The Hartford Wolf Pack and Rochester Americans let their fists fly in a big way on Saturday night.
The two AHL teams launched into a line brawl at the conclusion of the second period, leading to eight fighting majors and six ejections. Goaltenders Dylan Garand and Felix Sandstrom even dropped the gloves but were separated by referee Adam Tobias before they could chuck any knuckles.
After the dust settled, the two teams racked up 160 total penalty minutes in regulation. The second-period altercation accounted for 122 of those minutes.
The fight card featured the following bouts:
- Casey Fitzgerald (HFD) vs Ty Tullio (ROC)
- Alex Belzile (HFD) vs Graham Slaggert (ROC)
- Matthew Robertson (HFD) vs Jagger Joshua (ROC)
- Brett Berard (HFD) vs Vsevolod Komarov (ROC)
The Rochester-Hartford game is up to 140 penalty minutes. They had a line brawl* at the end of the second. There has been ill will between them this season.
*a legit line brawl, not the "line brawl" that clickbait sites use and it's a couple of players face-washing each other.
— PATRICK WILLIAMS (@pwilliamsAHL) January 26, 2025
Fitzgerald and Tullio were the only combatants not ejected for their role in the brawl, presumably because they were involved in the first of the four fights.
Although Matt Rempe didn’t play in the game due to being in the NHL with the New York Rangers, the matchup was fittingly held on his bobblehead giveaway night where its fists also bobbled. The first 1,500 fans in attendance at XL Center received the Rempe bobblehead.
Rochester ended up 6-3 victors at the final horn, fueled by scoring three power-play goals on eight opportunities. Three of their six goals came from the Buffalo Sabres’ 2021 first-round draft pick, Isak Rosen.
