Sports stats



AHL Hershey Bears

Game Preview: Bears vs. Bruins, 7 p.m.

December 23, 2023 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Hershey Bears News Release


(Hershey, PA) - The Hershey Bears go for a fifth straight win as they host the Providence Bruins at GIANT Center in the club's final game before Christmas.

Hershey Bears (23-6-0-0) vs. Providence Bruins (14-11-2-2)

December 23, 2023 | 7 p.m. | Game 30 | GIANT Center

Referees: Mike Dietrich (15), Beau Halkidis (48)

Linespersons: Ryan Jackson (84), John Rey (16)

Tonight's Promotions:

Berks Holiday Ham Shoot Night - All fans are welcome postgame to take part in the Berks Holiday Ham Shoot

Broadcast Information

Voice of the Bears, Zack Fisch, AHL Hall-of-Famer Mitch Lamoureux, and in-arena host Jim Jones on the call

RADIO: WFVY-100.1 FM, Fox Sports 1460-AM, In-Arena on 88.9 FM

WATCH LIVE: AHLTV

LISTEN LIVE: Fox Sports AM-1460 Stream

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

LAST TIME OUT:

The Bears continued the club's winning ways with a 4-3 victory via the shootout last night at Springfield. The Bears bolted out to a 2-0 lead in the opening frame on goals by Pierrick Dubé at 14:28 and Jimmy Huntington at 16:55, as Hershey tied a season-high with 15 shots in the period. Only 11 seconds into the second frame, Ethen Frank made it 3-0 for the visitors, but Springfield turned the game around with two goals in 30 seconds from Joseph Duszak and former Bear Jakub Vrana before the period ended. In the third stanza, Springfield's Zach Dean tied the game at 8:52 to force overtime. In the extra session, Hershey goaltender Hunter Shepard came up with three sensational saves, then went a perfect 3-for-3 in the shootout to seal the victory for the Bears. Providence played last night at Rochester, doubling up the Amerks in a 6-3 win. Georgii Merkulov and Anthony Richard each had two goals for the P-Bruins.

CONFIDENCE BRUIN:

The Bears continued to get results against the Providence Bruins with a 3-2 overtime win last Wednesday at home, improving to 3-0-0-0 overall against their Atlantic Division foe in head-to-head competition this season. The triumph marked the first time Hershey has opened a season series against the Bruins with three consecutive wins; the last time the Bears won three consecutive games at any point against Providence was during the 2016-17 season, when Hershey defeated Providence in its final three games of the regular-season series. The last time a Bears team opened a season series against a Providence-based AHL franchise with three straight wins was the 1971-72 campaign, when Hershey went 5-0-1 overall against the Providence Reds.

ALL-DAY DUBÉ:

Hershey forward Pierrick Dubé started and finished the scoring in last night's game, striking in the first period, then finishing the game with the shootout-winner. The forward has posted 15 goals this season, a mark that paces Hershey and is tied for second in the AHL. Only Rochester's Jiri Kulich, currently playing for Czechia's World Junior team, has more goals this season with 16 tallies. Dubé's next goal would tie his 16 markers he scored over 44 games last year in his rookie season with Laval. Dubé has goals in three of his past four games, including a marker in the club's previous outing versus Providence on Dec. 13.

ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS A WIN:

Tonight marks Hershey's final game before a brief break for Christmas. The club will be off from Dec. 24-26 before returning to the ice on Dec. 27 as Hershey hosts Wilkes-Barre/Scranton that evening. Hershey hopes to head into the break victorious, and the club has enjoyed great success in the final game before Christmas break in previous years. Since GIANT Center opened in 2002, the Bears are 13-6-1-0 in the club's final game preceding Christmas.

NEW BLOOD ON THE BLUE LINE:

Last night marked a strong start for defenseman Lucas Johansen in his return to Hershey's lineup. The seventh-year Bear skated in his first game since clearing waivers and being loaned to the Bears on Tuesday by the NHL's Washington Capitals. The defender had played six games with Washington, but last night's contest was his first game action since Nov. 18. In his Hershey season debut, Johansen logged an assist on Jimmy Huntington's power-play goal. Hershey also welcomed the return of defender Jake Massie last night, as the rearguard played his first game since suffering a lower-body injury on Nov. 17 versus Bridgeport.

BEARS BITES:

Hershey's Mike Vecchione returned to the lineup last night after missing four games due to an upper-body injury suffered on Dec. 9 versus Cleveland...Jimmy Huntington's goal last night for Hershey was his first since Nov. 15, snapping a 14-game drought...Pierrick Dubé has scored the first goal for Hershey in the previous two games, and ranks second on the team in first goals with three, only trailing Mike Vecchione (4)...Hershey is unbeaten in games that go past regulation, sitting at 4-0 in overtime and 2-0 in shootouts this season...Goalie Hunter Shepard is a perfect 5-for-5 in the shootout this year while Dubé has scored on each of his attempts for Hershey...With his three points last night, Providence's Georgii Merkulov moved into a tie with Hershey's Mike Sgarbossa for third in the AHL's scoring race with 28 points.

ON THIS DATE:

December 23, 1990 -Hershey battles the Binghamton Rangers on the road, and the two teams combined for a Hershey franchise record 100 shots on goal (Hershey 46, Binghamton 54). The visiting Bears defeated the Rangers 5-3 at Broome County Veterans Memorial Coliseum.

Check out the Hershey Bears Statistics



American Hockey League Stories from December 23, 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