AHL Hershey Bears

Game Preview: Phantoms at Bears, 3 p.m.

Published on March 14, 2021 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Hershey Bears News Release


(Hershey, PA) - The Hershey Bears continue the 2020-21 season, presented by Penn State Health, this afternoon versus the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. The puck drops at 3 p.m. at GIANT Center.

Lehigh Valley Phantoms (6-2-2-0) at Hershey Bears (7-2-2-0)

March 13, 2021 | 3 PM | Game #12 | GIANT Center

Referees: Brandon Blandina (#39), Patrick Hanrahan (#52)

Linesmen: Bob Goodman (#90),

Richard Jondo (#55)

Broadcast Information (Radio pre-game 2:30 p.m.)

RADIO: WFVY-100.1 FM, Fox Sports 1460-AM, Caps Radio 24/7, SportsRadio 98.9-FM & WOYK 1350-AM

Voice of the Bears, Zack Fisch, and Hall of Famer Mitch Lamoureux on the call

LISTEN LIVE: Fox Sports AM-1460 Stream, Caps Radio 24/7

WATCH LIVE: AHLTV

LAST TIME OUT:

This afternoon is Hershey's first game since last Sunday. In that contest, Hershey tallied a 4-3 overtime victory over Binghamton at GIANT Center. Hershey's Kody Clark scored the opening marker late in the first period, and Brett Leason gave the Bears a 2-0 advantage 6:40 into the middle frame. The Devils fought back, getting goals from Danick Martel and Ben Street to tie the game. Garrett Pilon gave Hershey the 3-2 lead at 12:14 of the third period, but Marian Studenic tied the game on the power play with 33 seconds to play. In overtime, Martin Fehervary scored 3:20 into the extra session to give Hershey the win, and hand Binghamton an 8th straight loss. The Phantoms take the ice for the first time since Wednesday evening in Newark versus the Devils. That game was suspended after the first period due to COVID protocol issues with Binghamton. The score at the time of the suspension was 1-1 with Phantoms captain Cal O'Reilly having the lone Lehigh Valley marker. The Phantoms last completed game came last Monday as they earned a 4-3 overtime victory at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Ryan Fitzgerald scored his second overtime winner of the season to give Lehigh Valley the road victory.

TALE OF THE TAPE:

Tonight is the fifth meeting this season between the two clubs. After starting the season 0-1-2-0 versus the Phantoms, the Bears were victorious in their last contest versus their Keystone State foes, claiming a 4-1 win at GIANT Center on Mar. 6. The Bears exploded for three goals in a span of 2:01 early in the second period to pull away for the win. Hershey's Axel Jonsson-Fjallby had two goals in that game, and he has three goals this season versus Lehigh Valley, the most of any Bear. Lehigh Valley's Zayde Wisdom (2g, 2a) and David Kase (1g, 3a) each lead all players in the season series with four points. Only one power play has been scored in the season series so far with Hershey at 0-for-11 on the man-advantage and the Phantoms at 1-for-15.

SWEET SUCCESS AT HOME:

After two straight overtime losses to the Phantoms to open the 2020-21 season on home ice, Hershey has been perfect at GIANT Center since. The Bears enter today's game with four straight wins at GIANT Center, outscoring opponents 14-5 over that stretch. Forward Garrett Pilon leads the way with six points (one goal, five assists) in the home winning streak, and overall, Pilon has points in five straight contests on home ice. The current stretch of strong play in Chocolatetown marks Hershey's longest home winning streak since December 2019 when the Bears won seven straight contests at GIANT Center from Dec. 1-Dec. 22. After today's game, only one of Hershey's next four games are on home ice.

WELL RESTED:

With Friday's game at Binghamton rescheduled due to COVID protocol issues with the Devils, it has been a full week since Hershey last took the ice. A full week between games is a rarity in the American Hockey League, even during this pandemic shortened season. The last time the Chocolate and White had a week between games while in-season was in November 2019. The Bears played at GIANT Center on Saturday, Nov. 16, claiming a 2-1 win over the defending champion Charlotte Checkers thanks to a late Mike Sgarbossa goal. The club didn't take the ice again until the following Saturday, dropping a 3-2 decision at Bridgeport. Hershey is scheduled to have a full week between games one additional time this season, pending any schedule changes. The club hosts Lehigh Valley on Saturday, May 8 then is off until the following Saturday, May 15 when they host Binghamton.

NEW FACE ON BLUE LINE:

24-year-old defender Andrew Nielsen signed with the Bears last week, and if he were to play today, it would mark his Hershey debut. Nielsen has played in 226 career AHL games with Toronto and Stockton, registering 79 points (20g, 59a), 347 penalty minutes, and a +13 rating. The native of Red Deer, Alberta had a breakout rookie season with Toronto in 2016-17, scoring 39 points (14g, 25a) in 74 games, leading Marlies defenders in all offensive categories. He was part of Toronto's 2018 Calder Cup championship team, skating in eight playoff games.

KALE'S GOOD FOR YOU:

Entering today's game, Hershey forward Kale Kessy has points in each of his past two contests, scoring his first two points as a Bear after going pointless in 24 games last season. Kessy scored his first goal with Hershey last Saturday versus Lehigh Valley, marking his first AHL tally in nearly three years. He added an assist last Sunday versus Binghamton, giving him points in two straight games for the first time since Mar. 25 and Mar. 28, 2018 as a member of the Cleveland Monsters.

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