chance off a Wade Redden pass at 4:21, but Swedish rookie Gustaf Wesslau (14 saves) slid across to make the stop in his first appearance against the Whale.

The Whale then allowed only one shot on back-to-back Falcons power plays, but Johnson made an alert save with 8:04 left in the period on a screen shot by Kyle Wilson, reassigned to Springfield by the parent Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday.

Grachev then got his rapid-fire goals for a 2-0 Whale lead. On the Whale’s first power play, Del Zotto got the puck to Kennedy, who burst into the left circle and dropped a pass to Grachev, whose wrist shot beat Wesslau to the glove side with 5:50 left. It extended Grachev’s goal-scoring streak to three games, tying the team high this season.

Off the ensuing faceoff, Kennedy’s bad-angle shot deflected off Falcons defenseman David Savard to Grachev, who picked up the loose puck and it into an open net with 5:21 to go, enabling the Whale to shoot .333 in the first period (2-for-6).

Chris McKelvie, recalled from Greenville of the ECHL on Thursday, nearly gave the Whale a 3-0 lead at 3:48 of the second period, but Wesslau slid across to deny his backhander.

But the Whale did take a three-goal lead at 10:48 off some real hustle work by the line of DiDiomete, Ryan Garlock and Bretton Cameron, signed to a Professional Tryout agreement earlier in the day from the Stockton Thunder of the ECHL. Strong forechecking led to DiDiomete banging in the rebound of Cameron’s shot from 25 feet in the slot at 10:48.

The Falcons got only one shot in the opening 16:23 of the second period, but it was a wraparound goal by Wilson, who had raced down the left wing and got a step on Whale defenseman Jared Nightingale.

Johnson kept the Whale ahead with a nifty right pad stop on Wilson off a pass from Tom Sestito with 3:10 left in the period. Wesslau then made the save of the game to keep the Falcons in the game with 17.7 seconds to go as he denied a wide-open Kennedy from 15 feet in the slot off a brilliant behind-the-back pass from Grachev.

But the Whale got lax in the final seconds of the period, and Johnson was alert to deny Wilson off a pass from Byers, acquired Nov. 8 for wing Chad Kolarik, who was called up by the Rangers on Thursday.

The Falcons got their fourth power play early in the third period, but Johnson made bang-bang saves on Sestito’s shot from the right circle and Wilson’s rebound at 1:28. Johnson then stopped Wilson out of the right corner at 4:29 and D’Alvise off the left wing on a 2-on-1 at 5:06.

Trevor Frischmon drew a goaltender interference penalty for running Johnson at 6:10, but the Whale goalie stayed in and made good stops on Byers and Wilson during the Falcons’ fifth power play.

DiDiomete got his first two-goal game into an empty net with 1:13 left, and Grachev completed his first pro hat trick off a pass from Jeremy Williams with 49.6 seconds to go.

“Everyone recognized who had the tough nights (Friday) night, and the good thing to see was the guys in the room and on the bench acknowledge one another for their ability to come back or the desire to improve upon (Friday) night, which are good signs from team perspective,” Whale coach Ken Gernander said. “I thought there were a lot of good bounce back efforts by a number of people, starting with Chad, who made the big stops early and again in the third when it was 3-1.

“I didn’t show them any film, just addressed one or two individual plays that had a recurring theme. Chad made some good saves, the defense broke up some really good opportunities with plays net-front and active sticks, and I don’t think we allowed as many opportunities via special teams, turnovers, little things like that. Everything was better tonight. And the message is no different (Saturday night) than (Friday) night. There are opportunities for guys for an increase in responsibility and role. The onus is on the guys to take advantage of it.”

DiDiomete led that category as he came within inches of his first pro trick during a last-minute power play that he wouldn’t have been on if so many players hadn’t been called up.

“Anytime guys get called up or there are injuries, I’ll have an increased role on the team, and it’s nice that (Gernander) trusts me to put me on the ice in situations like that (at the end),” said DiDiomete, who doubled his goal output for the season. “It’s good to be contributing after (Friday) night obviously was not a good game for us.  (Johnson) was definitely our best player. He played really well. We needed him, and he was there for us.”

WHALE SIGNS CAMERON TO PTO

Cameron was signed to a professional tryout contract to give the Whale 12 forwards with five on recall to the Rangers. Cameron, who was in Whale training camp, had a team-high 13 goals, 10 assists and was plus-10 in 29 games with the Stockton Thunder of the ECHL. Last season, Cameron had a team-high 40 goals and 27 assists in 68 games with Medicine Hat Tigers of the Western Hockey League. The Whale again went with seven defensemen, but Jyri Niemi played at left wing alongside McKelvie and Oren Eizenman. The Whale scratched wing Chris Chappell, recalled from Greenville of the ECHL on Thursday, and injured goalie Cameron Talbot and center Todd White.

