Bears add another win by beating the Checkers 1-0

Sheldon Souray scores the only goal of the game. (Photo credit: Kyle Mace)

It seemed like the Bears played a man down for most of the game. Despite that, they were able to prevail. A late power play goal from Sheldon Souray lifted the Bears over the Checkers.

The first period was a little slow. Each team registered only 5 shots on goal for the entire period.  Both teams were missing some passes and seemed to be playing not to lose rather than to win.  This makes sense since they both needed points from the game.

The second period started the same way that the first ended.  At the begining of the period Braden Holtby had to come up big.  Charlotte picked up the puck behind the Bears net.  Holtby had to make a save stretching from post to post.  He then came up with another big save on the rebound.  The reminder of the period saw a few more chances (and a few more penalties) than the first, but the result was the same.  At the end of two periods it was locked at 0-0.

The third period started out with a high sticking double minor on Keith Aucoin at 1:24.  This was followed by a Sheldon Souray cross checking penalty at 2:49.  The Checkers had a full two minutes of 5 on 3 power play.  The Bears penalty killers came up HUGE!  They killed off both penalties and turned the momentum squarely in their favor.  At 9:50 in the third period, the Checkers took a penalty giving the Bears their first full two minutes of power play time in the game.  Unlike the 20-30 second power plays that they had before, they made this one count.  Aucoin sent the puck across the point to a waiting Souray.  Souray fired away and found the back of the net.  That was the only goal of the game, and the Bears held on to that lead to get another win.

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Bears Extend Winning Streak With 3-2 Victory in Bingo

Giving Dany Sabourin a well-deserved rest, Braden Holtby led the Bears onto the ice against the Binghamton Senators tonight.

Boyd Kane scored the first goal of the game. He sniped the shot up high and gave Hershey the early lead. Before the end of the period, the Senators tied it up on the power play when Bobby Butler slammed home the rebound.

In the second period, the teams exchanged goals again. Bingo got their first lead of the game when they got the puck close up on the goal crease and beat Holtby. Hershey countered with a power play goal of their own. Brian Willsie gets all the credit on this one as he danced through the defense and placed a perfect backhand shot.

It looked like there was a game-changing penalty when Jim O’Brien of Binghamton was questionably penalized for a hit on Tyler Sloan. O’Brien recieved an elbowing major as well as a game misconduct. But the Senators came up big and killed off the penalty.

Just when it seemed as if not scoring on that power play was going to be their biggest regret, the Bears upped their offense and got moving. Kyle Greentree got the puck right between the face-off circles and scored five-hole on Mike Brodeur with about two and half minutes left in the game.

The Senators couldn’t muster up enough to tie the game again and the Bears won 3-2. They have now won five games in a row, their longest streak of the season!

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Hershey’s Home Stand is Perfect, beat Falcons 4-3


Sheldon Souray celebrates another win with Dany Sabourin. Photo by Kyle Mace

Before I dive into this game recap, I want to congratulate John Walton on calling his 1,000th game. Fans of any team should appreciate Walton and all that he has done for Hershey. It wouldn’t be half as interesting to listen without you, John. It would be an understatement to say that I hope he’s around for 1,000 more.

And now about the game. After getting snowed in last time and having to push the game to tonight, the two teams were going pretty strong right from the start.

The Springfield Falcons had a some notable names in the starting line-up. Mike Commodore was in, playing his first game for the Springfield Falcons. But the bigger name for Hershey fans was the return of Kyle Wilson. The Reeses Cup mascot dropped the puck in a ceremonial face-off and Andrew Gordon and Wilson took it together. It was nice to see two former teammates together again, even if they were wearing different jerseys.

Speaking of Gordon, he was the first Bear to find the back of the net. With a nice pass from Keith Aucoin, Gordon scored short side on David LeNeveu. Sean Collins, who is having a pretty good season, made it a two goal lead with a missile from center point.

The Falcons cut Hershey’s lead in half when they scored ten seconds into their first power play of the night. The second period was fairly quiet but Brian Willsie added some insurance with a power play goal of his own.

The Falcons looked like they were on the cusp of a comeback during the third period when John Moore got Springfield within one goal of tying. Steve Pinizzotto didn’t take too kindly to this and just moments later scored a sweet goal where he danced around the Falcons goaltender.

Kyle Wilson wasn’t willing to accept defeat and scored a goal with 17.8 seconds left in the game after a botched clearing attempt by Sabourin. The Bears were able to stave off any last chances from Springfield and won 4-3.

Hershey took advantage of this four game home stand and gained eight points in the standings. These four wins are crucial ones and have shown just what this time is capable of. Dany Sabourin played great, winning all four games. He has proven that we can rely on him even when we don’t have Braden Holtby with us.

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Bears Gain Penalty Minutes and Goals Against Devils


Dany Sabourin lays on the ice in pain after being run down by Louis Robitaille. Photo by Kyle Mace

If you were looking for excitement tonight, you better have been watching the Hershey Bears play the Albany Devils tonight.

The game started off innocently. Brian Willsie opened scoring on a funny goal that he jammed past the Albany goaltender, Mike McKenna.

Then Louis Robitaille jumped on the ice and the game was never the same.

In true Robitaille fashion, he caused drama just four minutes into the game. Dany Sabourin went to clear the puck next to the goal and Robitaille absolutely ran him down. There was no effort to slow down and Sabourin fell awkwardly on his leg. He took a while to get back up but did finish the game and played pretty damn well. Robitaille received a game misconduct (along with two major penalties) and never returned. After the game, Robitaille claimed that he was just coming around the forecheck and that he didn’t mean to hit him. I guess that’s his story and he’s sticking to it.

