Regular Season Game 33: Lehigh Valley Phantoms 3, Hershey Bears 1 (12/31/15)

Box Score

Hershey (16-10-1-5) vs. Lehigh Valley (15-16-1-1)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Peters (8-4-3, 2.76) vs. LaBarbera (2-7-0, 3.33)

1st Period
Scoring
11:12- LV Goal (PPG): Palushaj (7), Brent & Morin

Penalties
2:08- LV Penalty: Goulbourne for Fighting (5:00)
2:08- HER Penalty: O'Brien for Fighting (5:00)
4:08- HER Penalty: Stanton for Cross-Checking (2:00)
6:59- LV Penalty: Morin for Interference (2:00)
9:25- HER Penalty: Mitchell for Boarding (2:00)
18:53- LV Penalty: McDonald for Interference (2:00)

2nd Period
Scoring
13:38- LV Goal: Martel (11), Pettersson

Penalties
6:46- LV Penalty: MacDonald for Tripping (2:00)
9:45- HER Penalty: Stanton for Kneeing (2:00)

3rd Period
Scoring
17:25- HER Goal: Djoos (3), Bourque & Gazley
18:59- LV Goal (EN): Martel (12), Gagner & Brent

Penalties
7:02- LV Penalty: Morin for Delay of Game (2:00)

Shots
HER: 12-10-6=28
LV: 18-5-12=35

Next Game: Saturday vs. Binghamton, 7:00

Note: The recaps will return with the next game.

Regular Season Game 32: Syracuse Crunch 3, Hershey Bears 1 (12/29/15)

Box Score

Hershey (16-9-1-5) vs. Syracuse (12-12-4-1)
Giant Center: Hershey, PA
Goalies: Ellis (8-4-3) vs. Vasilevskiy (4-3-1)

1st Period
Scoring
No Goals

Penalties
5:29- SYR Penalty: Blunden for Slashing (2:00)
5:29- SYR Penalty: Blunden for Fighting (5:00)
5:29- HER Penalty: Moore for Fighting (5:00)
9:43- SYR Penalty: Darcy for Slashing (2:00)
12:57- HER Penalty: Moore for Tripping (2:00)
17:26- SYR Penalty: Walcott for Holding (2:00)

2nd Period
Scoring
9:15- SYR Goal: McGinn (10), Tambellini & Koekkoek
17:47- HER Goal (PPG): Camper (5), Carey & Boyd
19:48- SYR Goal: Broll (1), Darcy

Penalties
4:45- HER Penalty: Brown for Unsportsmanlike Conduct (2:00)
14;25- SYR Penalty: Paradis for High-Sticking (Double Minor) (4:00)

3rd Period
Scoring
4:58- SYR Goal: McGinn (11), Walcott & Mormina

Penalties
2:22- SYR Penalty: Paradis for Interference (2:00)
2:22- HER Penalty: Herbert for Holding (2:00)
7:11- HER Penalty: Ness for Tripping (2:00)
11:24- HER Penalty: Lewington for Charging (Major) (5:00)
11:24- HER Penalty: Lewington Game Misconduct for Charging (10:00)
11:39- SYR Penalty: Erne for Spearing (Major) (5:00)
11:39- SYR Penalty: Erne Game Misconduct for Spearing (10:00)
12:35- SYR Penalty: DeAngelo for Slashing (2:00)

Shots
HER: 12-14-4=30
SYR: 1-8-8=17

Next Game: Tomorrow vs. Lehigh Valley, 5:00

Regular Season Game 31: Binghamton Senators 5, Hershey Bears 3 (12/27/15)

Box Score

Hershey (16-8-1-5) vs. Binghamton (8-17-2-0)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Dekanich (1st Game) vs. Driedger (5-6-0, 3.02)

1st Period
Scoring
8:26- BNG Goal: Paul (2), Lindberg & Schneider
14:02- HER Goal: Brown (3), Carey & Ness

Penalties
3:46- HER Penalty: Bowey for Tripping (2:00)
10:03- BNG Penalty: O'Dell for Roughing (2:00)

2nd Period
Scoring

8:15- BNG Goal (PPG): Puempel (8), Schneider & Kostka

9:07- HER Goal: Carey (12)

12:07- BNG Goal: Robinson (4), Lindberg

Penalties

0:51- BNG Penalty: Carlisle for Holding (2:00)

4:58- HER Penalty: Lewington for Roughing (2:00)

6:25- HER Penalty: Stanton for High-Sticking (2:00)

14:03- BNG Penalty: Ewanyk for Fighting (5:00)

14:03- HER Penalty: Lewington for Fighting (5:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

1:21- BNG Goal: Puempel (9), Flanagan

11:23- HER Goal: Boyd (5), Stephenson

19:00- BNG Goal (EN): Greening (6)

Penalties

No Penalties

Shots

HER: 9-9-13=31

BNG: 12-3-8=23

Recap

The turnovers cost the Bears in this game. A couple of the goals for the Senators were easy ones due to those turnovers. Starting in the 1st, Binghamton would be able to get on the board first with a goal at the 8:26 mark. Nick Paul scored his 2nd of the season, from Tobias Lindberg & Cole Schneider. However, the Bears would be able to tie it back up later in the period. Chris Brown scored his 3rd of the season, from Paul Carey & Aaron Ness. After the 1st, the Senators had the 12-9 shot advantage.

