AHL Hershey Bears

Unbeaten Streak At Six

Published on January 26, 2016 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Hershey Bears News Release


The Hershey Bears Hockey Club picked up three of a possible four points on the team's blizzard-shortened weekend.

In the club's first trip of the season to New York's Southern Tier, the Bears received goals from four different players and Dan Ellis denied all 30 shots he faced at the other end, helping the team to a 4-0 win over the Binghamton Senators at Floyd L. Maines Veterans Memorial Arena. Mike Moore would get the Bears on the board at 11:15 of the opening period, firing a slap shot past Senators goaltender Chris Driedger for what ultimately would end up as the game-winning tally. Hershey would then open up the game in the second period by scoring three times in a span of 5:31. Chris Bourque started the push by collecting a feed from Scott Gomez and blasting a shot past Driedger, giving the Bears a 2-0 edge. The Gomez assist was the first in the AHL for the two-time Stanley Cup champion. The duo would trade roles for the third Bears goal, as Bourque's pass attempt was deflected down. The play pulled Driedger off the post and opened the net for Gomez to deposit the puck for his first AHL strike. Relentless pressure behind the Binghamton net gave the Bears the puck again just two minutes later, and Sean Collins found Travis Boyd for a slam-dunk. The Senators turned up the pressure in the third, outshooting the Bears by a 14-2 margin, but Ellis was up to the task. He would also face a shorthanded penalty shot against rookie Ryan Penny, but the chance failed and the Bears carried the 4-0 lead to the final horn. Paul Carey ended up with three assists in the game, while linemates Bourque (1-2-3) and Gomez (1-1-2) chipped in for a combined eight points on the night.

The Blizzard of 2016 would then cause the rescheduling of both weekend contests at GIANT Center. Saturday's game against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms was played on Monday, and treated the fans to a wild back- and-forth offensive affair. Moore, Madison Bowey and Carey would answer the opening goal from Cole Bardreau, and the Bears were seemingly in control leading 3-1 in the second. But Bardreau scored his second of the game and Davis Drewiske, Taylor Leier and Colin McDonald followed suit, pushing the Phantoms in front 5-3 early in the third. The resilient Bears brought the crowd to its feet, however, as Boyd's ninth of the season made it a 5-4 game and Bourque's power play goal with 5:43 left to play tied the contest. With no scoring in an exciting overtime, a shootout followed. Bourque scored on his first chance, but Christian Djoos and Boyd could not. Leier and Nick Cousins hit paydirt behind Justin Peters, and the Phantoms went on to a 6-5 victory in the ninth meeting of the season between the rivals. Despite the loss, Hershey extended its unbeaten streak to six games (4-0-1-1).

HERSHEY BEARS NEWS AND NOTES

CHRIS IS CLUTCH: After ripping off his third three-point game of the season, Chris Bourque's 20th goal of the campaign was another clutch game-tying tally on Monday against Lehigh Valley. He currently sits atop the AHL with 42 points (20-22-42) in 40 games, and he is now also tied for the league lead with 20 goals. He now has seven 20-goal AHL seasons out of nine. Bourque's first assist on Friday extended his road point streak to nine games, the longest active streak in the league, while his goal was the 150th of his Hershey career.

He has 10 goals and 15 points in 10 January games, and has recorded points in 18 of his last 20 contests (14-13-27). Bourque's 435 career points in Hershey (151 goals, 284 assists) rank ninth all-time. Clicking over a point-per- game average in his Bears tenure, his 432 career games with the Bears is a total which ranks 24th in Hershey history - three games behind Frank Mario and seven behind the AHL's legendary all-time points leader Willie Marshall.

TRAVIS IS TALLYING: Rookie Travis Boyd has silently been excellent in his offensive production. He has points in nine of his 10 games played in January (4-6-10) and has 12 points (5-7-12) in his last 12 games. His goal on Monday against Lehigh Valley puts him on a three-game goal streak and five-game point streak. Boyd ranks tied for eighth among AHL rookies in points (9-17-26).

MOORE PLEASE: Defenseman Mike Moore became the 12th different Bears player to record a game-winning goal with his opening strike on Friday night, and added a goal on Monday for tallies in back-to-back games - the first time he has accomplished the feat since February 14-16, 2014.

CAREY TRIPLES UP: Forward Paul Carey produced the Bears' fifth three- assist game of the season with his effort on Friday at Binghamton. Carey ranks second on the Bears in scoring (13-16-29).

NOT REALLY A ROOKIE: One game after two-time Stanley Cup champion Scott Gomez picked up his first AHL goal and assist in Friday night's win at Binghamton, he chipped in three helpers on Monday against Lehigh Valley - the sixth three-assist game by a Hershey player in 2015-16.

BEARS BULLETS: The Bears are tied for the league lead in home games played (24) and have 33 points on home ice, second in the AHL...The team picked up its 17th overall point (6-11-1-4) and 13th home point (5-5-1-2) when trailing after two periods on Monday, both leading the AHL...Hershey moved up to fifth in the league in goals per game (3.14)...The Bears lead the AHL in shootouts played (eight)...The Bears are tied for the AHL lead in penalty shots faced (three) after Friday's successful stop...Hershey maintains its spot on top of the league's attendance chart, with 224,930 fans (average 9,372) through 24 home games.

Check out the Hershey Bears Statistics

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American Hockey League Stories from January 26, 2016


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