… One of backup goalie Pier-Olivier Pelletier’s teammates with Laredo of the CHL before he signed a PTO with the Whale on Wednesday was Aaron Boogaard, younger brother of Rangers wing Derek Boogaard. Both are enforcers and own a hockey fighting camp that they do in the summers to teach would-be enforcers how in protect themselves. Derek is one of seven Rangers forwards to be sidelined for significant time this season and why five Whale forwards have been called up. The latest, wing Brodie Dupont, made his NHL debut Saturday against the Atlanta Thrashers on a line with call-up center Kris Newbury and captain/Trumbull native Chris Drury. Dupont replaced Dale Weise, a healthy scratch.

… Wilson made his Falcons debut after being sent down by the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday. Wilson, 26, had four goals and seven assists in 31 games with the Blue Jackets after being a free-agent signing on July 2. He played the past three seasons in the Washington Capitals organization and has four goals and nine assists in 31 NHL games with the Capitals and Blue Jackets. The Falcons scratched Tyler Murovich and injured Mike Blunden, Mike Commodore, Tomas Kana, Kyle Neuber, Michael Ratchuk, Nikita Filatov, Chris Francis and Trevor Smith, who had two goals in three games with Springfield before sustaining a foot injury.

POMPEA SEES FIRST FALCONS CAME AS OWNER

Charles Pompea became the Falcons’ majority owner on Dec. 21. He has undergraduate and Masters degrees from the University of New Haven and used to watch the New Haven Blades. He now spends his summers in Old Saybrook and winters in Jupiter, Fla. He got seriously interested in buying into the Falcons on Oct. 10, when he played in a charity golf tournament with longtime team official Bruce Landon, a former goalie with the New England Whalers who remained president and general manager.

“I met Bruce two years ago, and then we played in a tournament, and I didn’t believe what they said,” said Pompea, a retired steel executive. “The team wasn’t doing very well, but I saw how loyal the fans were. I said this is one of the lowest-drawing fan bases in the AHL, so if we could give them a little excitement and show people how much fun they can have at one of these games, I think we can fill this place up or get 4-5,000 people a game.”

TIP-A-PLAYER DINNER SUNDAY

The Whale’s eighth Tip-A-Player Dinner and Sports Carnival, presented by Aetna, is at the XL Center on Sunday from 4-7 p.m.

Dinner provided by area restaurants will be served by the Whale players, who will be available for autographs and pictures and competing for “tips” to benefit Gaylord Specialty Healthcare at Gaylord Hospital in Wallingford. The event also will include a silent auction and inflatables and games in a carnival setting.

Tickets are $30 for adults and $20 for children, and walk-ins are welcome. For more information, visit www.ctwhale.com.

WHALERS-BRUINS LEGENDS FACE OFF ON FEB. 19

Hall of Fame defensemen Brian Leetch, a Cheshire native, and Brad Park headline the Bruins legends team that will play against the Whalers legends Feb. 19 at 4 p.m. before the Whale faces the Providence Bruins at 7 p.m. The doubleheader is part of the “Harvest-Properties.com Whalers Hockey Fest” on Feb. 11-23 at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, where construction of the rink began Monday. In case of bad weather, the Whale-Bruins game will be played Feb. 20 at the XL Center.

Park also will make a special appearance Saturday night before the Whale hosts the Portland Pirates and former Whalers star Kevin Dineen. Park will meet and greet fans and sign autographs in the XL Center atrium from 6-7 p.m. and then drop the ceremonial first puck.

Other early commitments for the Bruins team are former captain Rick Middleton, who played 12 season in Beantown and two with the Rangers, Reggie Lemelin, Ken Hodge, Don Marcotte, Rick Smith, Bob Sweeney, Lyndon Byers, Cleon Daskalakis, Jay Miller, Bob Miller (no relation) and Ken “The Rat” Linseman, who was a member of the Whalers as he passed through in a multi-player trade with Philadelphia and Edmonton that included Mark Howe leaving Hartford for the Flyers. Early commitments for the Whalers team are WHA Hall of Famer Andre Lacroix, former captain Russ Anderson, Blaine Stoughton, Garry Swain, Bob Crawford, Chris Kotsopoulos, Jim Dorey, Jordy Douglas, Ray Neufeld, Gordie Roberts, Darren Turcotte, Nelson Emerson, Mark Janssens, Bill Bennett, Jeff Brubaker, Norm Barnes and the Babych brothers, Dave and Wayne. Emile “The Cat” Francis, a coach and general manager with the Rangers and Whalers, will be back behind the bench again.

