Monday morning might be the final time some Bears players ever walk though Giant Center as a Bear. As the 2013-14 season comes to a close, the Bears players took some time to reflect on their season as they cleaned out their lockers. It was a surreal moment for all as Hershey missed the playoffs for the first time in eight seasons.
As the 2014 season has come to a close, us here at Sweetest Hockey on Earth came up with a new idea. As the Bears hold their awards each season, we decided to hold our own awards, but for things you might not think would normally get awards. We have come up with eight categories for you fans to vote on.
HERSHEY, PA – Dane Byers waves to the crowd after accepting his award as Hershey Bears team MVP (Kyle Mace / Sweetest Hockey on Earth)
The award ceremony at the end of each regular season is normally a kick off to the playoffs for the Hershey Bears, but this season it’s a bit different. This year the Bears are out of the 2014 playoff race for time in eight seasons. Despite the disappointing end to the season, the Chocolate and White thanked the Giant Center crowd with a win Saturday night.
HERSHEY, PA – Joel Rechlicz celebrates with teammates Patrick Wellar and Steve Oleksy after scoring his first goal since December 18th, 2011 (Matt Trust / Sweetest Hockey on Earth)
Saturday night was the final night in the Hershey Bears season after being eliminated from playoff contention Friday night. With other Bears players banged up, Joel Rechlicz got back into the line up for his first game since March 23rd. And as Rechlicz skated with linemate Chris Brown for the final game of the season, the “Recker” did something he hasn’t done since December 18th, 2011: score.
Photo via @washcaps
While the Washington Capitals’ playoff hopes for 2014 has come to a halt, the organization’s attention now turns to the future. That future will include Chandler Stephenson, who recently has agreed to a three year entry level contract with the Capitals’ organization.
HERSHEY, PA – Justin Young of the Harrisburg Stampede runs out onto the field for pre-game introductions prior to the Stampede’s game Sunday night at Giant Center (Kyle Mace / Sweetest Hockey on Earth)
Sunday night was a historic night at Giant Center as indoor football joined the long list of sports played at the arena. The Harrisburg Stampede of the PIFL took on the Columbus Lions in front of an estimated crowd of 3,500 fans. “The environment here is great,” said Stampede quarterback EJ Nemeth. “What better place can you ask to play indoors than the Giant Center? The fans were great, I think we had lot of new faces out here. I know the Hershey Bears organization have great fans and hopefully we got them interested in some indoor football today.”
That’s right! In honor of the Harrisburg Stampede’s first game at Giant Center this afternoon, we have re-named ourselves Sweetest Football on Earth!! The Stampede will faceoff against the Columbus Lions at 3pm today in Hershey. Follow us on Twitter to keep up with the game as we will be live tweeting portions of the match.
It was another normal night for Stephanie Norford when she arrived to the Hershey Bears game Friday with her boyfriend Johnny Dengler. Little did she know, she would be asked to prom that night in a very special way.
HERSHEY, PA – The Hershey Bears sport St. Patrick’s Day jerseys during Sunday night’s game between Norfolk and the Bears (Kyle Mace / Sweetest Hockey on Earth)
It’s a sea of green at Giant Center on Sunday afternoon for the annual St. Patrick’s Day. Not only have a handful of fans participated in the tradition, but the Hershey Bears players as well. This year the St. Patrick’s Day jersey design are a crisp, dark green color with a four-leaf clover on each side. The Bears logo is tinted greenish-yellow colors, and the Bear head is sporting a St. Patty’s day hat. On the shoulders, recycle logos can be seen since the them night is based around being green. Below the jump, check out photos from our Kyle Mace of the jerseys during warm-ups.
On Tuesday the Washington Capitals announced they had traded John Mitchell and Martin Erat to Phoenix. Mitchell, you recall, was acquired in the trade that sent Mathieu Perreault to Anaheim.
But initial reports stated that it was Garrett Mitchell, not John, who had been traded to the Coyotes.
That led to some chaos.