Bears Top Phantoms 3-2 to Complete Preseason
AHL Hershey Bears

Bears Top Phantoms 3-2 to Complete Preseason

Published on October 5, 2025 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Hershey Bears News Release


(Allentown, PA) - The Hershey Bears (2-0-0-1) concluded the preseason as they defeated the Lehigh Valley Phantoms (0-3-0-0) by a 3-2 score on Sunday afternoon at PPL Center.

NOTABLES:

Hershey got the scoring started just 3:05 into the contest on rookie Patrick Thomas' first goal of the preseason. Thomas struck from the left wing with assists coming from former Phantoms Dalton Smith and Louie Belpedio.

Lehigh Valley scored twice before the first period ended as Samu Tuomaala tallied on the power play at 8:50 and Ty Murchison scored at 12:26 to give the Phantoms a 2-1 lead after 20 minutes.

Hershey scored the lone goal of the second period as veteran defenseman Calle Rosén struck in his preseason debut, connecting on the power play at 10:55 on a shot from the point. Andrew Cristall and Graeme Clarke added assists in their Hershey preseason debuts.

Hershey outshot the Phantoms 15-7 in the second period.

The Bears added another goal from a defender as David Gucciardi scored the eventual game-winner for the Bears at 6:16 of the third period. With the teams skating four-on-four, Gucciardi's shot from the deep slot beat Lehigh Valley goalie Aleksei Kolosov for his first of the preseason, assisted by Thomas and Cristall.

Goaltender Antoine Keller saw his first game action, playing the third period for Hershey and stopping nine shots to earn the win.

SHOTS: HER 28, LV 26

GOALTENDING: HER - Garin Bjorklund, 15-for-17, Antoine Keller [W], 9-for-9; LV - Aleksei Kolosov, 25-for-28 [L]

POWER PLAY: HER - 1-for-4; LV - 1-for-5

THEY SAID IT:

Bears head coach Derek King's assessment of the game:

"Well we won, which was nice. We've got to clean up some things before the season starts. We can't go into the season playing like that. But I liked our compete. I think we had some tired bodies. It's a tough preseason. We want to get it over with and get home and then start working on our team."

King on the play of Antoine Keller:

"I thought maybe we'd give him a little more support, but we gave the other team a couple of prime chances right off the bat, his first couple of shots. But he stood in there, made the saves, and he made some key saves at the end of the game, too. So I was really happy with him."

David Gucciardi on his comfort level as the game progressed and thoughts on his first pro training:

"I think I got more comfortable as the game went on. A couple of puck touches I'd probably want to have back, but I got more comfortable, so that was good and it's always a good sign. First training camp, definitely a really good experience for me, I learned a lot - I thought it was a lot of fun just being back with the guys after a long summer."

Andrew Cristall on the team's play today and excitement for the start of his first professional season:

"I thought we got better as the game went on. A little choppy at the start, but I think we kind of got our groove going a bit and ended up going well. I'm sure the GIANT Center will be buzzing, I'm super excited to get the season going and get in there."

The Bears open the 2025-26 season, presented by Penn State Health, against the Syracuse Crunch on Saturday, Oct. 11 at 7 p.m. at GIANT Center. For single-game ticket information, visit HersheyBears.com.

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