Andrew Gordon Still a Fan Favorite Among Bears Fans
HERSHEY, PA – Andrew Gordon returned to Hershey for the first time since 2011 Wednesday night (Kyle Mace / Sweetest Hockey on Earth)
Wednesday night, he may have worn a different jersey, but Andrew Gordon will always be a Bear to local hockey fans. Everywhere you looked, you saw “Gordon 10,” “Gordon 63,” or maybe even “Gordon 41” jerseys representing his years with the Bears, Washington Capitals, and Anaheim Ducks.
When Gordon stepped onto the St. John’s IceCaps bench for his pre-game routine, the early arrivals gave him a warm welcome back to Chocolate Town, USA with an ovation that few will ever receive. He twice acknowledged the crowd with a wave and a bow. “I could still see everyone sitting in the same seats,” said Gordon after the IceCaps win over the Bears. “I was waiving hello to everybody. The crowd was outstanding. They gave me a very warm welcome. I had to take a second to breathe it all in.”
“After practice he came out to sign some autographs. He signed my…. Lampshade” (Via Sarah W.)
His current team went on to beat his former team in 27-year-old’s homecoming. “You want to win every time you come into your old building. To get the win here was also very special. I really appreciated the boys effort.”
Everybody that has interacted with Gordo has an Andrew Gordon story or memory, like reader Sarah W.
A couple years ago when Gordo was in DC I attended a Caps practice. After practice he came out to sign some autographs. He signed my…. Lampshade
Former off-ice official Kim Payne spent time with Andrew during rare moments in the penalty box:
Gordo was sitting with me in the home penalty box one night right before Christmas. He was excited about his sister visiting for the holidays. The kid’s humble, polite and has a good head on his shoulders. I always thought Gordo was destined for the NHL. Like former Hershey Bear, Don Seiling, he had a lot of energy and enthusiasm but their size worked against them. I’d still like to see the kid in the show – he deserves it!
Personally, I have probably one of the funniest Gordo stories during his time in Hershey. I was doing my science fair project on what hockey stick flexes gave the fastest shots and Gordon was the lucky one to take those shots. We used three different flexes of composite sticks and a wood stick.
On the first shot of the first stick, the wood one, Andrew wound up and fired…the blade of the stick. He broke my hockey stick and fell flat on his face in the process. (Ed. note: There is video of this event somewhere in Kyle’s library of videos. If enough people want to see this, he’ll look for it and we will post it on SHOE’s YouTube account.) He laughed about the whole event and throughout the whole process, Andrew was a great sport and extremely nice about everything. I still have the broken stick in my basement, all taped together, to this day.
Gordon breaking the wood stick with Beaker behind the net
Jay Beagle and Oskar Osala would also join in on the fun as Dan “Beaker” Stuck crouched behind the net with a radar gun to take the speed of the shots.
No matter what your memory of Andrew Gordon is, he will always remain an important part of Hershey Bears history and one of the most popular Bears to ever take the ice.