In the 2nd, the Bears would keep the Senators from having many shots on goal, but that wouldn't stop them from scoring. At the 8:15 mark, Binghamton took the lead back on a power play. Matt Puempel scored his 8th of the season, from Cole Schneider (2nd assist of night) & Michael Kostka. 52 seconds later, the Bears tied it back up. Paul Carey scored his 12th of the season unassisted. This would be one of the times where the turnovers hurt the Bears, as one would lead to the Senators taking the 3-2 lead (at the 12:07 mark). Buddy Robinson scored his 4th of the season, from Tobias Lindberg (2nd assist of night). After the 2nd, the Bears had the 18-15 shot advantage.

In the 3rd, the game started to feel like the game against Syracuse where the Bears came back, as Binghamton scored early to make it 4-2. Matt Puempel scored his 2nd of the night (9th of season), from Kyle Flanagan. With 8:37 left, the Bears got within one. Travis Boyd scored his 5th of the season, from Chandler Stephenson. However, the Bears would get no closer, as with one minute left, the Senators got the empty-net goal to seal the win. Colin Greening scored his 6th of the season unassisted. Hershey finished with the 31-23 shot advantage.

Next Game: Tuesday vs. Syracuse, 7:00

Regular Season Game 30: Hershey Bears 5, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 0 (12/26/15)

Box Score

Hershey (15-8-1-5) vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (21-5-0-1)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Ellis (7-4-3, 2.95) vs. Foster (1-0-1, 1.44), Desmith (1st Game)

1st Period

Scoring

0:34- HER Goal: Ness (2), Collins & Sill
1:23- HER Goal: Brown (2), Moore & Camper
10:56- HER Goal (PPG): Bowey (2), Camper & Brown

Penalties

3:29- HER Penalty: Sill for Hooking (2:00)
9:26- WBS Penalty: Sundqvist for Slashing (2:00)

2nd Period
Scoring

10:03- HER Goal (PPG): Carey (11), Camper & Bowey

11:22- HER Goal: Burgdoerfer (3), Sill & Collins

Penalties

5:04- HER Penalty: Burgdoerfer for Cross-Checking (2:00)

8:39- WBS Penalty: Erixon for Tripping (2:00)

20:00- WBS Penalty: Kostopoulos for Cross-Checking (2:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

No Goals

Penalties

1:22- WBS Penalty: Sundqvist for Tripping (2:00)

6:23- HER Penalty: Gazley for Hooking (2:00)

16:26- HER Penalty: Bowey for Interference (2:00)

19:18- HER Penalty: Boyd for Closing Hand on Puck (2:00)

Shots

HER: 15-6-7=28

WBS: 7-6-8=21

Recap

What a way to catch up a bit to the division leaders! It's always good to get such a dominant win against a rival. The Bears didn't wait long to get on the board, as they would get their first goal 34 seconds into the game. Aaron Ness scored his 2nd of the game, from Sean Collins & Zach Sill. Less than a minute later, the Bears made it 2-0. Chris Brown scored his 2nd of the season, from Mike Moore & Carter Camper. Later on in the period (at the 10:56 mark), the struggling Hershey power play would break through. Madison Bowey scored his 2nd of the season, from Carter Camper (2nd assist of night) & Chris Brown (2nd point of night). After the 1st, the Bears had the 15-7 shot advantage.

In the 2nd, the scoring would continue for the Bears. At the 10:03 mark, they would be able to get another power play goal to make it 4-0. Paul Carey scored his 11th of the season, from Carter Camper (3rd assist of night) & Madison Bowey (2nd point of night). Only 1:19 later, the score would be 5-0. Erik Burgdoerfer scored his 3rd of the season, from Zach Sill & Sean Collins (both 2nd assists of night). In the 3rd, the Penguins would switch goalies, and Casey Desmith made his AHL debut. Dan Ellis would struggle to finish the game with an apparent injury later in the period, but he stayed in to get the 21-save shutout (Bears had 28 shots on goal).

