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Hershey Bears

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

April 2, 2024 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Hershey Bears News Release


(Hershey, PA) - The Hershey Bears return home to GIANT Center, where they face their I-78 rivals, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, for the 11th time during the 2023-24 season. Hershey has a chance to clinch the Atlantic Division title tonight.

Hershey Bears (47-12-0-5) vs. Lehigh Valley Phantoms (28-26-6-3)

April 2, 2024 | 7 p.m. | Game 65 | GIANT Center

Referees: Andrew Bell (6), Mason Riley (79)

Linespersons: John Rey (16), Tommy George (61)

Tonight's Promotions:

Hersheypark Pass Night Night - All fans in attendance will receive a 2024 Hersheypark ticket, valid for one-day admission through June 30, 2024.

TRULY Takeover Tuesday - Pre-game Happy Hour

BUY TICKETS NOW

Broadcast Information

Voice of the Bears, Zack Fisch, former Bears captain Garrett Mitchell, and in-arena host Jim Jones on the call

RADIO: WFVY-100.1 FM, Fox Sports 1460-AM, SportsRadio 98.9-FM & WOYK 1350-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 visited the Hartford Wolf Pack on Saturday, claiming a 2-1 shootout victory. Ethen Frank buried his 25th of the season at 4:29 of the first period to give Hershey a 1-0 lead, while Brennan Othmann leveled the score at 6:06 of the second period. All three shooters for Hershey scored in the shootout, while Hunter Shepard went 32-for-33 and made one shootout save to secure the win for the Bears. The Phantoms are coming off a 4-3 overtime loss to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on Saturday in a game that featured a handful of lead changes. Ethan Samson gave Lehigh Valley a 1-0 lead after the first period, but the Penguins scored twice in a span of 1:55 to take a 2-1 edge by the end of the second. In the third, Samu Tuomaala and Emil Andre scored 1:56 apart to give the Phantoms a 3-2 lead, but Avery Hayes scored at 16:28 to tie the game, and Corey Andonovski won the game for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in overtime.

ATOP THE ATLANTIC:

The Bears head into tonight's game sporting a 16-point lead on the Providence Bruins for first place in the Atlantic Division, and Hershey's Magic Number to clinch the 2023-24 division title sits at one point, meaning any point earned by Hershey automatically guarantees the Bears will earn their first regular-season division championship since claiming the North Division in the 2020-21 season.

DUBÉ DRIVING:

Since returning from the NHL's Washington Capitals, Pierrick Dubé has been producing at a near point-per-game clip. His eight points (2g, 6a) in nine games since March 8 at Charlotte are tied with Alex Limoges for the most over that stretch. Hershey is 22-0-0-0 overall this season when Dubé scores a goal.

FRANK FINDING THE NET:

After missing eight games with a lower-body injury, it took a handful of games for Ethen Frank to rediscover his scoring touch, but over the last five contests, the sophomore forward has returned to lighting the lamp for the Chocolate and White, scoring four goals in that span, and adding only his third multi-assist game of the season on March 23 at Cleveland. Frank's 25 goals are one back of Pierrick Dubé for the team lead, and his 12 power-play goals leads the Bears and ranks fifth overall in the AHL. Frank also leads Hershey with seven game-winning tallies.

FIGHTING THE PHANTOMS:

Tonight's game will mark the 120th meeting between Hershey and Lehigh Valley since the Phantoms relocated to Allentown. In that time, the Bears have posted a 62-38-8-11 record against the Phantoms, with a 36-12-6-5 record on GIANT Center ice. Hershey has gone 3-1-0-0 on home ice against Lehigh Valley this season. Pierrick Dubé leads Hershey in scoring against the Phantoms with seven points (5g, 2a) in nine games.

BEARS BITES:

Alex Limoges leads the Bears with 14 multi-point games; the team is 13-0-0-1 when he has achieved the feat...Mike Vecchione skated in his 400th professional game on Saturday, and is three games away from his 400th career AHL game...Logan Day is one game away from his 300th professional/AHL game...Hershey is first in the AHL with a penalty kill that has gone 210-for-238 (88.2%)...Hunter Shepard is fourth in the league with 24 wins...Hershey is 8-0-0-0 in games decided in the overtime period this season...The Bears have a league-leading 35 wins when scoring first...Hershey has won its last three road games and has a five-game road point streak (4-0-0-1).

ON THIS DATE:

April 2, 1987 - Tim Tookey re-wrote the history books for the Bears as he found the net twice and assisted on another goal to give him 121 points on the season in a 6-4 victory over the Baltimore Skipjacks at the Baltimore Civic Center. In doing so, Tookey passed George "Red" Sullivan's single-season mark for points by a Hershey player, a record that had stood since the 1953-54 season. Tookey went on to finish the 1986-87 campaign with a club-record 124 points (51g, 73a) in 80 games, then joined the Philadelphia Flyers for their trip to the Stanley Cup Final.

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