Sports stats



AHL Hershey Bears

Game Preview: Bears at Islanders, 7 p.m.

April 14, 2023 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Hershey Bears News Release


(Bridgeport, CT) - The Hershey Bears continue the 2022-23 season, presented by Penn State Health, as they play their final road game of the campaign tonight in Bridgeport against the Islanders.

Hershey Bears (43-18-5-4) at Bridgeport Islanders (33-29-7-1)

April 14, 2023 | 7 p.m. | Game 71 | Total Mortgage Arena

Referees: Graedy Hamilton (#91), Jordan Watt (#83)

Linespersons: Josh Cleary (#45), Kevin Briganti (#39)

Broadcast Information

Voice of the Bears, Zack Fisch on the call

RADIO: WFVY-100.1 FM, Fox Sports 1460-AM, SportsRadio 98.9-FM & WOYK 1350-AM, Capitals Radio Network

WATCH LIVE: AHLTV (Free AHLTV Game of the Week)

LISTEN LIVE: Fox Sports AM-1460 Stream, Caps Radio

Radio pre-game coverage starts at 6:30 p.m.

LAST TIME OUT:

The Bears faced the Charlotte Checkers on Tuesday, falling by a 4-3 final. Hershey received goals from Aaron Ness, Mike Vecchione, and Garrett Pilon, but Charlotte ultimately went 3-for-4 with the man advantage to deal Hershey its first home loss in over a month. The Islanders faced the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on Wednesday, picking up a 6-4 win at home after Chris Terry's second career AHL hat trick powered Bridgeport to victory.

CHASE FOR THE ATLANTIC:

It's a two-team race for the top spot in the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference crowns this weekend, as Hershey holds a one-point lead on Providence, but has played one more game. The easiest path to claiming the top seed in the division and conference is for the Bears to win both remaining games, while Providence must lose one of its remaining three matches in regulation.

BRIDGE-ING THE GAP:

The Bridgeport Islanders were eliminated from postseason contention last week, but they still have the ability to play the role of potential spoiler for the Bears tonight in Hershey's third and final visit to Connecticut of the season as Hershey still seeks to clinch the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference titles. The Bears own a 4-1-0-0 record against the Islanders in the 2022-23 campaign, and have won both prior meetings at Total Mortgage Arena this season. Ethen Frank (out since sustaining an upper body injury in Hershey's game at Toronto on March 29) leads Hershey with eight points (3g, 5a) in five games against Bridgeport, while Mike Vecchione is second with six points (2g, 4a).

ROAD WARRIORS:

With a road record of 21-9-3-2, the Bears enter tonight's final road contest with the second-best road record in the Eastern Conference and fifth overall in the AHL. The Bears have heated up down the stretch run as well, going 7-1-0-1 over their last nine road performances. Hershey's 82 goals against on the road are second in the league to only the Calgary Wranglers, who are having a historic inaugural season. Hershey's current 21 road wins are the most by a Bears squad since the 2010-11 edition finished second in the league with 25 wins away from GIANT Center.

BEARS BITES:

The Bears are tied for the league lead with 47 first goals, and are second with 33 victories when scoring first...Gabriel Carlsson is tied for 11th among all skaters with a plus/minus of +24...Jake Massie is one game away from his 100th career AHL contest...Mike Vecchione's next goal will be the 100th of his pro career...Sam Anas is four assists away from 200 in his pro career...Anas, Vecchione, and Mike Sgarbossa are each tied for fifth in the league with five game-winning goals...Hershey is second in the league and first in the Eastern Conference with 2.48 goals-against per game...Aaron Ness is three points from his 300th AHL point...Zach Fucale is tied for third among goaltenders in the Eastern Conference in wins with 21...Hendrix Lapierre will miss tonight's match as a result of a one-game assessed by the AHL following Tuesday's match against Charlotte.

Check out the Hershey Bears Statistics

• Discuss this story on the American Hockey League message board...

American Hockey League Stories from April 14, 2023


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