Hershey Bears Hall of Fame 2017: Doug Yingst headlines sixth class
The man that build four Calder Cup teams for the Hershey Bears was honored with a spot in the Hershey Bears Hall of Fame on Saturday night at Giant Center. Doug Yingst headlined the 2017 Hershey Bears Hall of Fame Class that included former captain Dave Fenyves, goaltender Andre Gill, and supervisor of off-ice officials Randy Waybright.
“It’s a huge honor,” said Yingst. “It’s one that actually belongs to our fans. Without their support over my 34 years and the success that we all enjoyed goes to them. It’s a great honor and I’m humbled to be here and thrilled.”
Yingst’s close friend and former Hershey resident Mike ‘Doc’ Emrick was the master of ceremonies for Saturday’s event and spoke about how Doug is apart of a special breed hockey contributors that dedicated their life to the game. “There are guys that would probably call themselves ‘lifers’ who have very understanding families, and Doug and Randy Waybright would be two of those,” said Doc. “Hockey is a way of life, and those of us that get into it are very fortunate if we have people that understand stand us that share our lives. Because it’s winds up being almost another part of your life.”
Bears forward Chris Bourque spent seven seasons playing for a Yingst build Bears team, and gave Yingst a hug after the induction ceremony on the ice. “He was awesome to me,” said Bourque. “Anything I asked him for, he helped me with so many things. Not only at the rink, but away from the rink. He’s still a good friend of mine and I keep in touch with him. It’s always great to see him around the rink. Very well deserved.”
What Yingst accomplished during his time has been matched by few, and helped him get inducted into the AHL Hall of Fame earlier this year. Bourque acknowledged how special Yingst’s work was to the Chocolate and White. “You don’t see too many franchises do what the Hershey Bears have done here,” Bourque said. “Over the course of eighty years, obviously it’s one of the oldest franchises in the league, he was a good part of it for the better part of 30-some years. I think he said he went to nine Calder Cups, won five. Not too many people have done that. He’s going to go down as one of the all-time best general managers in the history of the AHL.
“To be able to be with him for three Calder Cups obviously something I will never forget. He was a big part of that. He brought some real heavy hitters in terms of players to Hershey. You kind miss that, seeing the big names; the Aucoins, the Girouxs. He always wanted to win, and winning came first here above all else.”
Chocolate Town being so significant to the people of Hershey is something Emrick recognized as a former resident of the town. “It’s special to me because it seems to be special to so many people,” Emrick stated. “Now you look at Bears players that not only come here but stay here. And if they come here and go somewhere else like Washington or Philidelphia, somehow or other in their retirement years, they come back to Hershey. It resonates with people because this is a place where you can go to theater, you can go to hockey, and it’s still a small town with a great small town feel and a great place to raise kids, and who wouldn’t want that?”
