SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - The Springfield Thunderbirds (13-14-4-2) showed resilience and outlasted the Hartford Wolf Pack (11-16-4-1) for a 7-4 win on Friday night inside the MassMutual Center.

Offenses were quick to make statements in the opening period, with the T-Birds breaking the ice just 4:37 into the game. Alek Kaskimaki slipped into the middle of the ice after a neat criss-crossing play from Matt Luff and Hunter Skinner gave the winger space. With only Dylan Garand to beat, Kaskimaki made a perfect deke to the forehand and snapped it home for a 1-0 Springfield advantage.

Though Springfield's first man-advantage opportunity came up empty, their 5-on-5 attack found another tally as Michael Buchinger pulled the puck into a shooting position in the right-wing circle and snapped it through Garand at 10:25, making it a 2-0 lead for the home team.

However, the Wolf Pack, who were coming off a 2-for-3 power play performance on Saturday, responded swiftly as Bryce McConnell-Barker snapped a wrister through Vadim Zherenko at 12:49 to cut the Springfield lead in half, 2-1.

Less than two minutes later, a sloppy clearing attempt gifted Hartford an outnumbered attack, and defenseman Brandon Scanlin found space in the slot area and pushed a forehand attempt through Zherenko, tying the score, 2-2, at 14:16.

Still, Hartford was not content, and Kalle Vaisanen's second goal in the last two meetings against the T-Birds brought the Wolf Pack all the way to the lead with 3:07 left in the period. 

The Wolf Pack built up a two-goal lead of their own at 3:22 of the second as Brennan Othmann slipped a shot into the upper corner over Zherenko's glove to make it a 4-2 game after officials deemed the shot a goal after replay review.

The T-Birds pressed the issue but had not been able to break through against Garand as the game entered the final four minutes of the second. However, the tides changed when Dillon Dube was tripped on a clear path breakaway, resulting in the T-Birds' first penalty shot of the year. Dube cashed in, beating Garand low to the glove side, bringing Springfield back to a 4-3 margin at 17:05 of the third.

With the crowd firmly back in the game, captain Matthew Peca landed another key blow to the Wolf Pack when he snapped a right circle shot past Garand with 16.6 seconds remaining in the frame, sending the game into intermission tied, 4-4.

The two-goal spurt served as a springboard for the T-Birds as the third began. Kaskimaki got the Springfield power play on the board with a beautiful individual effort between two defenders before chipping a forehand over Garand at 2:50, restoring the T-Birds lead, 5-4.

Dylan Peterson got Springfield its fourth consecutive goal at 12:01, parking himself in the blue paint and ramming home a rebound off a Zach Dean shot, pushing the lead to 6-4. The T-Birds' penalty kill then preserved the lead with two successive kills, and Chris Wagner added his third shorthanded goal of the season into an empty net at 15:04.

The T-Birds, winners of four straight games inside the MassMutual Center, return to home ice on Saturday for their first Thunderdome matchup against Lehigh Valley - puck drop for Throwback Night is slated for 6:05 p.m.

Single-game tickets and ticket memberships for all remaining games in the Thunderbirds' 2025-26 season are available now - fans can order now by visiting www.SpringfieldThunderbirds.com or by calling (413) 739-GOAL (4625).