Next Game: Tomorrow vs. Binghamton, 5:00

Regular Season Game 29: Hershey Bears 5, Syracuse Crunch 4 (F/OT) (12/20/15)

Box Score

Hershey (14-8-1-5) vs. Syracuse (11-11-3-1)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Peters (8-4-3, 2.62), Ellis (6-4-3, 3.03) vs. Wilcox (2-3-3, 3.20)

1st Period
Scoring

8:06- SYR Goal (PPG): McGinn (7), Erne & Tambellini

10:45- SYR Goal (PPG): Erne (2), Paradis & Taormina

13:21- SYR Goal (PPG): McGinn (8), DeAngelo & Peca

Penalties

5:48- HER Penalty: Bench Minor for Too Many Men (Served by Brown) (2:00)

7:36- HER Penalty: Ness for Delay of Game (2:00)

9:19- HER Penalty: O'Brien for Checking from Behind (Major) (5:00)

9:19- HER Penalty: O'Brien Game Misconduct for Checking from Behind (10:00)

2nd Period

Scoring

13:39- HER Goal: Stanton (2), Camper & Walker
14:42- HER Goal: Stephenson (3), Barber & Bowey

Penalties

5:21- SYR Penalty: Paradis for Hooking (2:00)
10:19- SYR Penalty: Broll for Cross-Checking (2:00)
16:22- SYR Penalty: Paradis for Roughing (2:00)

3rd Period
Scoring

2:25- SYR Goal (SHG): Tambellini (11), Paradis

9:00- HER Goal: Collins (4), Moore & Walker

11:22- HER Goal: Djoos (2), Stephenson & Gazley

Penalties

1:36- SYR Penalty: Blujus for Tripping (2:00)

4:08- HER Penalty: Djoos for Hooking (2:00)

18:02- SYR Penalty: DeAngelo for Roughing (2:00)

Overtime

Scoring

0:25- HER Goal: Collins (5), Stephenson

Penalties

No Penalties

Shots

HER: 6-21-16-1=44

SYR: 8-5-3-0=16

Recap

With how that first period was going, it was looking like it would be another rough game for the Bears. However, they were able to make a huge comeback to win the game in overtime! That first period was a rough one. On one of their power plays in the period, the Crunch would get on the board first (at the 8:06 mark). Tye McGinn scored his 7th of the season, from Adam Erne & Jeff Tambellini. Liam O'Brien would once again get a penalty that would take him out for the rest of the game. On that major power play, the Crunch would score two more goals. The first goal was Adam Erne's 2nd of the season (2nd point of night), from Philippe Paradis & Matt Taormina. The second goal was Tye McGinn's 2nd of the night (8th of season), from Anthony DeAngelo & Matthew Peca. After the 1st, the Crunch had the 8-6 shot advantage.

In the 2nd, the comeback would begin. The shots would come like crazy for the Bears, and at the 13:39 mark, they would finally get one in to make it 3-1. Ryan Stanton scored his 2nd of the season, from Carter Camper & Nathan Walker. Just 1:03 later, the score would become 3-2. Chandler Stephenson scored his 3rd of the season, from Riley Barber & Madison Bowey. After the 2nd, the Bears had the 27-13 shot advantage.

In the 3rd, at first, it looked like the comeback and shot advantage would go to waste, as the Crunch increased their lead to two on a shorthanded goal. Jeff Tambellini scored his 11th of the season (2nd point of night), from Philippe Paradis (2nd assist of night). However, another comeback would start up, as the Bears would get within one at the 9:00 mark. Sean Collins scored his 4th of the season, from Mike Moore & Nathan Walker (2nd assist of night). 2:22 later, the Bears tied the game up. Christian Djoos scored his 2nd of the season, from Chandler Stephenson (2nd point of night) & Dustin Gazley. In that overtime period, it would only take 25 seconds for the Bears to win the game. Sean Collins scored his 2nd of the night (5th of season), from Chandler Stephenson (2nd assist/3rd point of night). Hershey finished with the 44-16 shot advantage.

Next Game: Saturday vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, 7:00

Regular Season Game 28: Toronto Marlies 6, Hershey Bears 2 (12/19/15)

Box Score

Hershey (14-7-1-5) vs. Toronto (22-5-2-0)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Ellis (6-3-3, 2.83), Peters (8-4-3, 2.57) vs. Emery (1-1-1, 3.30)

1st Period

Scoring

4:25- HER Goal: Ness (1), Bowey & Bourque
15:14- TOR Goal (PPG): Arcobello (12), Brennan & Leipsic

Penalties

1:45- HER Penalty: Stephenson for Hooking (2:00)
14:16- HER Penalty: Stephenson for Boarding (2:00)
14:48- HER Penalty: Sill for Slashing (2:00)
16:39- TOR Penalty: Bench Minor for Too Many Men (Served by Leivo) (2:00)

2nd Period
Scoring
0:29- TOR Goal: Hyman (5), Carrick & Loov
8:11- TOR Goal: Leipsic (6), Frattin & Rupert
9:31- TOR Goal: Percy (3), Leivo & Arcobello
10:53- HER Goal: Camper (4), Bowey & Carey

Penalties
14:52- TOR Penalty: Brennan for Hooking (2:00)

3rd Period
Scoring
3:51- TOR Goal (PPG): Brennan (10), Arcobello & Findlay
12:45- TOR Goal: Brennan (11), Hyman & Clune