Celebrities scheduled to play with one of the legends teams include Michael Keaton, Alan Thicke and David E. Kelley, son of New England and Hartford Whalers coach and general manager Jack Kelley and the writer of the 1999 hit film “Mystery, Alaska,” which was produced by Whalers Sports and Entertainment president and CEO Howard Baldwin and his wife, Karen. “Mystery, Alaska” cast members slated to appear are Michael Buie, Scott Richard Grimes, Jason Gray-Stanford, Kevin Durand, Fred J. Dukes and Cameron Bancroft, along with Neal McDonough, Kevin Zegers and the Hanson brothers – Steve, Jeff and Dave –  who were the comedic linchpins of the classic movie “Slap Shot.”

Tickets ($20 to $85) for the doubleheader can be purchased at Ticketmaster.com and the Bushnell box office in Hartford on Monday through Friday from noon to 5 p.m. or by calling the Whale at 860-728-3366. They also can be purchased online and printed immediately at Ticketmaster.com.

WHALE 5, FALCONS 1

Connecticut 2 1 2 – 5
Springfield 0 1 0 – 1

1st Period-1, Connecticut, Grachev 10 (Kennedy, Del Zotto), 14:10 (PP). 2, Connecticut, Grachev 11 (Williams, Kennedy), 14:39. Penalties-Bickel Ct (interference), 8:28; Kundratek Ct (hooking), 11:38; Mayorov Spr (goaltender interference), 13:57.

2nd Period-3, Connecticut, DiDiomete 4 (Cameron, Garlock), 10:48. 4, Springfield, Wilson 1   13:36. Penalties-Soryal Ct (holding), 6:36.

3rd Period-5, Connecticut, DiDiomete 5   18:47 (EN). 6, Connecticut, Grachev 12 (Williams), 19:10. Penalties-Bickel Ct (tripping), 0:14; Frischmon Spr (goaltender interference), 6:10; Del Zotto Ct (tripping), 8:03; Regner Spr (tripping), 19:29.

Shots on Goal-Connecticut 7-4-8-19. Springfield 10-7-16-33.
Power Play Opportunities-Connecticut 1 / 3; Springfield 0 / 5.
Goalies-Connecticut, Johnson 13-14-3 (36 shots-35 saves). Springfield, Wesslau 6-8-1 (18 shots-14 saves).
A-6,232
Referees-Geno Binda (22).
Linesmen-Chris Low (88), Frank Murphy (29).

For the second time this season, former Hartford Wolf Pack/CT Whale forward Mats Zuccarello won a game for the New York Rangers in a shootout. He had the only goal in the shootout to give the Rangers a 3-2 win over the Atlanta Thrashers on Saturday in Atlanta. It was his third shootout goal in as many tries this season.

In 33 games this season for the Wolf Pack/Whale, Zuccarello had 13 goals and 12 assists to go along with 16 penalty minutes.

HARTFORD, January 22, 2011: Connecticut Whale general manager Jim Schoenfeld announced today that the team has signed forward Bretton Cameron to a Professional Tryout (PTO) agreement.

Cameron, a rookie out of the Western Hockey League, comes to the Whale from the Stockton Thunder of the ECHL. In 29 games with the Thunder this season, the 5-11, 191-pound Cameron has scored a team-leading 13 goals and added 10 assists for 23 points, and has registered 56 penalty minutes. His plus/minus rating of +10 is tied for tops on the team, and Cameron is third on the Stockton club in points.

Last year with the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers, Cameron paced the team with 40 goals, and also had 27 assists for 67 points, along with 119 PIM, in 68 games. In 179 career games with the Tigers over five seasons, the 21-year-old Didsbury, Alberta native totaled 62 goals and 58 assists for 120 points, plus 261 PIM.

The Whale are back in action tonight, traveling to Springfield to take on the Falcons in a 7:30 PM game (WTIC HD-2, www.ctwhale.com, www.wtic.com). Connecticut’s next home game is this Tuesday night, January 25 against the Providence Bruins at 7:00.

Tickets for all 2010-11 Whale home games are available now at the XL Center box office, through Ticketmaster Charge-by-Phone at 1-800-745-3000 and on-line at www.ctwhale.com. Tickets start at $7 each at the XL Center ticket office on game day.

For information on Whale ticket packages, group sales and VIP packages, call (860) 728-3366.

By Bruce Berlet

HARTFORD, Conn. – The Hamilton Bulldogs scored on three of their first six shots in the opening 6:02, and then netted the last four goals of the game, in a 7-3 victory over the Connecticut Whale before 6,018 at the XL Center on Friday night.

The Whale (21-17-2-5) rallied from the early deficit to tie on Jason Williams’ 5-on-3 goal 31 seconds into the second period. But the Bulldogs would then score four times in the game’s final 21:58.

