Bears End Road Trip Finale with 3-2 Shootout Loss to Checkers
February 19, 2023 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Hershey Bears News Release
(Charlotte, NC ) - The Hershey Bears (31-12-5-2) got goals from Ethen Frank and Shane Gersich, but the Charlotte Checkers (29-17-2-2) tied the game late and prevailed in a shootout to deal the Chocolate and White a 3-2 loss on Sunday evening at Bojangles Coliseum. The contest completed a three-game road trip in which Hershey picked up four of six possible points by going 1-0-1-1.
Frank put Hershey up 1-0 for the second consecutive night when Lucas Johansen threaded a pass through the neutral zone to the rookie forward at the attacking blue line, and he raced in before slipping the puck between the legs of Mack Guzda for his 23rd of the season at 1:15.
Zac Dalpe made it 1-1 at 5:56 as he dug the puck out of the left corner and threw it on net, and his shot glanced off the skate of goaltender Hunter Shepard and into the net.
The Bears took a 2-1 lead at 5:58 of the second period when Gersich deflected Vincent Iorio's shot from the right point into the net in the dying moments of a power play for his fourth of the season. Garrett Pilon collected a secondary helper on the goal.
Henry Bowlby tied the game late in the third period when he recovered a blocked shot in the slot and slipped it past Shepard at 17:12.
Each team earned a point with the game tied 2-2 at the end of regulation, and overtime yielded no change, sending Hershey to its fifth shootout of the season. After Connor McMichael scored in the top of the first round, Riley Nash equalized. Mike Sgarbossa was denied in the second round, and Dalpe scored for Charlotte to put the Bears in need of a goal from Frank in the third round. Guzda came up with the stop to secure the win for the hosts.
Shots finished 32-23 in favor of the Bears. Shepard went 20-for-22 in the defeat; Guzda was 30-for-32 for Charlotte. The Bears were 1-for-7 on the power play; the Checkers finished 0-for-2 with the man advantage.
Hershey continues the 2022-23 season, presented by Penn State Health, when the Chocolate and White return home to host the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on Saturday, Feb. 25 at 7 p.m. for Faulkner Dodge Ram Bucket Hat Night. The first 5,000 fans in attendance will receive a Bears bucket hat, courtesy of Faulkner Dodge Ram. Purchase tickets for the game.
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