AHL Hershey Bears

Bears reach halfway point, Leafs in town Wednesday

Published on January 17, 2005 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Hershey Bears News Release


Last Week: HERSHEY opened the week with a 3-2 win at Norfolk, the team's 20th victory of the season. Eric Perrin scored the game's first goal early in the first period and won the game late in the third with his second of the game and 13th of the season. Peter Budaj won his 14th game of the season by stopping 30 of 32 shots. Carl Corazzini also added his eighth goal of the year in the triumph. Saturday night saw the BEARS return home to GIANT Center for the first time since January 2, where the club dropped a narrow 3-2 decision to Norfolk. Corazzini and Chris Bala each scored goals less than four minutes into the game, but the Admirals would rebound with three goals in the second period to break HERSHEY'S seven-game winning streak. The BEARS begin the week 20-18-1-0, good for 41 points and fifth place in the AHL's East Division standings. HERSHEY also begins play this week six points behind Wilkes-Barre/Scranton for fourth place and ten points behind the Binghamton Senators for second in the East.

Notables: Head Coach Paul Fixter left the team today for a leave of absence to be with his father in Kitchener, Ontario. Fixter's father Frank is scheduled for open-heart surgery on Wednesday. Assistant coach Paul Jerrard will assume the coaching duties in Fixter's absence, with assistance from Colorado Avalanche vice president of player personnel Michel Goulet. Eric Perrin has points in eight straight games entering play Wednesday night. The streak represents a HERSHEY season high for points in consecutive games. The BEARS will be exactly halfway through the 2004-05 season after Wednesday night's game with the Maple Leafs. Carl Corazzini has a goal in each of his last two games, and nine goals and 17 points since a trade that brought him to HERSHEY on November 15. The loss for Peter Budaj on Saturday was his first since dropping a 4-0 game to the Lowell Lock Monsters on December 12. In between, the third-year professional won nine consecutive starts with wins over Albany (three times), Manchester, Norfolk (twice), Binghamton, Philadelphia and Worcester. HERSHEY will play back-to-back nights Friday and Saturday for the first time since December 18-19. The BEARS will also play four games in five nights each of the next two weeks to close out the month of January. Forward Greg Barber was assigned to Quad City after the game Saturday. The rookie forward will join the Mallards in time for practice today.

Upcoming promotions: The second and final HERSHEYPARK pass night of 2004-05 comes up on Wednesday, January 26 when the St. John's Maple Leafs visit GIANT Center. All fans receive a complimentary pass to HERSHEYPARK for the 2005 Park season, good through July 4, 2005. Stoner Graphix HERSHEY BEARS Post it-Notepad night is Saturday, February 5 when the Binghamton Senators come to town at 7:00 p.m. A free BEARS post-it note pad to the first 3,000 fans. COCO THE BEAR Bobblehead night, sponsored by your hometown Dodge Dealers, is Sunday, February 27 when the BEARS play the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins at 5:00 p.m. A free bobblehead doll of HERSHEY BEARS mascot COCO to the first 4,500 fans through the gates. Sunday, March 13 is Throwback night at GIANT Center, with the BEARS taking on the Norfolk Admirals at 5:00 p.m. HERSHEY will wear commemorative 1968-69 jerseys that will be auctioned off after the game for charity.

Down on the Farm: The Reading Royals defeated the Toledo Storm on Sunday at the Sovereign Center 4-2. Jon Francisco scored his ninth goal of the season to open the scoring in the first period before Jeff Miles picked up his 17th goal of the year. The Royals also got goals from Graig Mischler and Cail MacLean to round out the scoring. Reading has notched points in nine of its last ten games to move into third place in the ECHL North Division, just two points behind first place Atlantic City. The UHL's Quad City Mallards are unbeaten in five games after a 4-2 win over Elmira Saturday night. Mike Kompon and Justin Brown scored early in the first period to pace the Mallards to the win. Quad City is 16-15-6 in the Western Division, trailing third place Missouri by seven points.

Practice Schedule (Subject to Change):

Monday, January 10: Practice-GIANT Center 10:00 a.m.

Tuesday, January 11: Practice-GIANT Center 10:00 a.m.

Wednesday, January 12: Home game vs. St. John's, 7:30 p.m.

Thursday, January 13: Practice-GIANT Center 10:00 a.m.

Friday, January 14: Road game at Norfolk 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, January 15: Home game vs. Philadelphia, 7:00 p.m.

Sunday, January 16: Home game vs. Binghamton, 5:00 p.m.

The week ahead:

Wednesday, January 19: St. John's Maple Leafs at BEARS 7:30 PM Game #40, Home Game #21 Radio: 1460 AM/1390 AM PRE-GAME: 7:10 PM

Friday, January 21: BEARS at Norfolk Admirals 7:30 PM Game #41, Road Game #20 Radio: 1460 AM/1390 AM PRE-GAME: 7:10 PM

Saturday, January 22: Philadelphia Phantoms at BEARS 7:00 PM Game #42, Home Game #22 Radio: 1460 AM/1390 AM PRE-GAME: 6:40 PM

Sunday, January 23: Binghamton Senators at BEARS 5:00 PM Game #43, Home Game #23 Radio: 1460 AM/1390 AM PRE-GAME: 4:40 PM

Check out the Hershey Bears Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



American Hockey League Stories from January 17, 2005


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central