Penalties
2:37- TOR Penalty: Frattin for Fighting (5:00)
2:37- HER Penalty: Burgdoerfer for Roughing (2:00)
2:37- HER Penalty: Burgdoerfer for Fighting (5:00)
2:37- HER Penalty: Burgdoerfer Misconduct for Unsportsmanlike Conduct (10:00)
10:33- TOR Penalty: Panik for Slashing (2:00)
10:33- HER Penalty: Brown for Roughing (2:00)
10:33- HER Penalty: Lewington Misconduct for Continuing Altercation (10:00)
15:48- HER Penalty: Walker for Tripping (2:00)

Shots
HER: 8-9-8=25
TOR: 7-12-8=27

Next Game: Today vs. Syracuse, 5:00

Regular Season Game 27: Lehigh Valley Phantoms 6, Hershey Bears 4 (12/18/15)

Box Score

Hershey (14-6-1-5) at Lehigh Valley (13-14-1-0)

PPL Center: Allentown, PA

Goalies: Peters (8-3-3, 2.33) vs. Stolarz (11-6-1, 2.07)

1st Period
Scoring
3:42- LV Goal: Morin (2), Cousins
5:44- HER Goal: Carey (10), Camper & Ness
10:29- HER Goal (PPG): Camper (3), Carey & O'Brien
11:54- HER Goal: Bourque (10), Stephenson & Moore
16:48- LV Goal (PPG): Leier (8), MacDonald & Straka

Penalties
9:11- LV Penalty: McDonald for High-Sticking (2:00)
14:31- HER Penalty: O'Brien for Interference (2:00)
16:12- HER Penalty: Burgdoerfer for Boarding (2:00)
19:32- HER Penalty: Bourque for Holding (2:00)

2nd Period
Scoring

5:58- LV Goal (PPG): Cousins (8), MacDonald & Straka

9:42- LV Goal (PPG): Lamarche (1), Palushaj & Cousins

Penalties

3:21- LV Penalty: Goumas for Tripping (2:00)

5:04- HER Penalty: O'Brien for Fighting (5:00)

5:04- HER Penalty: O'Brien Match Penalty for Check to the Head (10:00)

5:04- LV Penalty: Morin for Fighting (5:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

8:37- LV Goal: Alt (2), Morin & Palushaj

15:43- LV Goal: Bardreau (1), MacDonald & Lamarche

19:51- HER Goal: Boyd (4), Gazley & Carey

Penalties

3:59- LV Penalty: Goulbourne for Slashing (2:00)

Shots

HER: 8-7-10=25

LV: 16-11-7=34

Recap

With how this game started, it had looked like the Bears were going to have another good game. However, the Phantoms had other plans as the game went on. The 1st period was filled with goals, and it started with one by the Phantoms at the 3:42 mark. Samuel Morin scored his 2nd of the season, from Nick Cousins. Around 2 minutes later, the Bears tied the game at one. Paul Carey scored his 10th of the season, from Carter Camper & Aaron Ness. On a power play around halfway through the period, the Bears took the lead. Carter Camper scored his 3rd of the season (2nd point of night), from Paul Carey (2nd point of night) & Liam O'Brien. At the 11:54 mark, the lead would increase to two. Chris Bourque scored his 10th of the season, from Chandler Stephenson & Mike Moore. This is the point that the Phantoms took over, and it started with a goal at the 16:48 mark to trim the lead to one. Taylor Leier scored his 8th of the season, from Andrew MacDonald & Petr Straka. After the 1st, the Phantoms had the 16-8 shot advantage.

In the 2nd, the Phantoms continued to dominate the play, and it started to show on the scoreboard. Liam O'Brien was charged with a match penalty (automatic ejection) for a check to the head. This penalty would mean that the Bears would be on the penalty kill no matter what for 5 minutes. Lehigh Valley would take advantage, as they got two goals on that power play to take the 4-3 lead. The first goal was Nick Cousins' 8th of the season (2nd point of night), from Andrew MacDonald & Petr Straka (both 2nd assists of night). The second goal was Maxim Lamarche's 1st of the season, from Aaron Palushaj & Nick Cousins (3rd point/2nd assist of night). After the 2nd, the Phantoms had the 27-15 shot advantage.

The 3rd period would get even worse for the Bears. At the 8:37 mark, the lead increased to two. Mark Alt scored his 2nd of the season, from Samuel Morin (2nd point of night) & Aaron Palushaj (2nd assist of night). Around 7 minutes later, it would become 6-3. Cole Bardreau scored his 1st of the season, from Andrew MacDonald (3rd assist of night) & Maxim Lamarche (2nd point of night). The Bears would get a goal with 9 seconds left to finish the scoring. Travis Boyd scored his 4th of the season, from Dustin Gazley & Paul Carey (3rd point/2nd assist of night). Lehigh Valley finished with the 34-25 shot advantage.