Coach Ken Gernander wasn’t about to use having six players, including five forwards, on call-ups to the parent New York Rangers as an excuse.

“This left a bad taste in our mouths,” Gernander said. “I’m a lot disappointed in our start. On the three goals, there were a lot of mistakes, and there were quite a few guys who weren’t ready right from the get-go. When our margin for error is pretty slim right now, you can’t afford that.

“I’m not going to single anybody out, but I was definitely upset with some of the goals and some of our guys’ play. I’m not happy with our team game and obviously our team defense when you give up seven. We’re a better defending team than that, and if there’s any person who’s going to be singled out, I think it was pretty poor from start to finish.”

Gernander also hasn’t happy with some of the Whale’s penalties, which led to an early 5-on-3 on which Brendon Nash produced a 3-0 lead and goaltender Chad Johnson’s quick exit in favor of Pier-Olivier Pelletier, who signed a professional tryout contract on Wednesday after being 6-9-4 with a 3.33 goals-against average in 21 games with Laredo of the Central Hockey League.

Was Gernander’s quick hook because of Johnson or the team?

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“Both. Both,” Gernander said. “I didn’t like the first two goals, and the third was a 5-on-3. It was a pretty tough game for Pelletier. I thought he did all right for a bit, and then their chances started to come at the end. I’m not going to be as judgmental or critical of his game as Chad because he’s been around all season with us.

“I don’t know what effect the first goal had, but we’ve been a pretty resilient bunch and battled back with some good special teams goals. But when you’re not 100 percent mentally engaged, it kind of lapses. You gather it back in because there’s going to be repercussions if you keep playing like that. We battled back, but then it goes again. There’s a lot of room for improvement, a lot of things that were less than acceptable.”

But having the Rangers’ roster now include defenseman Ryan McDonagh and forwards Mats Zuccarello, Dale Weise, Kris Newbury, Chad Kolarik and Brodie Dupont, scheduled to make his NHL debut Saturday, wasn’t in Gernander’s mind.

“We’re not asking guys to reinvent themselves or create a new game for themselves overnight,” Gernander said. “For the most part, everybody has been here, everybody knows the system, so I think they should just be able to adhere to what we’re asking them to do, play within themselves the best they can, win your one-on-one battles, make sound decisions with the puck. They might sound rather trivial, but that’s all that was asked of them.”

Hamilton coach Randy Cunneyworth, who played five seasons with the Hartford Whalers, said adhering to the system is why the Bulldogs (25-13-1-4) have been able to win four in a row after losing their top two scorers, All-Stars David Desharnais (10 goals, 35 assists) and former New Canaan High and Taft School-Watertown standout Max Pacioretty (17, 15), on recalls to the Montreal Canadiens.

“We’ve had some changes, but what is great about the guys is they’ve bought into the system,” Cunneyworth, whose team beat Rochester 7-0 in its previous outing Tuesday. “They’ve seen how seamlessly guys a few years ahead of them have gone up and worked into Montreal’s system. I think they envision themselves doing the same thing in due time, and that’s really what it’s all about.”

The Whale fell behind 3-0 in the opening 6:02, when the Bulldogs’ Hunter Bishop, Aaron Palushaj and Nash scored on six shots, causing the quick departure of Johnson.

Just 1:40 into the game, Bishop took a drop pass from Gabriel Dumont and beat Johnson high to the stick side. Then on the Bulldogs’ first power play, Nash passed to Palushaj, who got around Whale defenseman Michael Del Zotto and flipped a backhander that trickled in through Johnson’s legs at 3:05. The Bulldogs completed their early burst on a 5-on-3 as Ben Maxwell found Nash in the left circle at 6:02 for a 3-0 lead.

Johnson was pulled in favor of Pelletier, signed to a PTO as a replacement for Cameron Talbot, who sustained high ankle sprain in a 6-3 victory over the league-leading Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on Sunday.

The Whale quickly responded as Ryan Garlock raced down right wing and flipped a seemingly harmless backhander from the goal line extended that somehow got between All-Star goalie Curtis Stanford and the post 49 seconds after Pelletier appeared. The goal ended a 128:31 shutout streak for the veteran Sanford, who came in off back-to-back 22-save shutouts that had lowered his league-leading goals-against average and save percentage to 1.67 and .940.

The Whale got to 3-2 at 14:48 on a 5-on-3 when Evgeny Grachev converted the rebound of a shot by Tim Kennedy, who had peeled himself off the ice after being crosschecked into the boards by Brett Festerling without a penalty being called.

