Bears Plow Through Up-And-Down Weekend
Published on November 19, 2012 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Hershey Bears News Release
The HERSHEY BEARS Hockey Club picked up one win in a weekend with three games against two teams. On Friday night, the BEARS fell 6-1 to the division-leading Syracuse Crunch with the BEARS' lone tally in the setback coming off the stick of center Mike Carman. The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins came to town on Saturday and the result of the game was the same for HERSHEY as in the teams' first two matchups - another victory. Garrett Mitchell scored on a shorthanded penalty shot and added an even-strength goal, Tomas Kundratek netted a late-period power play marker and Boyd Kane an empty-netter en route to the 4-1 win. Braden Holtby made 23 saves in earning his fourth win of the season. Syracuse made their first visit to Chocolatetown on Sunday, wrapping up three consecutive games for both teams. The BEARS put forth a much stronger effort, but the visitors struck for two third-period goals separated by 46 seconds and went on to a 5-3 win. The scoring was highlighted by T.J. Syner's first AHL goal and the team-leading fifth goal of the season for center Jeff Taffe. Zach Hamill scored his fourth goal of the year late in the game, and winger Alex Berry - who missed all of 2011-12 due to injury - posted his first AHL point since April, 2011 by assisting on Hamill's tally.
The Penguins come right back to HERSHEY for a Thanksgiving Eve contest, with the popular on-ice Canteen Vending/Bimbo Bakeries Turkey Shoot for all fans following the game. The BEARS visit the Adirondack Phantoms on Saturday, the team's first trip to Glens Falls, NY since last October 29. The weekend concludes with former BEARS star Keith Aucoin and the Toronto Marlies visiting on Sunday.
BEARS NEWS AND NOTES
"O" FROM THE "D": Two of the BEARS' top three scorers are defensemen (1st - Garrett Stafford 1-13-14, 3rd - Tomas Kundratek 4-7-11). The BEARS defense corps has contributed 37 points (8-29-37) through the first 15 games.
TOMAS TALLYING: D Tomas Kundratek is climbing the ranks among AHL defensemen. His three power-play goals rank tied for second, his nine power-play points rank second, and his overall point total (4-7-11) ranks tied for 10th.
STAFFORD IN GOOD STANDING: D Garrett Stafford has accumulated eight assists in his last 10 games. His 13 helpers rank tied for second overall in the AHL, and his seven power-play assists rank tied for second among blueliners.
DiSALVATORE CLOSING IN: RW Jon DiSalvatore needs one more point to reach 500 in his AHL career (208-291-499). The veteran winger is also just seven games away from 700 in the AHL.
GRAND GARRETT: RW Garrett Mitchell had a career night on Saturday against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, scoring twice and posting a plus-3 rating to earn the game's number one star. His first period penalty shot goal was scored shorthanded, giving Mitchell two shorthanded goals on the season to tie for the AHL lead.
IT'S BEEN A WHILE: RW Garrett Mitchell's penalty shot goal on Saturday night was the first successful penalty shot for the BEARS since Mathieu Perreault beat Bridgeport's Scott Munroe on February 27, 2010.
MORE FIRSTS: F T.J. Syner registered his first AHL goal on Sunday against Syracuse, his first point of the season. RW Alex Berry also chipped in on Sunday with his first point of the campaign, an assist. Of the 25 forwards and defensemen on the BEARS' active roster, 24 have found the score sheet with at least one point - the most in the AHL.
HERSHEY BEARS SCORING LEADERS
PLAYER GP G A PTS STAT LEADER __
Garrett Stafford 15 1 13 14 Goals J. Taffe 5
Jeff Taffe 15 5 8 13 Assists G. Stafford 13
Tomas Kundratek 15 4 7 11 Points G. Stafford 14
Jon DiSalvatore 15 2 6 8 +/- G. Mitchell +5
Garrett Mitchell 15 4 3 7 PP Goals T. Kundratek, J. Taffe 3
SH Goals G. Mitchell 2
Wins B. Holtby 4
GAA B. Holtby 2.53
SV % B. Holtby .927
AHL EAST DIVISION
TEAM GP W L OTL SOL PTS
Syracuse Crunch 14 10 2 1 1 22
Binghamton Senators 13 7 4 1 1 16
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 15 8 7 0 0 16
Norfolk Admirals 14 7 7 0 0 14
HERSHEY BEARS 16 6 8 1 0 13
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