Next Game: Tomorrow vs. Toronto, 7:00

Regular Season Game 26: Hershey Bears 2, Bridgeport Sound Tigers 1 (F/SO) (12/13/15)

Box Score

Hershey (13-6-1-5) at Bridgeport (16-10-1-0)

Webster Bank Arena: Bridgeport, CT

Goalies: Peters (7-3-3, 2.44) vs. Gibson (10-4-1, 2.11)

1st Period
Scoring
No Scoring

Penalties
6:34- BRI Penalty: Mayfield for Elbowing (2:00)
10:20- HER Penalty: O'Brien for Roughing (2:00)
16:39- HER Penalty: Bowey for Interference (2:00)

2nd Period
Scoring
10:37- BRI Goal (PPG): Pulock (5), Graham & Whitney

Penalties
1:17- BRI Penalty: Holmstrom for Hooking (2:00)
5:24- HER Penalty: O'Brien for High-Sticking (2:00)
10:01- HER Penalty: O'Brien for Boarding (2:00)
15:24- BRI Penalty: Pelech for Interference (2:00)
15:36- HER Penalty: Boyd for Tripping (2:00)
17:15- HER Penalty: Stanton for Cross-Checking (2:00)
19:30- HER Penalty: Burgdoerfer for Slashing (2:00)

3rd Period
Scoring
2:23- HER Goal (PPG): Collins (3), Bourque & Barber

Penalties
2:10- HER Penalty: Lewington for Roughing (2:00)
2:10- BRI Penalty: Beck for Roughing (2:00)
2:10- BRI Penalty: Wright for Roughing (2:00)
7:01- HER Penalty: Sill for Tripping (2:00)
11:31- BRI Penalty: Root for Hooking (2:00)

Overtime
Scoring
No Scoring

Penalties
No Penalties

Shootout
1st Round: HER- Gazley (No Goal), BRI- Whitney (No Goal)
2nd Round: HER- Carrick (Goal), BRI- Beck (No Goal)
3rd Round: HER- Boyd (Goal)
Hershey wins shootout 2-0

Shots
HER: 10-10-6-3=29
BRI: 9-9-12-3=33

Recap

The demons have been exercised! In their 6th shootout of the season, the Bears finally got a win! They were backed by a great performance from Justin Peters. The 1st period would not have much going, as the goalies stood strong. After the 1st, the Bears had the 10-9 shot advantage. In the 2nd, it would take a power play for the Sound Tigers to get on the board first (at the 10:37 mark). Ryan Pulock scored his 5th of the season, from Jesse Graham & Joe Whitney. After the 2nd, the Bears had the 20-18 shot advantage.

In the 3rd, after a scrum that led to a power play, the Bears would tie the game 13 seconds into that power play. Sean Collins scored his 3rd of the season, from Chris Bourque & Riley Barber. Each team would have a power play to take the lead, but both goalies continued their strong play. In the overtime period, each team had chances. Bridgeport would get a shot on goal with only a few seconds left, but Peters stopped it. Going into the shootout, the Sound Tigers finished with the 33-29 shot advantage. In the shootout, Connor Carrick and Travis Boyd would get goals, and Peters made sure Bridgeport didn't score.

Next Game: Friday at Lehigh Valley, 7:05

Regular Season Game 25: Hershey Bears 5, Binghamton Senators 3 (12/12/15)

Box Score

Hershey (12-6-1-5) vs. Binghamton (6-14-2-0)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Peters (6-3-3, 2.40) vs. Hammond (0-1-0, 4.06)

1st Period
Scoring

2:19- HER Goal: Barber (5), O'Brien & Burgdoerfer
11:47- HER Goal: Carrick (7), O'Brien & Boyd
12:21- HER Goal (PPG): Carrick (8), Boyd & Bourque
19:25- HER Goal: Stephenson (2), Barber & Bourque

Penalties

12:07- BNG Penalty: Stortini for Interference (2:00)
12:45- HER Penalty: Moore for Hooking (2:00)
14:52- BNG Penalty: Puempel for Roughing (2:00)
14:52- BNG Penalty: Dzingel for Abuse of Officials (Bench Minor) (2:00)

2nd Period
Scoring

10:01- BNG Goal: Greening (5), Dzingel

15:57- BNG Goal: O'Dell (9), Dzingel & Claesson

Penalties

0:50- BNG Penalty: Ewanyk for Fighting (5:00)

0:50- BNG Penalty: Stortini for Roughing (2:00)

0:50- HER Penalty: Bowey for Interference (2:00)

0:50- HER Penalty: Gazley for Fighting (5:00)

0:50- HER Penalty: Stanton for Roughing (2:00)

2:19- HER Penalty: O'Brien for Cross-Checking (2:00)

5:10- BNG Penalty: Flanagan for Tripping (2:00)

11:38- BNG Penalty: Robinson for Goaltender Interference (2:00)
17:16- BNG Penalty: Harpur for Embellishment (2:00)
17:16- HER Penalty: Gazley for Hooking (2:00)
18:50- BNG Penalty: O'Dell for Holding (2:00)
19:19 -HER Penalty: Bourque for Slashing (2:00)
19:53- BNG Penalty: Fraser for High-Sticking (2:00)

3rd Period
Scoring
15:32- BNG Goal: Robinson (3), Claesson & Dzingel
19:24- HER Goal (EN): Bourque (9), Gazley

Penalties

4:41- BNG Penalty: Robinson for Hooking (2:00)

Shots

HER: 16-6-10=32

BNG: 13-14-5=32

Note: No recap with this one, as I only had time to do the box score due to previously planned engagements. Apologies!

