Hershey’s Losing Skid Continues against Syracuse

Boyd Kane (seen here last season) scored against Syracuse. Photo by Lauren Long / The Post-Standard.

It is the start of a new weekend and a chance for the Bears to begin turning their luck around. After losing three of the last four games, the Bears were looking for a strong game from start to finish. Playing on the road, the Bears got that strong start against the Syracuse Crunch.

It only took 24 seconds to get started. Boyd Kane scored on the first shot of the game against Iiro Tarkki. A few minutes later, the Crunch scored on the power play to tie it up. Then, Jacob Micflikier earned a goal when he and his linemates continued to poke at a loose puck in the goal crease.

The second period held two major events. The first was a game-tying goal from Mathieu Carle, scored while Boyd Kane was in the box for slashing. The second event was a fight between Andrew Carroll and Peter Holland, though it was over quickly as Holland fell over.

There was no scoring change in the third period but there were many chances for both teams. The Bears were called on to kill off a 5-on-3 during the final few minutes of regulation. The teams pushed on to overtime.

The Crunch had a couple of shots but no goal. The shootout had to decide the game. Sadly, none of the Bears were able to score. Dmitry Orlov was an interesting choice for the fourth round of the shootout; he lost control of the puck and didn’t even get a shot off. I’m interested in hearing opinions on putting a defenseman in the first few rounds of a shootout. But anyway, Syracuse won, 3-2 (SO).

Tonight’s Notes:

• For those of you going to the game tomorrow night, the Bears Booster Club will be at Giant Center, collecting donations to the Ronald McDonald House. They are looking for many items, including (but not limited to) deodorant, adult toothbrushes, baby wipes, diapers, tupperware, disinfectant, laundry detergent, and flashlights.
• Both Micflikier and Graham Mink continued their point streaks tonight. They each have at least one point in the past four games.
• Matt Pope made his Hershey debut. He wore #27 and earned a decent amount of playing time with the third line. His line created a lot of energy and he finished the game with one shot on goal.
• Typically, Dany Sabourin plays well against Syracuse. Since he joined Hershey, he has won four of five starts against Syracuse, including two shutouts. He did pretty well tonight; he made some huge stops during the crucial 5-on-3 penalty kill late in the game.
• There were some pretty lopsided stats tonight: the Bears had only two power plays and the Crunch had six, including a five-on-three. The Crunch got away with a few things while the Bears were called for every tiny infraction. The Bears killed off four of six penalties.

Lines and Pairings:

Bourque – Aucoin – Kane
Micflikier – Hanson – Mink
Carroll – Sjogren – Pope
King – Lacroix – Mitchell

McNeill – Miskovic
Orlov – Richmond
Wellar – Brouillette

Three stars of the game:

1. Iiro Tarkki (SYR)
2. Kyle Palmiere (SYR)
3. Mathieu Carle (SYR)