Chay Genoway, seen here earlier in the season, had Hershey’s first goal of Friday night (Kyle Mace / Sweetest Hockey on Earth)
After losing to Syracuse Friday night, the Bears look to win the weekend by putting together back to back victories over the next two days at Giant Center. It starts tonight against a team with one of the worst records in the AHL, the Bridgeport Sound Tigers.
HERSHEY, PA – Cameron Schilling looks on as Syracuse celebrates one of their three goals against Hershey Friday night (Kyle Mace / Sweetest Hockey on Earth)
Fans packed Giant Center for a rare Friday night game against the Syracuse Crunch. Ryan Potulny made his anticipated season debut with the Chocolate and White and was inserted on an offensive line with Jeff Taffe and Casey Wellman.
A lackadaisical second period for the Chocolate and White set the stage for a 3-2 defeat to the Crunch.
HERSHEY, PA – John Mitchell scores on Kristers Gudlevskis during Hershey’s shootout win over Syracuse (Kyle Mace / Sweetest Hockey on Earth)
Jamie Johnson, 10, was released from his SPC by the Hershey Bears and will head to the KHL (Kyle Mace / Sweetest Hockey on Earth)
The Hershey Bears announced Monday morning that Jamie Johnson from his standard player’s contract to play in the KHL. The forward played in eight games this season for the Chocolate and White, scoring one goal and four points. Johnson, 31, played last season with Riga Dynamo and will rejoin them where he scored eight goals and 22 points.
HERSHEY, PA – Joel Rechlicz waves to the crowd after his second period fight in his return to the Hershey Bears during the Bears 2-1 loss to Syracuse (Tim Stough – Sweetest Hockey on Earth)
Saturday night the Hershey Bears re-matched the Syracuse Crunch at Giant Center in the final meeting of the campaign between the two sides. Opening night only rolls around once every hockey season when newer faces make their very first impression to the Hershey faithful. However in the first home game ensuing a busy trade deadline, this game had the feel of a second home opener with all the new faces.
Nate Schmidt, Michael Latta, and Dane Byers all made their Giant Center debut. Also returning to the lineup was the fan favorite enforcer, Joel Rechlicz. Rechlicz last played for Hershey last season totaling 267 penalty minutes and was not resigned during the off season. A player swap last week involving Matt Clackson and the Portland Pirates brings Rechlicz back to Hershey for his third season.
In the Bears’ second home opener of the season, it was a similar result to their first on October 20. Joey Crabb scored Hershey’s lone tally and fell to the Syracuse Crunch by a 2-1 count.
HERSHEY, PA – Tomas Kundratek, seen here at the 2013 Outdoor Classic, scored twice in Hershey’s 4-2 win over Syracuse tonight (Kyle Mace – Sweetest Hockey on Earth)
Friday night it was the battle of candy bars north of the Pennsylvania border. The chocolate covered Hershey Bears battled the Crunch of Syracuse. Tomas Kundratek returned to the Hershey lineup for the first time since the Outdoor Classic on January 20, and impacted the match with two goals including the game-winner.
Boyd Kane started the scoring, and Peter LeBlanc tallied a highlight reel insurance marker in the third period to help his team’s charge towards a staggering 4-1 win.
HERSHEY, PA – Jeff Taffe celebrates one of Hershey’s goals in their 5-3 comeback win (Kyle Mace – Sweetest Hockey on Earth)
The Hershey Bears looked to conclude a perfect weekend sweep against East Division teams on Sunday with a tilt against the Syracuse Crunch. It was the fourth meeting of the season between the Bears and Crunch with Hershey looking for their first victory against Tampa Bay Lightning’s top affiliate.
World Wrestling Entertainment legend Ric Flair often infamously said, “To be the man, you have to beat the man.” Sunday evening the Bears beat the man of the Eastern Conference with a stunning 5-3 win over the top seeded Crunch.
The rink taking shape at Hersheypark Stadium (Photo via our Instagram account)
Today kicks off our 2013 Outdoor Classic coverage here on Sweetest Hockey. We will be bringing you feature stories about the game and the events leading up to it right here. Check back with us everyday for a few new stories ranging from the assembly of the rink, to player interviews. Hope you enjoy!
In 2008, the NHL introduced a new event that has changed the game of hockey: the Winter Classic. Since then, five other NHL outdoor games have been played across the country. A few years the AHL decided take after their parent league and playing an outdoor game of their own and then officially establishing an Outdoor Classic a few years later. Since then, the Hershey Bears have taken part in two of them, and one of which will be played in less than a week.
HERSHEY, PA – Dany Sabourin is replaced by Braden Holtby in the first period after Sabourin gave up two quick goals in Hershey’s 5-3 loss. (Kyle Mace – Sweetest Hockey on Earth)
Sunday night the Hershey Bears looked for revenge over the Syracuse Crunch after suffering a 6-1 beat down, nearly 48 hours prior to the start of Sunday’s game. Dany Sabourin, who came into Friday’s game in relief for Braden Holtby drew the start against Dustin Tokarski. A third period scoring explosion for Syracuse led to a 5-2 win over Hershey.
Photo credit @SyracuseCrunch
There were seven goals in tonight’s Bears-Crunch game, yet only one would go into Syracuse’s net. The Crunch scored six goals on forty shots in an effort that would force Braden Holtby out of the game and hand Hershey a 6-1 loss.