Regular Season Game 24: Lehigh Valley Phantoms 3, Hershey Bears 2 (F/OT) (12/9/15)

Box Score

Hershey (12-6-0-5) at Lehigh Valley (11-12-1-0)

PPL Center: Allentown, PA

Goalies: Ellis (6-3-2, 2.83) vs. Stolarz (9-5-1, 1.84)

1st Period
Scoring
6:09- HER Goal (PPG): Carrick (6), Bourque & Barber

Penalties
5:48- LV Penalty: Morin for Cross-Checking (2:00)
8:05- HER Penalty: Barber for Tripping (2:00)
18:42- HER Penalty: Walker for Fighting (5:00)
18:42- LV Penalty: Cousins for Fighting (5:00)
19:17- HER Penalty: Burgdoerfer for Tripping (2:00)

2nd Period
Scoring
9:06- HER Goal: Moore (2), Boyd & Bowey

Penalties
7:57- LV Penalty: Rosehill for Interference (2:00)
8:20- HER Penalty: Carrick for Tripping (2:00)
10:03- LV Penalty: Bench Minor for Too Many Men (Served by Rankin) (2:00)
14:55- LV Penalty: Alt for Cross-Checking (2:00)
18:10- LV Penalty: Morin for Cross-Checking (2:00)

3rd Period
Scoring
11:22- LV Goal: Straka (15), McDonald & Martel
17:01- LV Goal: Martel (9), Leier & Morin

Penalties
3:49- HER Penalty: Bourque for Slashing (2:00)
5:44- HER Penalty: Lewington for Boarding (2:00)
13:01- LV Penalty: Martel for Boarding (2:00)

Overtime
Scoring
3:45- LV Goal: Cousins (7), Leier

Penalties
No Penalties

Shots
HER: 7-8-4-1=20
LV: 11-4-12-4=31

Recap

This one is a tough one to lose. No matter what the shots say, the Bears had control of this game for most of it. It could have been 6 goals for them, but the posts had other plans. In the 1st, the Bears would get on the board first with a power play goal. Connor Carrick scored his 6th of the season, from Chris Bourque & Riley Barber. A fight would break out late in the period between Hershey's Nathan Walker & Lehigh Valley's Nick Cousins. After the 1st, the Phantoms had the 11-7 shot advantage.

In the 2nd, the Bears could ask themselves "what if?" a lot about this period. At the 9:06 mark, the Bears would increase their lead to two. Mike Moore scored his 2nd of the season, from Travis Boyd & Madison Bowey. Hershey could have been leading by four or five by the time this period ended, but they hit the post three or four times. After the 2nd, the shots were tied at 15.

In the 3rd, the Phantoms would start to take over. It took a little bit, but with 8:38 left, they cut the lead in half. Petr Straka scored his 15th of the season, from Colin McDonald & Danick Martel. With 2:59 left in regulation, the Phantoms would tie it up. Danick Martel scored his 9th of the season (2nd point of night), from Taylor Leier & Samuel Morin. In the overtime period, the Phantoms continued to dominate, and it led to the game-winning goal. Nick Cousins scored his 7th of the season, from Taylor Leier (2nd assist of night). The Phantoms finished with the 31-20 shot advantage.

Next Game: Saturday vs. Binghamton, 7:00

Regular Season Game 23: Hershey Bears 4, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 1 (12/6/15)

Box Score

Hershey (11-6-0-5) vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (16-4-0-0)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Peters (5-3-3, 2.52) vs. Murray (10-3-0, 1.95)

1st Period

Scoring

10:23- HER Goal: Burgdoerfer (2), Sill & Walker

Penalties

0:10- WBS Penalty: Mouillierat for Holding (2:00)
6:14- HER Penalty: Bourque for Tripping (2:00)
11:16- WBS Penalty: Oleksy for Slashing (2:00)
19:47- HER Penalty: Carrick for Cross-Checking (2:00)

2nd Period

Scoring

12:34- HER Goal: Carrick (5), Collins & Bourque

Penalties

6:36- HER Penalty: Stephenson for Goaltender Interference (2:00)
15:33- WBS Penalty: Porter for Interference (2:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

17:53- WBS Goal: Erixon (2), Dea
18:54- HER Goal (EN): Walker (5), Collins & Sill
18:59- HER Goal (EN): Bourque (8), Stephenson

Penalties

1:35- HER Penalty: Stephenson for Holding (2:00)
10:54- HER Penalty: Carrick for Cross-Checking (2:00)

Shots

HER: 17-6-10=33

WBS: 9-6-8=23

Recap

The bear toss game is my favorite one of the season, and it didn't disappoint this year (new record 18,115 bears). The Bears continued their torrid shot pace from last night into the first period tonight, and this time it led to a goal much earlier (10:23 mark). Erik Burgdoerfer scored his 2nd of the season, from Zach Sill & Nathan Walker. After the 1st period, the Bears had the 17-9 shot advantage.