I’m awarding Robitaille’s dumb penalty as tonight’s game changer. During the subsequent power play, Steve Pinizzotto scored on the power play.

I won’t even begin to go into detail with all the goals tonight, but here’s the gist: Patrick Wellar and Brian Fahey added goals and the Devils were able to get one back before the end of first period.

In the second period, Francois Bouchard and Sean Collins scored, as well as Willsie getting his second goal of the night. McKenna was pulled and Dave Caruso took his unenviable spot.

The third period was better for the Devils, as they scored twice more. Suffice to say, it wasn’t enough, especially with Kyle Greentree adding a power play goal. Bears destroy Devils, 8-3.

To say this game was ugly would be the understatement of the century. With other 32 penalties and seven fights, there was not a dull moment in this game.

Even Keith Aucoin dropped the gloves with Matt Anderson. It was mostly a wrestling match but when Aucoin fights, you realize how insane this game really is.

So that’s that. I reckon tomorrow’s game against the Rochester Americans looks pretty calm at the moment. It’ll be hard to top tonight.

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Binghamton Edges Hershey in 2-1 Victory

As the Washington Capitals wrapped up a win against the Ottawa Senators, their farm teams dropped the puck in Binghamton.

It was a rough start for the Bears as the Binghamton Senators took an early lead. Maybe they were feeling a little tired after a late game the night before and travelling today. Whatever the reason, they were rudely awakened by a goal by Andrew Sweetland. Sweetland just signed a PTO with Binghamton and he was definitely impressing everyone tonight.

Boyd Kane tied the game up after a play that he deserves all the credit for. He was harassed by David Hale on the boards behind the goal but was able to keep the puck. He passed it briefly to Keith Aucoin but it returned to him. He powered to the front of the goal and beat Barry Brust to tie it up.

The second period saw no scoring change although the Senators were awarded a penalty shot after Mike Hoffman was hooked on a breakaway. Braden Holtby was ready to make the big save and it all came down to the third period.

Unfortunately, penalties ultimately won this game for the Senators. Patrick McNeill took his second penalty of the night and the best power play unit in the league got to work. They got Holtby moving and Ryan Keller scored the game-winning goal. Bingo takes this one 2-1.

Hershey gets a couple days to rest up and prepare for their next weekend of games. Hopefully it will be better than this weekend’s.

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Hershey’s Weak Finish Results in SO Loss to Lake Erie


Braden Holtby looks in disbelief at the replay. Photo by Kyle M.

A sold-out crowd gathered in Giant Center tonight to watch the Bears take on the Lake Erie Monsters. It was the only time we will see the Monsters in Hershey this season.

The game started off perfectly. Hershey scored the first goal early in the first period, as they often do. Lake Erie had two men in the box and Hershey had a 5-on-3 power play for thirty seconds. After getting roughed up, Keith Aucoin made the Monsters pay by scoring on the man advantage.

A few minutes into the second period, Ashton Rome recorded his sixth goal of the season. Tyler Sloan had a nice role in the play, joining the rush as a winger. Along with Maxime Lacroix, they got the puck to the goal. John Grahame made the initial save but Rome buried the rebound.

Perhaps getting a little too comfortable, the scoring ended there for Hershey. Meanwhile, Lake Erie started to kick it in gear. They cut Hershey’s lead in half before the end of the second period. Holtby couldn’t see the rebound and Lake Erie got their first goal of the night. With about a minute to go in the game, Lake Erie pulled their goalie. With an extra man, the Monsters got a lot of traffic in front of the Hershey goal and tied it up with just 40 seconds left in the game.

Overtime didn’t solve anything and so it went to the shootout. Unfortunately, the Monsters scored twice and Hershey could only score once.

Despite the loss, Braden Holtby was fantastic in net. It would have been a whole different game without him. He was there to make all the huge saves that the Bears needed him to make. I’m sure a shootout was not how the Bears wanted to end this game, especially with an early game in Binghamton tomorrow. Nevertheless, the Bears watch the game slip through their fingers and lose 3-2.

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Penalties Help Moose Get Retribution Against Bears

When the coaching staff opted to play tonight’s game against the Manitoba Moose with seven defensemen and eleven forwards, I don’t think they realized what a good decision that was.

Through two periods, the Bears were not able to get any kind of offensive momentum going. This was mostly a result of the ten power plays awarded to Manitoba. Some of them were obvious ones like delay of game and playing with a broken stick. Others, like a tripping call against Francois Bouchard, were questionable.

Nonetheless, the Bears penalty kill unit deserves a lot of credit tonight. Even though the Moose scored three power play goals (including the game winner), the Bears special teams held the Moose off during the nine other power plays. Still missing Andrew Joudrey and Boyd Kane, the Bears tempted fate with so many penalties. The players were getting frustrated but, for the most part, they were able to hold back and not take dumb penalties due to anger.

Dmitri Kugryshev kicked off the scoring with an unassisted beauty. It’s awesome to see Kugryshev coming into his own because he’s going to be a dangerous offensive player soon. During the second period, Lawrence Nycholat salvaged any chance Hershey had at winning this game with a shot that beat the Manitoba goaltender’s five hole.

As if you needed any more evidence of what a clutch player Steve Pinizzotto is, he scored the game-tying goal during the third period. He was in the perfect spot for a rebound shot and made sure he didn’t miss on the second try. Thanks to him, Hershey got a point out of this and the game went to overtime.

The game ended in the most fitting way possible. Sean Collins was whistled for a tripping call with 40.5 seconds left in overtime. The Moose didn’t hesitate. They scored on the power play and sent Hershey packing. Moose win 4-3.

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