Gernander out in Hartford

Ken Gernander became a New York Ranger the year of the (first) lockout, 1994-95, the season after they won the Cup. He was already the mainstay of the organization’s AHL team by the time it moved from Binghamton to Hartford in 1997. He won the Calder Cup there. Transitioned straight from the captaincy to the coaches’ office, first as an assistant to Jim Schoenfeld, then to the big gig, becoming one of the AHL’s all-time winningest coaches along the way. Just two years ago, the Wolf Pack were in the conference final.

That was Hartford’s only playoff appearance since it beat the Sound Tigers in the first round in 2012, a franchise thinned out in part by the Rangers’ draft-pick dealings. Today, the Rangers fired Gernander, at the same time announcing that Trumbull’s own Chris Drury, the Rangers’ GM, will take over as Wolf Pack GM from Schoenfeld. It’s hard to imagine a Hartford where the only Gernander presence is his retired No. 12 hanging over the visitor’s end of the rink. But I guess we’ll have to get used to it.

TEAM Old New
RCK Ted Dent (4/25) 
UTI Travis Green (4/26 – VAN) 
HFD Ken Gernander (5/16) 
Michael Fornabaio