The Whale nearly tied it on their next power play, but Stanford made stellar stops on Jason Williams’ deflection and Garlock’s rebound. On an ensuing Bulldogs rush, Pelletier stopped Dany Masse, but referee Mark Lemelin awarded Masse a penalty shot because of a hook on Tomas Kundratek with 3:29 left. But Pelletier stopped Masse’s shot to keep it a 3-2 game.

“Pelletier’s stop was a rallying point for a window of time,” Gernander said, “but it didn’t sustain us through the course of the game.”

The Whale got a golden opportunity to get even or take the lead when Dumont slammed Devin DiDiomete into the boards, earning a 5-minute major and game misconduct with 3:02 left. Chris McKelvie, recalled from Greenville of the ECHL on Thursday, came to the defense of DiDiomete and got two minutes for roughing and five minutes for fighting.

All-Star right wing Jeremy Williams hit the crossbar with 29 seconds left in the period, but the Whale tied it 31 seconds into the second period as Wade Redden rushed into the offensive zone and dropped a pass to Jason Williams, who beat Sanford to the stick side.

The Whale then had two good chances to take their first lead, but Sanford denied Kennedy in the slot and Jason Williams off the wing. Then at 6:28, Jeremy Williams hit the post.

The Bulldogs nearly regained the lead with 4:04 left in the period, but Pelletier stopped Palushaj’s one-timer and Alexander Avtsin’s rebound. After Sanford robbed Grachev coming out of the right corner, the Bulldogs reclaimed the lead for good when Avtsin found a wide-open J.T. Wyman in front for an easy finish with 1:58 left in the period.

The Bulldogs again displayed their quick striking power with three goals in 5:58 to start the third period.

Masse got inside of Del Zotto and deflected Alex Henry’s shot past Pelletier at 1:03 for his first goal of the season, then the Bulldogs got their second 5-on-3 goal when Ben Maxwell beat Pelletier high to the glove side at 5:20. Then at 7:01, Maxwell deflected in Palushaj’ shot.

Garlock also said missing six players was no excuse for such an effort, which should improve at Springfield Saturday night.

“We had a real good week of practice,” Garlock said. “Maybe there were guys playing in positions they’re not used to, but everybody has to look at it as an opportunity, and we’re all going to have the same opportunity (Saturday) night. It’s an opportunity that guys might wait for all year, myself included. I’m loving all these minutes I’ve been getting, and I know a lot of guys who are feeling the same way.

“We still have a lot of good players in the locker room who are more than capable of winning a lot of games. They’re a team that we don’t see often. We know they’re a real good team, and we just had a few lapses that ended up costing us.”

REDDEN, NIEMI RETURN FOR WHALE

Redden and rookie Jyri Niemi rejoined the Whale defensive corps after missing seven and three games, respectively, with injuries. Redden started the game paired with Jared Nightingale, a new alternate captain since Kris Newbury was called up by the Rangers. Niemi split playing the point on the power play and regular shifts with different partners. The Whale’s only scratches were injured goalie Cameron Talbot and center Todd White. … The Bulldogs, coached by former Hartford Whalers wing Randy Cunneyworth and defenseman/captain Randy Ladouceur, scratched forwards Andrew Conboy, Olivier Fortier and Ian Schultz. … The AHL announced Grand Rapids Griffins forward Ilari Filppula and Peoria Rivermen forward T.J. Hensick have been added to the Western Conference roster for AHL All-Star Classic on Jan. 30-31 at the Giant Center in Hershey, Pa. They replace Bulldogs leading scorers Desharnais and Max Pacioretty. … The Whale’s eighth Tip-A-Player Dinner and Sports Carnival, presented by Aetna, is at the XL Center on Sunday from 4-7 p.m. Dinner provided by area restaurants will be served by the Whale players, who will be available for autographs and pictures and competing for “tips” to benefit Gaylord Specialty Healthcare at Gaylord Hospital in Wallingford. The event also will include a silent auction and inflatables and games in a carnival setting. Tickets are $30 for adults and $20 for children, and walk-ins are welcome. For more information, go to the Whale’s official website, www.ctwhale.com.

VIRTUE, HALL RETURN ‘HOME’

Brittany Quish of Bristol had a keepsake special for Terry Virtue and Todd Hall to sign: their pictures on Page 37 of the Hartford Wolf Pack’s fifth anniversary program.

“Which one is which?” said Quish, a longtime Wolf Pack fan.

“I’m the good-looking one,” offered the always impish Virtue.

Turns out Hall was the clean-shaven guy and Virtue had a beard, which resembles the goatee he now wears while an assistant coach of the Ontario Hockey League’s Owen Sound Attack, whose owners include former Hartford Whalers right wing Paul MacDermid.

“It’s scary looking at these old-time pictures,” a smiling Hall said of a photo of him wearing No. 6 in 1997-98 before having No. 19 during his last three seasons.

