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‘It’s an honor’

Welcome to Wolves Insider, presented by Are You Really Winning?: The weekly report that gives you an inside look at the latest Chicago Wolves news and happenings. Look for a new edition of Wolves Insider each week.

‘A PRETTY SPECIAL FEELING’

There’s a good reason Wolves veteran Josiah Slavin leads by example instead of raising his voice.

“I start sweating if I yell,” Slavin said with a laugh. “So, I definitely lead by the way I carry myself.”

Slavin became the official leader of the Wolves last Friday when coach Cam Abbott called him into his office and told the 25-year-old forward he would be wearing the ‘C’ as the captain of the young team.

“It’s an honor to be viewed as a leader of this group,” Slavin said. “It’s a pretty special feeling. Hopefully, I can lead these guys in the right direction and just show them the way.”

Slavin is the 17th team captain in Wolves history, a franchise in its 31st season.

“He’s very respected among his peers,” Abbott said. “He has the confidence to speak his mind both to the staff and to the players. He’s a great person who cares about his teammates and leads by example.”

With the Wolves’ renewed affiliation with the Carolina Hurricanes, the roster is filled with prospects—many of whom are seeing their first professional action.

“We have a lot of guys in their first and second years here and they need somebody to look up to and to show them how to be a pro and how to have success in this league,” Slavin said. “Hopefully, that’s something I can show them by the way I act and by the way I play.”

It’s not the first time Slavin has been a captain, having worn the ‘C’ while as a member of the USHL’s Lincoln Stars during the 2018-19 season. But it wasn’t until he entered the AHL with the Rockford IceHogs during the ’2020-21 campaign that he began to understand the role of being a leader—especially to younger players.

“My first year coming into the league I didn’t know how to be a pro yet,” Slavin said. “I had a very good captain at Rockford in Garrett Mitchell who showed us what it takes to be a pro in this league. I learned very quickly to take care of my body off the ice in order to be at my best on the ice. Hopefully, that’s something I can show these young guys.”

Abbott and the coaching staff also named three alternate captains for this season, including Nick Swaney, Ronan Seeley and Juha Jaaska.

“I’m excited to work closely with Josiah and the rest of our leadership group,” Abbott said. “We have a lot of guys on this team who are going to be leading in their own ways and need to keep elevating us.”

CHIPPING IN FROM THE BACK END

It took Wolves defenseman Domenick Fensore 14 games last season to score his first goal and he finished with two in 39 games during the 2023-24 campaign.

Now with his rookie season under his belt, the 23-year-old Fensore is looking to take his game to new heights offensively.

Tuesday’s matinee affair with the Iowa Wild at Allstate Arena was a good place to start.

Fensore scored his first goal of the season–in his sixth game–in the Wolves’ 3-2 defeat to the Wild. During the third period, the blueliner scooped up a loose puck and shoveled a backhander by Wild goaltender Jesper Wallstedt for a shorthanded goal. The score displayed the kind of offensive instincts that made Fensore a third-round pick by the Carolina Hurricanes in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft.

“I saw (Skyler Brind’Amour) skate up the boards and the puck hopped up on my stick and I knew I had one guy to beat and I just went to my backhand and waited the goalie out,” Fensore said.

After being drafted in 2019, Fensore spent four seasons at Boston University, tallying 86 points (19 goals, 67 assists) in 122 games.

The offense is there and he is ready to show it in Chicago.

“I definitely feel more confident out there (this season),” Fensore said. “I feel really comfortable about everything here in Chicago and I think I can contribute more to the team and help us win in any way possible.”

See Fensore’s goal below in Insider’s Impact Play of the Week.

IMPACT PLAY OF THE WEEK

Shortly after Josiah Slavin pulled the Wolves to within a goal against the Iowa Wild on Tuesday with a shorthanded goal, defenseman Domenick Fensore followed with a shorty of his own to tie the game at 2-2.

 

C.D.E. COLLISION CENTERS’ COLLISION OF THE WEEK

During the first period of Saturday night’s game against the Admirals at Allstate Arena, Wolves defenseman Charles-Alexis Legault crunched Milwaukee’s Navrin Mutter.

SAVE OF THE WEEK

Wolves goaltender Spencer Martin went post-to-post to halt a scoring chance from the Admirals’ Ryan Ufko during Friday night’s game in Milwaukee.

 

Weekly rewind (0-2-1-0)

FRIDAY, OCT. 25

Admirals 2, Wolves 1 (OT): Scott Morrow scored to help the Wolves earn a point but the visitors came up short overall when Vinnie Hinostroza notched the game-winner for the Admirals in overtime.

SATURDAY, OCT. 26

Admirals 5, Wolves 1: Joakim Ryan scored for the Wolves but it wasn’t enough as Joakim Kemell had three goals and two assists and Kieffer Bellows scored twice and added an assist to propel Milwaukee to its sixth win in a row.

TUESDAY, OCT. 29

Wild 3, Wolves 2: Josiah Slavin and Domenick Fensore each had third-period goals—both coming with the Wolves killing a penalty—but in the end, Iowa skated to the victory when Kyle Masters notched the game-winner.

First Star of the Week

SCOTT MORROW, D

The 19-year-old from Stamford, Conn., scored his team-leading second goal of the season to help the Wolves earn a point during Friday night’s 2-1 overtime defeat to the Admirals in Milwaukee. Morrow added an assist during Saturday night’s rematch at Allstate Arena.

Where we stand

1-4-1-0, seventh in the Central Division.

UPCOMING SCHEDULE

DATE OPPONENT TIME LOCATION TV INFO PROMOTION
Saturday, Nov. 2 at Rockford 7 p.m. BMO Center FloHockey
Saturday, Nov. 9 at Milwaukee 6 p.m. UW-Milw. Panther Arena FloHockey
Sunday, Nov. 10 Milwaukee 3 p.m. Allstate Arena FloHockey/FOX Chicago+/NHL Network Military Appreciation

For information on Wolves ticket plans for the 2024-25 season—everything from single-game tickets to Flex Packs to group outings—visit ChicagoWolves.com or call 1-800-THE-WOLVES.