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AHL Hershey Bears

Bears Head into All-Star Break with Three Games

January 30, 2024 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Hershey Bears News Release


(Hershey, PA) - The Hershey Bears (34-7-0-2) will play three games this week before heading into the American Hockey League's All-Star break. Hershey sits atop the league standings, having earned 70 points through the first 43 games of the season. The Bears visit the Lehigh Valley Phantoms twice this week before returning home Saturday night to face the Bridgeport Islanders at GIANT Center.

TEAM LEADERS:

Goals: Pierrick Dubé (22)

Assists: Mike Sgarbossa (34)

Points: Mike Sgarbossa (41)

Power-Play Goals: Ethen Frank (9)

Shorthanded Goals: Hendrix Lapierre, Henrik Rybinski, Bogdan Trineyev (1)

Plus/Minus: Ivan Miroshnichenko (+16)

Wins: Hunter Shepard (17)

GAA: Clay Stevenson (1.67)

SV%: Clay Stevenson (.939)

Only includes qualified players on active roster

LAST WEEK'S RESULTS:

- Wednesday, Jan. 24 - Hershey 4 vs. Springfield 1

- Saturday, Jan. 27 - Hershey 3 at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 2

- Sunday, Jan. 28 - Hershey 4 vs. Toronto 3 (OT)

LOCAL PRACTICE SCHEDULE FOR WEEK OF JAN. 29:

Monday, Jan. 29

DAY OFF

Tuesday, Jan. 30

Practice, 10:30 a.m. at GIANT Center

Wednesday, Jan. 31

Morning Skate, 10:15 a.m. at GIANT Center

Thursday, Feb. 1

Practice, 10:30 a.m. at GIANT Center

Friday, Feb. 2

Morning Skate, 10:15 a.m. at GIANT Center

All practices are open to the public. Practice dates and times are subject to change.

UPCOMING GAME SCHEDULE:

Wednesday, Jan. 31 - Hershey at Lehigh Valley Phantoms, 7:05 p.m.

Friday, Feb. 2 - Hershey at Lehigh Valley Phantoms, 7:05 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 3 - Hershey vs. Bridgeport Islanders, 7 p.m. - BUY TICKETS

Hometown Heroes Night - First responders-themed activities and recognition throughout the evening

Pennsylvania Lottery Night - The first 4,000 fans 18-and-over will receive a coupon offer, courtesy of the Pennsylvania Lottery

TV Coverage: NHL Network (Wednesday only), FOX43 (Saturday only), Video Coverage: AHLTV; Radio Coverage: Bears Radio Network

All times Eastern

TEAM NEWS AND NOTES:

SIX MORE YEARS:

The Bears and Washington Capitals jointly announced on Monday the signing of a six-year extension to their existing affiliation agreement, extending one of the more fruitful partnerships in the AHL through the 2029-30 season. Hershey has posted a record of 783-428-72-91 (.629 point percentage) since the current affiliation with Washington began in 2005-06; since then, Hershey has won four Calder Cup championships - no NHL-AHL pairing has produced more Calder Cups in that time.

NESS CLOSING IN ON 700:

Defender Aaron Ness' next game will be the 700th of his AHL career. The Roseau, Minnesota native has logged 313 points (55g, 258a) in 699 career AHL games collectively played with Bridgeport, Tucson, Providence, and Hershey. With 162 points (27g, 135a) in his Hershey tenure, and three points in his last four games, the veteran blueliner only needs seven more points to pass Mike Gaul for seventh in franchise scoring among defensemen.

JANUARY LEADERS:

With the month drawing to a close this week, the Bears are paced in scoring by Mike Sgarbossa and Joe Snively, who have contributed an identical nine points (1g, 8a), though Snively has played 10 games to Sgarbossa's nine. Ethen Frank leads the way with six goals, while Pierrick Dubé has 31 shots, and Lucas Johansen (currently week-to-week with an upper-body injury) owns a plus-minus of +5.