Hall, an assistant coach with the third-ranked Hamden High hockey team that won the state Division I title the last two years, scored the winning goal in the Wolf Pack’s 4-1 victory over the Rochester Americans in Game 6 of the Calder Cup finals in 2000.

Virtue and Hall were close friends and members of the championship team who were in the XL Center atrium before the game sharing stories and jokes with fans while signing autographs prior to dropping the ceremonial first puck.

Virtue scored the most famous goal in franchise history, an overtime tally in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals that beat Providence and got the Wolf Pack to the finals. One young fan told Virtue that he had just seen a replay of the game, which brought a smile to the former defenseman’s face.

“It’s nice that some of the folks still remember me,” said Virtue, who helped the Wolf Pack win the Calder Cup the year after he did likewise with the Providence Bruins. “I have a goatee like the one on my bobble head with Worcester, and I think I had one at times in Hartford.”

After a game against Barrie on Thursday night, Virtue and his wife and son drove through a blizzard to Rochester, N.Y., stayed overnight and then proceeded to Hartford on Saturday morning. His son, Brayden, wants to see St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center in Hartford, where he was born, on Saturday, his 10^th birthday, before the family heads for Worcester, Mass., where Virtue will be one of the first six inductees into the Worcester Hockey Hall of Fame on Saturday night at the DCU Center. It’s “Salute to the IceCats Night,” the name of the AHL franchise that preceded the Sharks in Worcester, and Virtue will be inducted with former Whalers wing Scott Young, Kelly O’Leary, Eddie Bates, Larz Anderson and Marvin Degon Sr., father of former Wolf Pack defenseman Martin Degon. … The Whale announced Hall of Fame defenseman Brad Park, who played for the Rangers and Boston Bruins, would be making a special appearance for a Jan. 29 game against the Portland Pirates, coached by former Whalers star and captain Kevin Dineen. Park will greet fans and sign autographs in the XL Center atrium from 6-7 p.m. before dropping the first puck. He also will be playing in the Whalers-Bruins legends game Feb. 19 at 4 p.m. at Rentschler Field in East Hartford as part of the “Harvest-Properties.com Whale Bowl.” That game will be followed by the Whale-Providence Bruins game at 7 p.m.

FORMER WHALERS ARE EVERYWHERE

The Bulldogs are coached by former Hartford Whalers defenseman Randy Cunneyworth and his assistant, former captain/defenseman Randy Ladouceur. Cunneyworth previously coached the Bulldogs and Rochester Americans and was an assistant with the NHL’s Atlanta Thrashers. Ladouceur previously was an assistant with the Whalers and Carolina Hurricanes, the head coach of the Ontario Hockey League’s Oshawa Generals and an assistant with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Whale faced two former Whalers a day after their parent club, the New York Rangers, lost 4-1 to the Carolina Hurricanes, who are coached by former Whalers coach Paul Maurice and Hall of Famer Ron Francis, who holds virtually every Whalers offensive records.

KOLARIK GETS POINT IN RANGERS DEBUT

Wing Chad Kolarik picked right up where he left off in his New York Rangers debut Thursday night against the Carolina Hurricanes. Kolarik had the primary assist on Brandon Prust’s goal in a 4-1 loss. Defenseman Ryan McDonagh, called up from the Whale on Jan. 3, also got his first NHL point with the secondary assist. It was the first time two players recorded their first NHL point on the same goal since Nov. 28, 2009, when Edmonton’s Colin McDonald, a Wethersfield native and son of former Hartford Whalers defenseman Gerry McDonald, scored on an assist from Ryan O’Marra at Vancouver.

Kolarik had four shots in his first game since he had two shorthanded goals and two assists in the first period of the Whale’s 6-3 victory over the league-leading Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on Sunday. He set a franchise record for shorthanded goals in a period and tied a team record for shorthanded goals in a game and points in a period. McDonagh has had a plus or even rating in seven of his eight NHL games, recording a plus-7 in that span.

“I’d much rather get a win,” Kolarik told reporters after the game.

Ditto for McDonagh.

“I’d definitely trade it for a win, any day of the week,” McDonagh said. “It’s cool, in and of itself, getting your first milestone, your first point. It’s nice, I guess, but I’d rather get a win – especially against these guys. They’re close, right behind us.”

The Hurricanes, in ninth place in the Eastern Conference, closed to within five points of the Rangers, who are in sixth with 57 points. Carolina has played two fewer games than the Blueshirts, who play Saturday night in Atlanta, where the eighth-place Thrashers trail them by three points after getting a point in a shootout loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday night.

