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AHL Belleville Senators

Belleville Sens Can't Beat Bears on Back-To-Back Nights

January 25, 2025 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Belleville Senators News Release


On Saturday night, fans at CAA Arena were treated to another back-and-forth affair between the Belleville Senators and Hershey Bears. Still, unlike the previous evening, the Bears came away with the win. Hershey knocked off Belleville 5-3 despite a trio of assists from Sens forward Angus Crookshank.

The Senators would find the net first through an early power play goal from Wyatt Bongiovanni. With Sam Gagner set up on the left side of the zone, Jeremy Davies used him as a decoy and fed Bongiovanni, who one-timed his 14th goal of the campaign past Hunter Shepard. The Sens held on to the 1-0 lead for the rest of the period despite having to kill off a penalty and being outshot 12-4.

The Bears also had 1:29 of power play time carry over into the second, and they made it count. One of Hershey's 2025 AHL All-Star selections, defenceman Ethan Bear, was credited with his sixth goal of the season just 50 seconds into the period. Hershey tacked on another power play goal 14 minutes later from Chase Priskie, but Belleville would tie the game less than two minutes later when Stephen Halliday hopped on a rebound in the crease to make it 2-2. The tie only lasted about three-and-a-half minutes until Bears defender Jon McDonald put his second of the season over the line during a goalmouth scramble in the dying seconds of the period to give Hershey the 3-2 lead after 40 minutes.

Hershey opened up a two-goal lead early in the third period when Zac Funk beat Simpson, but Max Guenette got the Sens back within a goal, one-timing home his fourth goal of the season from Crookshank. But Mike Vecchione would get one more for Hershey to make it 5-3, scoring for the third consecutive game against the Senators.

Belleville is back in action on Wednesday when they host the Hartford Wolf Pack (AHL affiliate of the New York Rangers). They'll finish the first half of the season with a home-and-home set against the Utica Comets on Friday, January 31, at the Adirondack Bank Center and back home at CAA Arena on Saturday, February 1.

The Senators and Bears will finish their four-game season series in Hershey in early March.

You can see the complete box score.

Fast Facts:

#4 Jeremy Davies collected his 20th assist of the season to snap a five-game pointless drought

#5 Wyatt Bongiovanni scored his 14th goal of the season

#9 Angus Crookshank finished the game with three assists and a team-high shots of four shots on goal

#13 Xavier Bourgault was credited with his fourth assist of the season

#21 Max Guenette scored his fourth goal of the season

#31 Michael Simpson stopped 30 of 35 shots he faced in the loss

#34 Stephen Halliday scored for the 10th time this season

#38 Wyatte Wylie recorded his fourth assist of the campaign in his return from a three-game injury layoff

#89 Sam Gagner had no points but a team-high four shots on goal

The Senators were 1/2 on the Lifestyle Home Products Power Play and 4/6 on the ViewTech Window and Door Penalty Kill

Highlights:

Head Coach Dave Bell Media Availability:

Sound Bytes:

Sens Head Coach Dave Bell on the result:

"They found a way to out will and out battle us with a lesser lineup than I thought we had, and they deserved the win. We didn't get enough pucks to the net, and we didn't win enough battles, so they earned the win wholeheartedly."

Bell on Sam Gagner's contributions over the weekend:

"Calmness. He's smart. Guys talk to him on the bench about pretty much every situation. He's already speaking up in the dressing room in intermission which is excellent. Obviously, our power play has goals in back to back games; that's not a coincidence. He's been a good addition."

Upcoming Games

Wednesday, January 29, 2025 - Belleville Senators vs. Hartford Wolf Pack - 7:00 p.m. ET (CAA Arena)

Friday, January 31, 2025 - Belleville Senators @ Utica Comets - 7:00 p.m. (Adirondack Bank Center)

Saturday, February 1, 2025 - Belleville Senators vs Utica Comets (7:00 p.m.) (CAA Arena)

Ticket Info:

Tickets for all 2024-25 Belleville Sens home games are now on sale via Ticketmaster, by emailing tickets@bellevillesens.com, or at the Belleville Sens Box Office at CAA Arena during select hours.

Fans looking for details on other ticketing options can click the following links for more on becoming a season seat member, purchasing a flex pack membership, or putting down a deposit for a group experience. More information on those ticket options, plus details on premium seating and Business Elite packages is available by visiting the Belleville Sens website or emailing tickets@bellevillesens.com.

Check out the Belleville Senators Statistics

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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.

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