Hartford Wolf Pack celebrating 30th season in CT with promotion-filled schedule

As the Hartford Wolf Pack hockey club begins its 30th season in Hartford, fans of the franchise are in for more than just one treat.

The New York Rangers ' top minor-league affiliate has scheduled a season full of fun promotions to commemorate three decades in Connecticut's capital city.

The team moved to Hartford ahead of the 1997-98 season, competing in the American Hockey League, which it still does today.

During that entire stretch, the franchise played in the same downtown arena, formerly known as the Hartford Civic Center and then XL Center, before becoming PeoplesBank Arena last year. That building remains its home.

Like the arena, the team hasn't been immune to name changes.

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After taking the ice as the Wolf Pack from 1997 to 2010, the franchise changed its name to the Connecticut Whale. The name change paid homage to the Hartford Whalers, the city's former National Hockey League team.

Despite the nostalgia, fans demanded the team restore the Wolf Pack brand, which it did following the 2012-2013 season.

Entering the 2013-2014 campaign, the Wolf Pack name returned, and it has persevered until the present day.

To celebrate that tradition, the team's promotional schedule this season includes a variety of exciting giveaways.

The home slate begins on Saturday, Oct. 10, against the Wilkes-Barre-Scranton Penguins. That evening, fans are encouraged to wear white.

White T-shirts will cover the arena's lower bowl seats that evening thanks to Pepsi.

The following day, Sunday, Oct. 11, features a match against the Laval Rocket at 3 p.m. in Hartford. Thanks to Pepsi, the first 2,500 fans to enter the arena will get a magnetic schedule.

Other giveaways include a Sonar bobblehead hand-out on Jan. 15, a Wolf Pack branded trucker hat giveaway on Jan. 22, a 'best friends bobblehead' giveaway on Jan. 23, a Wolf Pack branded basketball jersey giveaway on March 13, and a Wolf Pack branded captain's hat on March 19.

On Friday nights, all season long through the first intermission at PeoplesBank Arena, there will be $3 drafts and $3 hot dogs available.

The CTDOT Family Value Pack is also returning for another season and will be available on Oct. 11, Nov. 27, Dec. 11, March 14 and April 9.

Over the course of next season, the Wolf Pack will wear three specialty jerseys.

The first jersey will be worn as part of the team's "Hockey Fights Cancer" festivities on Nov. 14.

Meanwhile, "Emo Night" jerseys will be reintroduced Jan. 15 on "Emo Night," and on March 6, the Wolf Pack will wear a special "30th Anniversary jersey" to honor its past in Hartford.

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Jersey designs and details will be released later.

Postgame events with Wolf Pack players will return this year, and a date will be released later.

Presented by Minuteman Press Hartford, the happy hour takes place prior to all Friday and Saturday home Wolf Pack games in the Chill Zone two hours before the puck drops.

Patrons can buy a $18 wristband to receive access to the expanded Fan Fare buffet and $3, 12-0z domestic draft beers until the start of the game.

The full list of the Hartford Wolf Pack's promotions this season can be seen here .

Dalton Zbierski is a digital editor and writer at FOX61 News. He can be reached at dzbierski@FOX61.com .

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