The Rangers would have had a much better chance if they counted fights. Prust and Kris Newbury, one of four Whale players on recall, scored unanimous decisions over Jay Harrison and Ryan Carter. Newbury and Kolarik each played 8:48, tying for the lowest total on the Rangers, but they were the two players who most impressed coach John Tortorella. Newbury and Kolarik started on a line with Dale Weise, who is on his second recall from the Whale. Kolarik later replaced captain/Trumbull native Chris Drury on a line with Prust and Brian Boyle, arguably the most improved player in the NHL. Wing Mats Zuccarello played with rookie center Derek Stepan and newcomer Wojtek Wolski.

Wing Brodie Dupont was a healthy scratch after being called up for the first time in his four years in the Rangers organization on Wednesday night. But he had another classic call-up tale. He was at the movies Wednesday night watching “The Dilemma” and could not feel his cell phone vibrating in the pocket of his hoodie. The Rangers finally reached him through his girlfriend, and Dupont caught a 6:45 a.m. flight to Raleigh, N.C. He warmed up for Thursday’s game but didn’t play.

“We have to teach the young players,” Tortorella said. “There are maybe slight differences as far as where they were playing with the minor-league team and us. But it’s not going to change our style. We’ve always tried to defend first. I thought we were sloppy, and it really started with some of our better players. So we have some work to do there, though I liked some of the offense we got going. But we can’t run and gun. We’re not going to run and gun.

“I like Newbury. I like Kolarik. He’s going to get an opportunity. Newbury is going to get an opportunity. Weise has done a pretty good job. Newbury and Kolarik are going to stay in the lineup. Not sure with Dale. We might try Brodie. Again, Dale hasn’t done anything wrong, but I also want to look at Dupont maybe in a role and see where that goes.”

Dupont’s NHL debut during the Rangers’ hectic pre-All-Star stretch of five games in seven days could come Saturday night in Atlanta or Monday night in Washington.

FALCONS FREE OF FORMER TEAMMATE

The Whale visits the Falcons on Saturday night at 7:30 in the latest edition of the always intriguing I-91 series. The Whale is 1-1-1-1 against the Falcons (19-20-1-3), their lone victory being 5-2 at the MassMutual Center in the teams’ last meeting on Nov. 19 as Kolarik got some revenge with two goals and an assist against his former team. It alleviated the angst that Kolarik felt after former Wolf Pack left wing and captain Dane Byers, the man for whom Kolarik was traded eight days earlier, set up the tying goal and scored the clinching shootout goal to give the Falcons a 4-3 victory.

Despite his trade, Kolarik remained popular among his former teammates, many of whom stopped to say hi and offer congratulations as he waited outside his old locker room.

Kolarik has 13 goals, 10 assists and is plus-6 in 25 games since the trade despite being injured for two games.

“I missed a few games, but I’ve actually felt better since I’ve got back (on Jan. 7),” Kolarik said. “If you look at the (five) games that I’ve played since I got back, it’s been a struggle to put up points for myself and we haven’t done that well since I’ve been back (no points and 1-3 until Sunday), but I’ve been getting the chances. I was talking to (Whale play-by-play man Bob Crawford) before the game and he’s like, ‘It’s good that I’m calling your name a lot.’

“It’s a little frustrating, but my feet felt good, the mental side of my game was good and I think the (five) days off might have helped me a little. Things went my way and things went our way (Sunday), so that’s good.”

But not before overcoming a common malady for talented goal-scorers who are barely missing the net instead of burying their chances.

“You grip the stick a little bit tighter,” Kolarik said with a smile. “It’s like squeezing stuff out of a banana.”

But Kolarik squeezed the stuffing out of the AHL’s top team, who came to town on a seven-game winning streak and with a staggering 32-8-0-0 record in the first half of the season.

The Falcons, who ended a four-game losing streak with a 6-5 victory over Charlotte on Friday night, are led by center Trevor Smith (14 goals, 15 assists), who has two goals in four games since being acquired on Jan. 4 from the Anaheim Ducks for defenseman Nate Guenin, the Rangers’ fourth-round pick in 2002, right wing Tomas Kubalik (14, 13) and Byers (8, 17), who has five goals, 11 assists and is minus-2 in 30 games with Springfield. Rookie John Moore leads Falcons defensemen in scoring (2, 14) and will represent the team in the AHL All-Star Classic Jan. 30-31 at the Giant Center in Hershey, Pa. Former Wolf Pack goalie David LeNeveu (11-11-2, 3.00 goals-against average, .895 save percentage) is 3-1 against his former team, stopping 106 of 117 shots, including 84 of 90 in the third victories.

