Bears shut out Senators 4-0 on Teddy Bear Toss night


Maxime Lacroix’s goal triggers the attack of flying stuffed animals. Photo by Kyle M.

Tonight was annual Teddy Bear Toss. After the first Hershey goal, fans were instructed to throw their teddy bears onto the ice where they would then be collected and donated to Children’s Miracle Network. The Bears were playing like a team possessed for the beginning of the first period. No one wants to get shut out on Teddy Bear Toss night.

I guess technically the credit for unleashing the waterfall of teddy bears will go to Maxime Lacroix. A closer look may show that it bounced off of a Binghamton Senators player and past Robin Lehner. May I just say, fantastic job with the teddy bears, Hershey fans. It was announced that 7,199 teddy bears were thrown and they are all going to a good home.

But, back to the game! Francois Bouchard scored the first goal actually last touched by a Bear to put the team up 2-0 by the end of the first period.

Steve Pinizzotto had a spectacular pass for Jay Beagle to score a shorthanded goal. Credit to John Walton for this stat: the Bears have scored three shorthanded goals to date. The first goal was Keith Aucoin‘s and the other two belong to Beagle. Money.

At the end of the period, Pinizzotto would drop the gloves against Andre Benoit. Benoit may have started the fight but I don’t think he was ready for the impact of Pinizzotto’s fists. However, the highlight fight would probably go to Lawrence Nycholat taking on Bobby Butler in the third period. Strange pairing but Nycholat gets the win and the knockout punch. The joy of the fight was downgraded by the sight of Nycholat going down the tunnel. He never returned to the game. Get well soon!

To wrap up the game, Ashton Rome made it 4-0 Hershey after beating Lehner low. That would be the final goal of the game as Braden Holtby pitched a 26-save shutout. That’s two Saturdays in a row that Holtby has shut out the opposing team. And so, Hershey earns a perfect record for the weekend as they chalk up their 13th and 14th wins of the season. Woo!

Read More

Holtby shuts out Phantoms 4-0 in return to Hershey


Dmitri Kugryshev is all smiles after he scores his first career AHL goal! Photo by Kyle M.

The Adirondack Phantoms came into tonight’s game with just three wins in the season. But, for the first few minutes, they were standing strong against Hershey. The last thing the Bears needed was a loss to the last place team to kill their swagger.

Boyd Kane drew first blood late in the first period. Andrew Gordon later scored on the power play when he deflected a Kyle Greentree shot. Gordon leads the league in goals (with 15) and in points (with 29). After Gordon’s goal, Phantoms goaltender Johan Backlund was helped to the bench with seemingly a lower body injury. Nic Riopel replaced him in goal and there was no looking back.

Big congratulations to Dmitry Kugryshev who scored Hershey’s third goal of the game and his first career AHL goal! It’s been a long time coming for Kugryshev. Every game he seems to be getting more and more playing time and deservedly so. Mark French even tried mixing the lines up a little and playing Kugryshev on the top line with Gordon and Mathieu Perreault. Kugryshev’s confidence was through the roof for the rest of game. He’s a talented guy and is bound to be a serious threat once he fully adjusts to AHL life.

Hershey helped maintain their lead by scoring 32 seconds into the third period. It was Kane’s second goal of the night. Kane just loves playing against the Phantoms. He always seems to love harassing his former team.

The story of the night though is Braden Holtby‘s triumphant return to Hershey. After a fairly long call-up in Washington, he came back and took his rightful spot as the #1 goalie for the Bears. He stopped 28 of 28 shots and some of them were doozies. He seemed as comfortable as ever as Bears defeat Phantoms 4-0.

Hershey remains undefeated since the closed door meeting on Wednesday night. Like I said in the last recap, hopefully this is the start of a better, more consistent season.

Read More

Bears dominate Crunch with a 5-1 victory

After Wednesday’s loss to the Worcester Sharks, Mark French was mad. The coaches held a closed door meeting that had us a little afraid for the players. We obviously don’t know what was said but it made tonight’s game against the Syracuse Crunch all that more important. Hershey needed to make a statement.

The first period was pretty even. Syracuse would draw first blood when Patrick Maroon scored his first goal as a member of the Crunch. It would be their only goal of the night. Andrew Gordon tied the game during a 5-on-3 power play before the end of the period.

The second period was key for the Bears. Hershey spent the majority of the period dominating the offensive zone, so much so that Syracuse opted for a goaltender change. This switch was most likely an attempt to wake up the rest of the team and not so much a reflection of Timo Pielmeier’s performance. Before the switch, Mathieu Perreault found the back of the net thanks to an assist from Gordon. Andrew Joudrey added a one-timer from Steve Pinizzotto that eluded Pielmeier.