NELSON CONTINUING CLIMB:

Bears head coach Todd Nelson enters the week with 387 career head coaching wins in the AHL. That leaves him just one behind former Hartford Wolf Pack head coach Ken Gernander's 388 victories, which ranks eighth all-time in AHL history. At 353 wins entering the season, Nelson has already passed Robbie Ftorek (354), Terry Reardon (362), Mark Morris (374), and Randy Cunneyworth (384) in his ascension up the AHL's wins leaderboard during the current campaign.

BIG-GAME FRANK:

Ethen Frank's game-winning goal on Saturday at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton gave the forward his team-leading sixth game-winning goal of the season. That has the sophomore forward tied for second in the AHL with the most game-winners. Frank is also tied for the league lead with nine power-play goals; Hershey is 14-0-0-1 this season when he lights the lamp.

A WELL-DESERVED BREAK:

Following Saturday's home game against Bridgeport, the team will have a few days off while several members of the Bears roster and staff will travel to San Jose, California, to participate in the 2023 AHL All-Star Classic, presented by Tech CU. Bears captain Dylan McIlrath will serve as a playing captain for the Atlantic Division, where he will be joined by Hershey teammates Ethen Frank and Clay Stevenson. Additionally, Bears head coach Todd Nelson will serve as the Atlantic Division coach, while head athletic trainer Shawn Fliszar and assistant equipment manager Dillon Filepas will represent the Bears as support staff for the event. The All-Star Classic will take place over two days from Feb. 4-5 at Tech CU Arena, which will air live in the United States on NHL Network.

ROAD WARRIORS:

Last Saturday's road win at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton extended Hershey's road point streak to seven games (5-0-0-2), a season-high for the club and the longest currently active road point streak in the AHL. Hershey is 14-3-0-2 on the road this season for a league-leading .789 road point percentage. The Bears have posted a 2-0-0-1 record at Lehigh Valley this season, where they will play their first two games of the week. The franchise record for longest road point streak is 10 games (6-0-2-2, Oct. 29-Dec. 9, 2005).

PHANTOMS AT-A-GLANCE:

Hershey owns a 5-1-0-1 record against the Phantoms overall this season, most recently falling in a 4-3 shootout decision at PPL Center on Jan. 13. Bogdan Trineyev (2g, 3a), Ivan Miroshnichenko (1g, 4a), and Mike Sgarbossa (1g, 4a) are tied for Hershey's team scoring lead against the Phantoms, while Pierrick Dubé leads Hershey in goals against Lehigh Valley. The Phantoms are led in scoring against the Bears by recalled forward Olle Lycksell (2g, 2a), Cooper Marody (1g, 3a), and Garrett Wilson (1g, 3a).

ISLANDERS DROP ANCHOR IN HERSHEY:

Bridgeport makes its final visit of the season to Hershey on Saturday to close out its regular-season series. The Bears own a 4-0-0-1 record against the Islanders, with Mike Sgarbossa pacing the team in scoring with seven points (1g, 6a). Ruslan Iskhakov leads Bridgeport with four points (2g, 2a) against Hershey.

BEARS BITES:

Joe Snively needs one assist for 100 in his professional career...Riley Sutter played in his 200th professional game, all with the Bears, on Saturday against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton...Jimmy Huntington recorded two goals for the Bears on Sunday to reach 100 career AHL points...The Chocolate and White have gone 11-2-0-1 on the road this season when scoring a goal in the first period...The Bears are 16-0-0-0 at home this season when scoring first...Hershey is 14-0-0-0 at home when not allowing a goal in the opening frame...Hershey is 17-1-0-2 this season in games decided by one goal...Hershey is averaging the fewest goals against (2.09) and shots against (26.49) among AHL teams...The Bears have more first goals (27) and wins when scoring first (25) than any other team.

Check out the Hershey Bears Statistics



American Hockey League Stories from January 30, 2024


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