The 2nd period would be a much more even affair, as the teams had about the same number of chances. However, the Bears would get the 2-0 lead on a beautiful play. Connor Carrick scored his 5th of the season, from Sean Collins & Chris Bourque. After the 2nd, the Bears had the 23-15 shot advantage.

In the 3rd, the Bears' penalty kill would come up big with a couple power plays to deal with. However, Justin Peters wouldn't be able to stop every shot. With 2:07 left, the Penguins got it to within one. Tim Erixon scored his 2nd of the season, from Jean-Sebastien Dea. At the 1:06 mark, the Bears would put it out of reach. Nathan Walker scored his 5th of the season (2nd point of night), from Sean Collins & Zach Sill (both 2nd assists of night). 5 seconds later, the Bears would get another empty net goal. Chris Bourque scored his 8th of the season (2nd point of night), from Chandler Stephenson. The Bears finished with the 33-23 shot advantage.

Next Game: Wednesday at Lehigh Valley, 7:05

Regular Season Game 22: Hershey Bears 2, Lehigh Valley Phantoms 1 (12/5/15)

Box Score

Hershey (10-6-0-5) vs. Lehigh Valley (11-11-1-0)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Ellis (5-3-2, 3.01) vs. Stolarz (9-4-1, 1.82)

1st Period
Scoring
14:57- LV Goal: Cousins (6), Morin & MacDonald

Penalties
1:55- LV Penalty: Cousins for Cross-Checking (2:00)
4:15- HER Penalty: Fyten for Tripping (2:00)
9:39- HER Penalty: Walker for Delay of Game (2:00)
19:24- HER Penalty: Bench Minor for Too Many Men (Served by Stephenson) (2:00)

2nd Period
Scoring

No Goals

Penalties

3:17- HER Penalty: Camper for Delay of Game (2:00)

8:12- LV Penalty: Brent for Fighting (5:00)

8:12- HER Penalty: Lewington for Fighting (5:00)

10:02- LV Penalty: Cousins for Holding (2:00)

10:39- HER Penalty: Carey for Slashing (2:00)

11:55- LV Penalty: Leier for Holding (2:00)

16:48- LV Penalty: Alderson for Slashing (2:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

10:23- HER Goal: Gazley (5), Carey & Camper

19:39- HER Goal: Bourque (7), Boyd & Stephenson

Penalties

15:11- LV Penalty: Morin for Hooking (2:00)

Shots

HER: 14-13-17=44

LV: 5-5-5=15

Recap

Anthony Stolarz is probably not too happy with his team right now. He finished with 42 saves, but it wasn't enough as the Bears were able to pull out the victory. From the puck drop, the Bears had complete control of this game. The shot differential was never close, but unfortunately for them, Stolarz showed up to play. With 5:13 left in the period, the Phantoms would get on the board first. Nick Cousins scored his 6th of the season, from Samuel Morin & Colin McDonald. After the 1st, the Bears had the 14-5 shot advantage.

The shots continued to come for the Bears in the 2nd, but the only big event was a fight between Lehigh Valley's Tim Brent & Hershey's Tyler Lewington. After the 2nd, the Bears had the 27-10 shot advantage. It would take until the 10:23 mark for a shot to finally get past Stolarz. Dustin Gazley scored his 5th of the season, from Paul Carey & Carter Camper. With 21 seconds left, the Bears would be able to get another one past him to take the 2-1 victory. Chris Bourque scored his 7th of the season, from Travis Boyd & Chandler Stephenson. The Bears finished with the 44-15 shot advantage.