For the rest of the game, the Bears tried to minimize Syracuse’s scoring chances as much as possible. Gordon scored his second goal of the night and 14th goal of the season. After killing off a penalty, Hershey regrouped and Kyle Greentree scored Hershey’s fifth and final goal of the night.

It’s easy to assume that Dany Sabourin was chosen to start in tonight’s game due to his previous success in Syracuse. Sabourin recorded his first win of the season in this building. He also shutout the Crunch in the last meeting between these two teams. After tonight’s game, he remains undefeated in Syracuse as Hershey wins 4-1.

There you go. A full 60 minute effort proves what Hershey is capable of. Let’s hope that meeting was the kick the Bears needed to turn this season around for good.

Read More

Perreault and the Bears send Senators packing, 8-3


Mathieu Perreault leads the Bears to victory on a night Barry Brust and the Binghamton Senators do not want to look back on. Photo by Kyle M.

How to even begin writing about this game…

It was all Andrew Gordon at first. He opened scoring only 70 seconds into the game. Seven minutes later, he added another goal to become the first Bear to reach double digits in goals this season. Brian Willsie scored his first goal a 25 seconds later and Steve Pinizzotto added to the tally a minute after that. Kyle Greentree scored before another Willsie goal to wrap up the first period. That’s right, 6-0 after the first period.

Binghamton managed to regain some of their dignity and come back with three goals during the rest of the game. Lawrence Nycholat had the final say with the last goal of the game to make it 8-3 Bears.

But let’s talk about Mathieu Perreault. He fell one assist short of tying the Hershey record for most assists in one game. Per Tim Leone, the current record is seven assists, set by Mitch Lamoureux on November 21, 1987 against Baltimore. the AHL Twitter announced that Perreault’s six assist night was the first since Rochester’s Chris Taylor on Oct 21, 2005.

The Bears were definitely playing well but it’s important to remember that the Binghamton Senators are having some serious goalie issues at the moment. Both Robin Lehner and Mike Brodeur are injured. A lot of people were questioning why the coaches weren’t pulling Barry Brust after goal four and on. Zane Kalembra was sitting on the bench and they probably weren’t in a hurry to put him in the game. He has never played an AHL game and only played one ECHL in his career. He was signed that morning as an emergency back-up. However, Brust actually did a good job after the first period. Maybe he realized that he was going to be in this game for the long run.

I know you’re all dying to hear how Semyon Varlamov did. When he was sent to Hershey, I’m thinking they were hoping to see him challenged more than he was tonight. He didn’t really have to deal with a lot of shots until the second period when Binghamton had a couple power plays, including a 5-on-3. He let in three goals, two while Hershey was on the penalty kill. He was pretty solid but probably wants at least one of those goals back. It’s understandable since he’s shaking off a lot of rust. He looked great when he stopped a shorthanded breakaway shot during the third period. Overall, he made 21 for 24 saves.

Hershey will rest for a few days. Their next game is Friday against the Senators again, but this time in Binghamton. The Senators are probably hoping they have more healthy goaltenders by then.

Read More

Sabourin’s Blunder Ends Hershey Comeback, 3-2


Dany Sabourin makes a save on Mike Zigomanis but costs Bears the game. Photo by Kyle M.

Wellar vs Rosehill (Photo by Kyle M.)

If you’re familiar with the Toronto Marlies, then you’ll certainly find it as no surprise that this was an aggressive game. The only consistent thing about the game was Hershey never losing control of the physical part of the game. Patrick Wellar took on Jay Rosehill for the fight of the night and it was a good one. Hard to pick a winner because all I saw were a ton of punches landing for both guys. They both walked away a little bruised and bloody.

Hershey saw a new player tonight, Phil Oreskovic, who was signed to a professional tryout yesterday. It was the perfect game to pick for his debut as he was playing against his former club. Oreskovic played for the Marlies for the past four seasons. He knew what to expect and came out delivering the big hits.

It took about two and a half periods for Hershey to finally get that first goal. Steve Pinizzotto had a great assist on Boyd Kane‘s tip-in that broke Toronto’s shutout. Just about a minute later, Kyle Greentree scored on the power play and suddenly Hershey had all the momentum in the world.

Well, that is until that fateful giveaway by Dany Sabourin. It’s a play that I think he’ll be replaying in his head over and over. He skated behind the goal to get the puck and then passed to the side where a Marlie awaited. I’m sure the coaches played Sabourin tonight to show confidence in him after a great showing in Charlotte. However, that move didn’t really work. I know that fans will be ripping him apart and they have ample reason to. Tonight was not his best showing, but it was also not his worst either. However, that giveaway was probably the worst moment of his trying season so far. The highlight of the night came after he made a sprawling glove on a shorthanded try by Mike Zigomanis. Check out Kyle M’s amazing photo of it below!

