HARTFORD, Conn – Taking one step back in hopes of making two forward is a familiar refrain.
Left wing Wojtek Wolski and defenseman Jeff Woywitka are hoping that theory works in their quests to get more ice time with the New York Rangers or another NHL team.
Wolski and Woywitka accepted requests from the Rangers on Thursday for two-week conditioning assignments with the Connecticut Whale and then helped beat Albany and Hershey to end an 11-game winless streak (0-6-2-3) since the start of 2012 and gain a share of the Atlantic Division lead with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, whose 11-game point streak (10-0-0-1) ended with a 3-2 loss to Manchester on Saturday night.
Goalie Chad Johnson was stout in both games, stopping 59 of 62 shots, and left wing Tommy Grant had his first two-goal game as a pro and new center Casey Wellman chipped in an assist in a 4-1 victory at Hershey while on a line with All-Star Jonathan Audy-Marchessault and rugged Andre Deveaux. Wellman, who played two years at UMass, was acquired from the Minnesota Wild on Thursday for center Erik Christensen, who had a conditioning stint with the Whale from Jan. 11 to 23, and a conditional seventh-round pick in 2013. Wellman’s father, Brad, was an infielder who played 441 games over eight seasons with the San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Dodgers and Kansas City Royals in the 1980s, and his uncle, Tom Candiotti, is a former major leaguer noted for his knuckleball.
Wolski scored the winner in a 3-2 victory over Albany off a nifty give-and-go with All-Star Mats Zuccarello while on a line with Whale leading scorer Kris Newbury (17 goals, 24 assists). Wolski, 25, who is in the final year of a two-year, $7.6 million deal signed with the Phoenix Coyotes on June 28, 2010, had played in only nine games with the Rangers and was a healthy scratch the previous six since Jan. 15 after playing just three games following a return from injury. The Rangers acquired Wolski from the Coyotes for defenseman Michal Rozsival on Jan. 10, 2011.
“It’s the best thing for them,” Ranger head coach John Tortorella said of the conditioning stints. “Because if they do get an opportunity, or if we sit to make a change, or if there is an injury – you can bag skate them until the cows come home, it doesn’t help them – they need to play. We had to get their permission, and it was seamless. They wanted to go do it, and that’s a good sign.”
Continued solid play in Hartford could help Wolski crack the lineup of the NHL’s top team or get ice time elsewhere. But playing anywhere now is the only way to achieve one of those goals.
“The guys had been having a tough time – 11 in a row (without a win) is a long time – and I just wanted to come down, work hard and get back to feeling like myself again,” Wolski said. “I didn’t feel any butterflies, just felt kind of exhausted because I hadn’t played that much the last 12 weeks. I’m feeling a lot better physically. Now it’s just starting to play again, feeling the puck and getting my confidence back where it needs to be.”
Wolski said playing with NHL-caliber players is a helpful bonus.
“Newbs and Zucc are very good, very smart players, so it makes it a lot easier,” Wolski said.
Especially on his winning goal against the Devils when he worked the give-and-go from the right circle and put a perfect one-timer in the top left corner behind Keith Kinkaid.
“Zucc always has his head up, he knows where the puck needs to be, and I just got it off as quick as possible and found the right spot,” Wolski said.
Wolski accepted the conditioning assignment after contemplation with his agent.
“I wanted to think about it, and it was nice to get the All-Star break to go away and kind of get some rest and clear my mind a little bit,” Wolski said. “In the end, I knew it was probably the best thing for me. I’ve got to get on the ice. I’ve got to play. Practicing and skating is great, but it’s nothing like the game. And if your team is in first place and you’re winning every single game, it’s very tough to get the minutes that I need to get back to where I’m supposed to be to be to play (in the NHL).”
Newbury delighted in playing with Wolski and Zuccarello, who was a linemate before missing 17 of 18 games after sustaining an injury in a 5-3 loss to Hershey on Dec. 9.
“Wolski is great with the puck,” said Newbury, who ironically played with the Polish winger in his last game with the Rangers in Montreal. “He’s got great vision and great hands, so when you get it into his hands or Zuccarello’s hand, they both make good plays. I think as time goes by here and he gets into a little bit better game shape, he’ll be even more of a factor.”
Woywitka, 28, was claimed off waivers from the Montreal Canadiens on Oct. 6 and got consistent playing time on the Rangers’ third pairing with Stu Bickel, who played well after being called up Dec. 19, until he was injured in a 3-2 victory over the Coyotes on Dec. 17. Before joining the Whale, Woywitka had missed 17 of the last 19 games, including the last 13 since a 4-1 victory over the Florida Panthers on Dec. 30.
“It was obviously nice to get out on the ice and to get in some action, play and start feeling comfortable again,” Woywitka said. “Obviously it’s nice to play those minutes and get into condition because you don’t get those minutes in the NHL. But it’s nice to get them here and contribute because it’s been over a month since I played. It’s been a tough go because you can skate all you want, but it’s not like playing a game.
“The first period (on Friday) I felt like I was getting my feet wet and wasn’t sure how it was going to go. It doesn’t matter what league you’re in, the American League is obviously a good league and you want to make sure you’re doing the smart things and not come down here and do too much, just do what you can do and play your game.”
“Wolski and Woywitka are obviously pretty good caliber players to have injected into your lineup,” Whale coach Ken Gernander said. “Wolski gave us a boost with the big goal (Friday night) and had another chance in the second (on a breakaway). You could see he’s a really skilled offensive guy, and Jeff shored up the defense and is a big body (6 feet 3, 215 pounds) who can log a lot of minutes for us, so like I said, they’re a good addition to our lineup.”
Wolski and Woywitka are scheduled to be with the Whale through games against the Syracuse Crunch on Tuesday night and at Springfield and Manchester on Friday and Saturday nights and at Bridgeport on Sunday afternoon. The Crunch (19-18-4-3) are 0-1-1-1 in their last three games, blowing third-period leads twice, and 1-3-1-1 in their last six starts, but have dangerous threats in left wing Patrick Maroon (22 goals, 26 assists), All-Star right wing Kyle Palmieri (25, 13) and center Peter Holland (16, 18). Former Wolf Pack defenseman Bryan Rodney is 4-15—19 in 38 games and former Wolf Pack forward Mark Bell is 6-10—16 in 35 games, but center Nick Bonino (6-16—22 in 19 games), a former standout at Farmington High, Avon Old Farms and Boston University, is on recall to the parent Anaheim Ducks.
Story by Bruce Berlet of the Whale
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