WHALERS-BRUINS LEGENDS FACE OFF ON FEB. 19

Park and fellow Hall of Fame defensemen Brian Leetch, a Cheshire native, headline the Bruins legends team that will play against the Hartford Whalers legends Feb. 19 at 4 p.m. before the Whale faces the Providence Bruins at 7 p.m. The doubleheader is part of the “Harvest-Properties.com Whalers Hockey Fest” on Feb. 11-23 at Rentschler Field in East Hartford, where construction of the rink began Monday. In case of bad weather, the Whale-Bruins game will be played Feb. 20 at the XL Center.

Other early commitments for the Bruins team are former captain Rick Middleton, who played 12 season in Beantown and two with the Rangers, Reggie Lemelin, Ken Hodge, Don Marcotte, Rick Smith, Bob Sweeney, Lyndon Byers, Cleon Daskalakis, Jay Miller, Bob Miller (no relation) and Ken “The Rat” Linseman, who was a member of the Whalers as he passed through in a multi-player trade with Philadelphia and Edmonton that included Mark Howe leaving Hartford for the Flyers. Early commitments for the Whalers team are WHA Hall of Famer Andre Lacroix, former captain Russ Anderson, Blaine Stoughton, Garry Swain, Bob Crawford, Chris Kotsopoulos, Jim Dorey, Jordy Douglas, Ray Neufeld, Gordie Roberts, Darren Turcotte, Nelson Emerson, Mark Janssens, Bill Bennett, Jeff Brubaker, Norm Barnes and the Babych brothers, Dave and Wayne. Emile “The Cat” Francis, a coach and general manager with the Rangers and Whalers, will be back behind the bench again.

Celebrities scheduled to play with one of the legends teams include Michael Keaton, Alan Thicke and David E. Kelley, son of New England and Hartford Whalers coach and general manager Jack Kelley and the writer of the 1999 hit film “Mystery, Alaska,” which was produced by Whalers Sports and Entertainment president and CEO Howard Baldwin and his wife, Karen. “Mystery, Alaska” cast members slated to appear are Michael Buie, Scott Richard Grimes, Jason Gray-Stanford, Kevin Durand, Fred J. Dukes and Cameron Bancroft, along with Neal McDonough, Kevin Zegers and the Hanson brothers – Steve, Jeff and Dave –  who were the comedic linchpins of the classic movie “Slap Shot.”

Tickets ($20 to $85) for the doubleheader can be purchased at Ticketmaster.com and the Bushnell box office in Hartford on Monday through Friday from noon to 5 p.m. or by calling the Whale at 860-728-3366. They also can be purchased online and printed immediately at Ticketmaster.com.

Bulldogs 7, Whale 3

Hamilton 3 1 3 – 7
Connecticut 2 1 0 – 3
1st Period-1, Hamilton, Bishop 1 (Dumont, Nash), 1:50. 2, Hamilton, Palushaj 7 (Nash, Sanford), 3:05 (PP). 3, Hamilton, Nash 3 (Maxwell, Klubertanz), 6:02 (PP). 4, Connecticut, Garlock 2 (Del Zotto), 6:51 (SH). 5, Connecticut, Grachev 9 (Kennedy, Del Zotto), 14:48 (PP). Penalties-Nightingale Ct (interference), 2:12; Bickel Ct (boarding), 4:33; Nightingale Ct (cross-checking), 5:41; St. Denis Ham (hooking), 11:16; Carle Ham (high-sticking), 13:25; Klubertanz Ham (cross-checking), 14:10; Dumont Ham (major – boarding, fighting, game misconduct – boarding), 16:58; McKelvie Ct (roughing, fighting), 16:58.

2nd Period-6, Connecticut, Williams 3 (Redden, Williams), 0:31 (PP). 7, Hamilton, Wyman 12 (Avtsin), 18:02. Penalties-Urquhart Ham (tripping), 5:22; Henry Ham (high-sticking), 12:37; Kundratek Ct (boarding), 14:47.

3rd Period-8, Hamilton, Masse 1 (Henry, Klubertanz), 1:03. 9, Hamilton, Maxwell 7 (Nash, Klubertanz), 5:20 (PP). 10, Hamilton, Maxwell 8 (Palushaj, Festerling), 7:01. Penalties-served by Chappell Ct (bench minor – too many men), 3:46; Garlock Ct (tripping), 3:46; Palushaj Ham (holding), 10:19; Bishop Ham (high-sticking), 13:27.

Shots on Goal-Hamilton 9-7-12-28. Connecticut 14-8-9-31.
Power Play Opportunities-Hamilton 3 / 6; Connecticut 2 / 9.
Goalies-Hamilton, Sanford 17-7-1 (31 shots-28 saves). Connecticut, Johnson 13-14-3 (6 shots-3 saves); Pelletier 0-1-0 (22 shots-18 saves).
A-6,018
Referees-Mark Lemelin (84).
Linesmen-Kevin Redding (16), Derek Wahl (46).