The power play seems to miss Keith Aucoin…a lot. The Bears had two 5-on-3 power plays during the game and could not convert on either. They even allowed a handful of shorthanded tries. That’s not to say that Hershey wasn’t playing well. There were a lot of dazzling offensive sequences but nothing was finding the back of the net. The biggest reason for this is the Marlies goaltender, Jussi Rynnäs. The young goalie was fantastic and I think it was sheer exhaustion from the Marlies that turned the game in Hershey’s favor.

Two weeks ago, Captain Andrew Joudrey touched on the importance of having a great first period. As much fun as those come-from-behind victories are, it’s also fun to see a 60 minute effort.

Read More

Hershey records first ever win in Charlotte, 5-2


Brian Willsie defends against Nicolas Blanchard. Photo by Checkers SmugMug

In a rare Tuesday night game, the Bears had to make up for their poor showing against the Charlotte Checkers on Sunday. And they looked pretty good, even without Keith Aucoin, Mathieu Perreault, and Lawrence Nycholat. Bumped up to the first line, Marcus Johansson did a solid job filling in at center. He was making good plays and logging a lot of playing time. No points but, at the end of the night, he had one shot on goal and a +1 rating.

For Dany Sabourin, it was a shot at redemption. I’m thinking Todd Ford is nursing a minor injury or the coaches really want to try and boost Sabourin’s confidence. Either way, he was able to make the big saves when the team needed him to and rack up those statistics we want to see. He stopped 37 out of 39 shots, giving him a scintillating .949 save percentage. Not-so-coincidentally, his defense was helping to clear the crease and block shots. The team worked together for a full 60 minute effort and the score certainly showed it. On the other end of the ice, the Bears chased starting goaltender, Justin Pogge, out of the crease after he let in two goals on three shots. Mike Murphy finished the game.

I think Kyle Greentree might love playing in Charlotte. He has scored two goals in both games against Charlotte. He came into town with three goals and left with seven. Tonight, he scored the second and fourth game on the night.

Francois Bouchard opened scoring just under 6 minutes into the game. Patrick Wellar potted the game-winning goal during the second period and the Bears led 3-0. A few minutes later, things got a little scary as Charlotte scored two goals and made it a close game. Thankfully Hershey remained composed and regained an insurance goal before Boyd Kane added on an empty net goal to secure the win.

Read More

Checkers twist up Bears, 4-2


Bryan Rodney and Boyd Kane take a ceremonial face-off before the first game between these two clubs. Photo by Checkers SmugMug

The Hershey Bears played their very first game against the Charlotte Checkers, a new team this year after the Albany River Rats were relocated. For the Bears, it was a game to forget.

Dany Sabourin continues to be a main focus of the season but not for good reasons. He had one good showing in Syracuse but has put up very mediocre numbers otherwise. He is a talented goaltender but he has not been himself this season. It’s not much of a stretch to wonder if he will be released from his contract if he can’t get back on track. I think you can see that his team is having difficulty being confident in Sabourin. He made some stellar saves in the third period after puttin up abysmal numbers during the second period. I brought up this discussion on Twitter and would like to hear some more answers: Would you rather have Sabourin or Daren Machesney?

Keith Aucoin played tonight after hurting his knee in the game against Manchester. He played for about half the game until he fell on his knee again. He stayed on the bench at first but then took that fateful walk down the tunnel and never returned. Unfortunately, this means the end of his point streak, which had reached ten games. Get well soon!

The power play was able to click late in the game to save Hershey from complete embarrassment. Both goals went to Kyle Greentree, his fourth and fifth goals of the season. Brian Fahey had a pretty good night, with primary assists on both goals. He also had some excellent plays to help out Sabourin.

Marcus Johansson had a pretty quiet night. No points or penalties and only two shots on goals. Hershey probably could have used him to step up with the absence of Aucoin.

And so Hershey loses the first ever meeting between these two teams with a score of 4-2. Rematch is set for Tuesday night.

Read More

Halloween Beatdown: Bears Maul Monarchs 7-3


Jay Beagle defeats a Monarch after Hershey defeats Manchester.

Hershey had something to prove tonight. They needed to show that they could bounce back from even the most embarassing losses. I’d say they did a pretty good job.

