By MARK PUKALO, Courant Staff Writer
PROVIDENCE -- The Wolf Pack put the pressure on late. Providence controlled the game in the first period. Little of that ended up mattering Sunday afternoon.
Two fateful minutes on special teams cost Hartford a big road victory and pushed the Bruins closer to a playoff spot.
Brad Boyes scored on the power play and Dan LaCouture scored short-handed in a span of 1:05 early in the second period and Providence held on for a 2-1 victory before 7,428 at the Dunkin' Donuts Center.
Jozef Balej scored for the Wolf Pack (48-22-3-3) with 11:04 left in the game, but their five-game winning streak was snapped. The Wolf Pack remain four points behind Atlantic Division-leading Manchester, which visits Wednesday.
"They're a good team and they were fighting for their playoff lives," forward Jeff Hamilton said of Providence. "We just couldn't find the net today. We only needed three chances and we had plenty more than that. It's tough to swallow, but we'll regroup."
The Wolf Pack didn't test the Bruins defense much in the first period, but Jason LaBarbera (21 saves) only had to make a couple of tough saves to keep the game scoreless.
Before the second period began, the Pack were assessed a bench minor for profanity and it cost them. Providence, which has the second best power play in the AHL, was 0-for-6 at Hartford Saturday. The Bruins finally broke through when Boyes flipped in a rebound at 1:35.
The Wolf Pack got a chance on the power play 12 seconds later, but fell behind 2-0 on LaCouture's second short-handed goal. Pat Leahy blocked Hamilton's shot at the left point and went in 2-on-1 with LaCouture, who knocked in the rebound of Leahy's shot on the third swipe at 2:30.
"That was an unfortunate two minutes," Wolf Pack coach Ryan McGill said. "The puck didn't bounce our way, but we have to be a lot better. We've given up a lot of chances on the power play the last couple games. I don't know if it's not bearing down or being too cute with the puck. You just can't continually give up that many."
Said Hamilton: "I just tried to get it past [Leahy's] pads and he stuck his leg out. That was a dagger."
The Wolf Pack had to kill a power play early in the third, but then came at Providence from all angles.
Providence goalie Hannu Toivonen was up to the task, making a big stop on Ryan Hollweg 4 minutes in and Bryce Lampman with 11:30 left. Balej's rebound on Lampman's shot dinged off the crossbar.
Balej shoveled in a rebound to cut the lead in half, but Toivonen (25 saves) made big saves on Dominic Moore and Balej in the final minutes.
Providence, which leads Worcester by five points for the final playoff spot, was playing its third game in three days after two losses, but Hartford didn't apply consistent pressure.
"[Toivonen] was pulled Friday and Saturday," McGill said. "His team challenged him to play well and he did. If we had generated more chances in the first period, it might have been a different story. But he didn't have much work."
The Pack play three of their last four games at home for a chance at the division title and to tie or better the team record for wins (49).
"Our main focus is to hit the playoffs peaking," forward Ken Gernander said. "We're all right wherever we finish in the standings. We just want to control what we can."
