Community Corner

Hidden Gems Of Hartford And Tolland Counties

The latest Hidden Gem nods its way to Hartford via a hall of fame.

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The Hartford Wolf Pack vintage bobblehead.
The Hartford Wolf Pack vintage bobblehead. (National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum/Meagan Sklar)

HARTFORD, CT — This week, we take a little different approach toward finding our hidden gem. It's kind of, sort of at the XL Center in Hartford, but one must go first through a hall of fame in Milwaukee and then the Web.

But it might be a must acquisition for Hockey fans in Hatford and Tolland counties.

The National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum this week unveiled an officially licensed, limited-edition vintage Hartford Wolf Pack bobblehead. The bobblehead is part of the American Hockey League Vintage Bobbleheads collection that the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum is releasing in conjunction with the start of the 2022-23 AHL season.

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The Hartford Wolf Pack vintage bobblehead. (National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum/Meagan Sklar)

The collection includes all 32 AHL teams: the Abbotsford Canucks, Bakersfield Condors, Belleville Senators, Bridgeport Islanders, Calgary Wranglers, Charlotte Checkers, Chicago Wolves, Cleveland Monsters, Coachella Valley Firebirds, Colorado Eagles, Grand Rapids Griffins, Hartford Wolf Pack, Henderson Silver Knights, Hershey Bears, Iowa Wild, Laval Rocket, Lehigh Valley Phantoms, Manitoba Moose, Milwaukee Admirals, Ontario Reign, Providence Bruins, Rochester Americans, Rockford IceHogs, San Diego Gulls, San Jose Barracuda, Springfield Thunderbirds, Syracuse Crunch, Texas Stars, Toronto Marlies, Tucson Roadrunners, Utica Comets, and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. A bobblehead featuring the AHL colors and logo is also available.

Standing on a circular ice-like base bearing the team's name, the smiling Hartford Wolf Pack bobblehead is suited up in a blue, red and black jersey featuring the team logo and holding a hockey stick. Each bobblehead is individually numbered to 500, and they are only available through the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum. The bobbleheads, which are expected to ship in November, are $30 each plus a flat-rate shipping charge of $8 per order. A set featuring all 32 bobbleheads is $900. Ordering information can be found online.

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Based in Hartford, the Wolf Pack has a lengthy history as a franchise, dating back to 1926 when it was one of five charter members of the Canadian-American Hockey League and was known as the Providence Reds, according to the Boblehead hall of Fame. After playing in Rhode Island, from 1926. to 77, the franchise was based in Binghamton, NY, through 1997 before moving to Connecticut for the 1997-98 season, shortly after the NHL's Hartford Whalers had departed for North Carolina to become the Hurricanes, the hall says.

The club is currently the top affiliate of the NHL's New York Rangers.

According the hall, though the Wolf Pack doesn't officially acknowledge its history in Providence and Binghamton or the four Calder Cup titles the franchise won before moving to Connecticut, it’s the only AHL franchise to have never missed a season since the league's founding in 1936.

The Wolf Pack won a Calder Cup title in the 1999-2000 season and in 2021-22, the Pack finished in seventh place in the Atlantic Division.

"We’re excited to be working with the AHL to release the first collection of vintage bobbleheads featuring every American Hockey League team," National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum co-founder and CEO Phil Sklar said. "As one of the oldest professional hockey franchises in existence, the Wolf Pack are sure to give the fans of hockey-loving Hartford plenty of excitement in 2022-23."

About the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum:

The National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum, located at 170 S. 1st St. in Milwaukee, opened to the public on Feb. 1, 2019. The HOF and Museum also produces high quality, customized bobbleheads for retail sale as well as organizations, individuals, and teams across the country. To order the bobblehead or to learn more , visit the hall online and on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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The Hidden Gems series features out-of-the-way mom and pop restaurants, small specialty stores you may have never heard of, little-known historical markers or beautiful nature spots that may be a bit off the beaten path, all located within Hartford and Tolland counties. Do you have a favorite "hidden gem" in the area that you wish to see featured in this column? Email your ideas to Chris.dehnel@patch.com.

Other Gems in this series:

2022

2021 and earlier:

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