Just one night after pulling their own goalie, Hershey forced Manchester to do the same. Jeff Zatkoff saw 5 shots in about 15 minutes of play. 4 of those shots became Hershey goals. Brian Willsie got the first goal of the night, as he often has this season. Thus began the back-and-forth action. Manchester tied it up only to have Hershey regain the lead on a goal from Zach Miskovic. It was his second goal in two games. Manchester tied it up again on a power play goal. Just over a minute later, Keith Aucoin had a great breakaway pass from Andrew Gordon and was able to get it past Zatkoff. Mathieu Perreault, back from his stint in Washington, added an insurance goal on a mini-breakaway.

And that was all just in the first period. “It was key for us to get a good start,” Andrew Joudrey said after the game. “It was a good response.”

The second period saw no scoring change, but Manchester went from having no minor penalties to having four. They were getting frustrated and it was obvious. Jones was pretty strong in goal despite not starting the game.

During the third period, Aucoin was taken down in the corner. He definitely seemed to be in some pain, but was able to skate himself to the bench. He stayed on the bench and returned to the ice after the Bears went on a 5-on-3. Gordon deflected a Lawrence Nycholat shot to add to the score but Manchester retaliated about 30 seconds later with a goal of their own.

Todd Ford saw his first full game of the season. He’s strong on the down low shots but could use a little more work up high. He stopped 27 of 30 shots. Coach French had a lot of praise for him. “He made big saves when we needed him to,” French said. Despite a decent outing, I think Hershey is really hurting for Braden Holtby to return. Having a goalie with confidence could go a long way.

When the final horn sounded, the players were far from done. Five penalties were doled out after the game had ended, including roughing minors to Jay Beagle and Richard Clune for their roles in a pretty bitter scrap.

With the 7-3 victory, I’m sure Hershey restored some their self-esteem that was bruised from the previous night. And they’ve got a week-long break to heal up until their next game Sunday.

Read More

Bears return to their winning ways, 5-1 victory


Ashton Rome celebrates a goal with the crowd.(Photo by Kyle Mace)

This is more like the Hershey team we know and love. Backed by Braden Holtby, the Bears dominated from start to finish. And no matter how hard the Adirondack Phantoms tried to push them off their game, it couldn’t be done.

While the entire team seemed to parading to the penalty box, The Phantom’s Zac Rinaldo led the team with 3 minor penalties and one fighting major. He was in just one of three fights that happened within three minutes of each other. Matt Clackson spent the entire night looking for someone to fight him and finally found a partner in Sheldon Souray. I’m betting after the beatdown Souray gave him, he’s regretting that decision. Trevor Bruess paired off with Rinaldo and Ashton Rome squared off with Kevin Marshall.

Speaking of Rome, he led the team tonight with two goals. They were his first and second goals of the season. Brian Willsie started off the scoring (as he has done in three games now). In between Rome’s two goals, Steve Pinizzotto had a nifty goal with a nice move on Backlund. With just under five minutes left in the game, Holtby’s shutout bid ended, making Kyle Greentree‘s goal the game winner.

This game was nothing short of entertaining. Between all the goals and all the fights, if you were watching, you had to be glued to you seat. These teams really don’t like each other, no matter if the Phantoms are playing in Philadelphia or Adirondack. And the best part? They play each other again tomorrow!

Read More

Hershey falls short, lose 3-2 to Penguins


Joe Vitale scores one of his two goals on Dany Sabourin as the Baby Pens win 3-2 over the Bears. (Photo credit: AFC Media)

I mean, at least we didn’t get shut out!

It would be easy to pin the Bears loss tonight on WBS Penguins goalie Brad Thiessen who finished the game with 30 scintillating saves. However, he ended up being only the third star of the game.

Hershey just didn’t seem to have any chemistry tonight. There were a handful of inspired moments from individual players, but nothing that really made you think this team is full of Calder Cup champions. It definitely did not help that the Bears were missing Jay Beagle and Mathieu Perreault. They were mysteriously absent from the line-up. With the recent influx of injuries in Washington, it definitely had people talking. After the game, Tim Leone reported that Mark French has confirmed they have been recalled.

After this kind of loss, you would probably think that the shots were heavily favored towards the Penguins, right? So wrong. Hershey outshot them the entire night. And the final shot count? Hershey 32, Penguins 15. Ouch.

We now must take a long, leery look at Dany Sabourin, who in two games, has only a .806 save percentage. That’s not the number you want to see from a veteran goaltender. He definitely can not be faulted for all the goals against over the past two games, but he can definitely be better. I can’t help but wonder if personal things are affecting him, especially after he missed practice in Washington and in Hershey because of “family matters.” I just know that he can play better than he has been.

Now, It’s okay to be frustrated, Hershey fans. But let’s not panic yet.

Read More
Back To Top
Search