Bears Exact Revenge on Phantoms with 5-2 Victory

Bourque celebrates his short-handed goal against the Phantoms. All photos by Kyle Mace.

It’s hard to follow a huge game like the Outdoor Classic, but with the same teams playing, it makes for an interesting rematch. Speaking of the Outdoor Classic, have you checked out Kyle’s recap and amazing photos?

Unlike last night, the Phantoms scored the first goal of the game. Andrew Rowe scored by banking a shot off of Danny Richmond. Not a whole lot Richmond or Dany Sabourin could have done.

The Bears tied it up late in the same period with a patented Chris Bourque short-handed goal. It was a big goal for his 20th of the season.

The Bears earned their first lead of the game during the second period. Boyd Kane tipped a Patrick McNeill shot past Michael Leighton. Unfortunately, the lead didn’t last long. While Julien Brouillette and Tomas Kundratek were focused on defending Jason Akeson, Tyler Brown skated right up to the goal where Akeson set him up for a goal.

The Bears seemed to save the best for last. After a bit of a lackluster night for the power play, Jacob Micflikier scored on the power play after a Bourque shot bounced out to him. Julien Brouillette extended the lead when he joined the play and collected a Cody Eakin pass. Moments later, Keith Aucoin skated past the goal and passed to Patrick McNeill, who tipped it right into the top corner of the net.

Despite some chaos and mayhem towards the end (see the photos and video highlights below), the Bears won 5-2! It may not be the Outdoor Classic but it’s still a nice two points.

Tonight’s Notes:

• Patrick Wellar was injured during the Outdoor Classic. It was announced today that is out for the rest of the weekend.
• Chris Bourque’s short-handed goal was the Bears’ eighth short-hander of the season. Bourque also currently holds the league lead in short-handed goals with four goals.
• With three assists tonight, Keith Aucoin’s point streak has reached ten straight games.
• Pet Scott Stuccio, with all the major penalties and misconducts, the Bears reached a season-high 166 penalty minutes between the two teams.

Video Highlights:

Lines and Pairings:

Eakin – Aucoin – Bourque
Greentree – Potulny – Micflikier
Kane – Hanson – Ford
Pope – Carroll – Rechlicz

McNeill – Collins
Richmond – Miskovic
Brouillette – Kundratek

Three stars of the game:

1. Keith Aucoin (HER)
2. Patrick McNeill (HER)
3. Chris Bourque (HER)

More Photos from Tonight’s Games:

Ray Bourque and his wife watch their son get a goal and assist against the Phantoms.

Steve Pinizzotto watches his former teammates.

Michael Leighton watches Chris Bourque’s shot float past.

Kane tips a shot.

Micflikier finds the back of the net.

Hear him roar.

Brouillette pots his sixth goal of the season.

Bears’ fans had a lot to be happy about tonight.

Doing the splits wasn’t enough to stop Patrick McNeill.

Fed up with Holmstrom, Aucoin fights back.

He then mocks him for picking fights while wearing a full cage.

Andrew Carroll and Joel Rechlicz get involved in some rough stuff.

In a spineless move, Sestito takes a swing at Rechlicz while Sestito is still on the bench.

More players get involved int he scrum.

Carroll and Miskovic break off into fights of their own.

Rechlicz tries to break free from the linesman’s hold.

Dan Jancevski tosses a Bear’s glove into the stands.

Some Phantoms continue to endear themselves to the Hershey fans.

Sestito is kicked out of the game but it looks like he and his finger have a parting message for the crowd. We’ll let you decide.

After all that madness, the Bears still went home with the victory.