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AHL Hershey Bears

Bears Top Penguins 7-5 to Set Franchise Mark

November 29, 2023 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Hershey Bears News Release


(Wilkes-Barre Township, PA) -The Hershey Bears (16-4-0-0) overcame a 3-1 deficit in the second period by reeling off four goals in a span of 9:20 to seize the lead and never relinquish it in an eventual 7-5 win over the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (9-8-2-0) on Wednesday night at Mohegan Sun Arena.

With the victory, Hershey extended its season-high win streak to seven games. By earning their 16th win of the season in only their 20th game, the Chocolate and White simultaneously established a new franchise record for the most wins through the first 20 games of a season, surpassing the 1957-58 (15-3-2) and 1946-47 (15-4-1) Bears squads.

Sam Houde gave the Penguins an early 1-0 lead when he deflected Xavier Ouellette's shot from the left point past a screened Hunter Shepard for a power-play goal at 3:07.

By the 5:23 mark of the opening frame, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton had out-shot Hershey 8-1, and Taylor Fedun's shot from the blue line was redirected by Houde for his second of the night.

Moments after a Bears power play expired, Vincent Iorio beat Joel Blomqvist for his second of the season at 12:13, with assists to Aaron Ness and Joe Snively.

Rem Pitlick buried a rebound at 13:09 for a Wilkes-Barre/Scranton power-play goal to give the hosts a 3-1 edge.

The Bears found their groove midway through the second period, as Mike Sgarbossa snapped a 14-game stretch without a goal with a power-play marker from the right circle that beat Blomqvist with traffic in front at 9:33 for Sgarbossa's fourth of the season. Chase Priskie received credit for an assist on the goal.

Joe Snively tied the game with a breakaway goal as he peeled away from a Wilkes-Barre/Scranton defender and roofed a backhand shot past the glove of Blomqvist at 11:09 for his fifth of the season from Alex Limoges and Ness.

Pierrick Dubé rifled home a one-touch pass in the slot from Garrett Roe at 15:34 to give the Bears a 4-3 lead, with Bogdan Trineyev adding a secondary assist. The goal gave Dubé his eighth of the season for a share of the team goal-scoring lead with Ethen Frank.

Hershey's fourth line then got in on the action, as Matt Strome worked the puck behind the net of Blomqvist to Ivan Miroshnichenko, who found Riley Sutter in front to bury his third of the season at 18:53.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton made a goaltending change to begin the final frame, inserting Magnus Hellberg between the pipes.

Joona Koppanen pulled the Penguins to within a goal at 6:15, deflecting Fedun's shot from the right point over the shoulder of Shepard.

Hershey responded at 10:17 as Sutter forced a turnover in the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton zone and found Miroshnichenko at the left of the net, and the rookie squeezed the puck through the pads of Hellberg for his fifth of the season. Ness earned his third assist of the night to tie a personal single-game career high for assists and points, and moved past former Bears defender Patrick McNeill (33g, 119a) for eighth all-time in franchise scoring among defensemen with his 153rd point (25g, 128a) for the Chocolate and White.

With Hellberg pulled for an extra skater with under four minutes remaining in regulation, the Penguins converted at 17:16 as John Gruden was able to bang home a loose puck.

Now trailing by only a goal, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton again pulled Hellberg, but Snively sealed the victory for the Bears with an empty-net goal from Trineyev at 18:17.

Shots finished 27-25 in favor of the Penguins. Shepard went 22-for-27 to secure his fifth consecutive victory of the season and his ninth win of the season overall (tied for the AHL lead); Blomqvist went 14-for-19 for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, while Hellberg took the loss in his relief appearance, going 4-for-5. Hershey went 1-for-5 on the power play; the Penguins went 2-for-5 with the man advantage.

The Bears continue the 2023-24 season, presented by Penn State Health, when they visit the Charlotte Checkers for the first of two games this weekend at Bojangles' Coliseum on Friday, Dec. 1 at 7 p.m. Hershey returns home to GIANT Center to host the Cleveland Monsters for Hometown Heroes Night, featuring military-themed activities and recognition throughout the evening, on Saturday, Dec. 9 at 7 p.m. Purchase tickets for the game.

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