Next Game: Tomorrow vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, 5:00

Regular Season Game 21: Hartford Wolf Pack 4, Hershey Bears 3 (F/SO) (12/4/15)

Box Score

Hershey (10-6-0-4) at Hartford (8-11-2-0)

XL Center: Hartford, CT

Goalies: Peters (5-3-2, 2.49) vs. Skapski (1-4-0, 3.30)

1st Period

Scoring

1:24- HER Goal: Walker (4), Carrick & Sill

3:10- HFD Goal: Skjei (2), Nehring & Bourque

7:10- HFD Goal: Nehring (6), Brown & Summers

Penalties

8:49- HER Penalty: Carrick for Interference (2:00)

2nd Period

Scoring

7:30- HER Goal: Carrick (4), Djoos & Stephenson

17:18- HFD Goal: Tamasky (6), McCarthy

Penalties

2:54- HER Penalty: Bowey for Holding (2:00)

9:24- HFD Penalty: Gibbons for Interference (2:00)

13:04- HFD Penalty: Summers for Tripping (2:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

19:17- HER Goal (PPG): Stephenson (1), Carrick & Bourque

Penalties

0:40- HER Penalty: Bourque for Closing Hand on Puck (2:00)

3:28- HFD Penalty: Brown for Slashing (2:00)

8:16- HFD Penalty: Hughes for Kneeing (2:00)

19:00- HFD Penalty: Oleksuk for Delay of Game (2:00)

Overtime

Scoring

No Goals

Penalties

No Penalties

Shootout

1st Round: HER- Gazley (Goal), HFD- Gibbons (Goal)

2nd Round: HER- Bourque (No Goal), HFD- Tambellini (Goal)

3rd Round: HER- Carrick (No Goal)

Hartford wins shootout 2-1

Shots

HER: 10-9-14-3=36

HFD: 11-2-9-3=25

Recap

Once again, the shootout is the Bears' kryptonite. They are now 0-for-5 in shootouts. However, they did get a point in a game where it looked like they wouldn't. The Bears started off strong, as they scored 1:24 into the game. Nathan Walker scored his 4th of the season, from Connor Carrick & Zach Sill. However, the game would turn quickly in favor of the home team, as almost two minutes later, the Wolf Pack tied it. Brady Skjei scored his 2nd of the season, from Chad Nehring & Ryan Bourque. At the 7:10 mark, Hartford took the lead. Chad Nehring scored his 6th of the season (2nd point of night), from Tyler Brown & Chris Summers. After the 1st, the Wolf Pack had the 11-10 shot advantage.

In the 2nd, the Bears would have a large advantage in shots. That paid off at the 7:30 mark, as they would tie the game at two. Connor Carrick scored his 4th of the season, from Christian Djoos & Chandler Stephenson. With 2:48 left in the period, the Wolf Pack would get one of their two shots in the period past Justin Peters. Nick Tamasky scored his 6th of the season, from Chris McCarthy. After the 2nd, the Bears had the 19-13 shot advantage.

In the 3rd, the Bears didn't stop the shots. They had some good chances against Mackenzie Skapski, but it would take a power play with less than a minute left for the Bears to get their best chance. With 43 seconds left in regulation, the Bears would get the tying goal. Chandler Stephenson scored his 1st of the season, from Connor Carrick (3rd point/2nd assist of night) & Chris Bourque. In the overtime, the Wolf Pack would get a penalty shot. Jayson Megna, who has always scored big goals against the Bears, was stopped by Peters. Going into the shootout, the Bears finished with the 36-25 shot advantage. Dustin Gazley would start the Bears off right with a goal in the 1st round, but no Bears would score again. Both of Hartford's players scored, so they took the shootout 2-1.

Next Game: Tomorrow vs. Lehigh Valley, 7:00

Regular Season Game 20: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 3, Hershey Bears 2 (11/28/15)

Box Score

Hershey (10-5-0-4) at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (15-2-0-0)

Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza: Wilkes-Barre, PA

Goalies: Peters (5-2-2, 2.43) vs. Jarry (5-0-0, 1.93)

1st Period

Scoring

No Goals

Penalties

16:51- HER Penalty: Djoos for Hooking (2:00)

16:51- WBS Penalty: Archibald for Embellishment (2:00)

2nd Period

Scoring

0:26- WBS Goal: Porter (3), O'Neill & Erixon

9:24- WBS Goal: Andersen (2), Sundqvist

14:19- WBS Goal (PPG): Dea (7), Erixon & Simon

19:46- HER Goal: Burgdoerfer (1), Collins & Walker

Penalties

1:09- WBS Penalty: Mouillierat for Tripping (2:00)

6:21- HER Penalty: Lewington for High-Sticking (2:00)

13:08- HER Penalty: Carrick for Interference (2:00)

14:35- HER Penalty: Boyd for High-Sticking (2:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

5:39- HER Goal: Barber (4)

Penalties

6:22- HER Penalty: Carey for High-Sticking (Double Minor) (4:00)

11:25- HER Penalty: Bourque for Slashing (2:00)

17:34- WBS Penalty: Bench Minor for Too Many Men (Served by Simon) (2:00)

Shots

HER: 9-4-14=27

WBS: 8-14-11=33

Recap

This game looked like it would be another blowout for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, but Hershey held strong and made this a good game. The Pens are scary good. The 1st period included nothing of note, as the refs let them play for most of the period except for offsetting penalties. After the 1st, the Bears had the 9-8 shot advantage.

In the 2nd, the goals would come. 26 seconds into the period, the Penguins got on the board. Kevin Porter scored his 3rd of the season, from Will O'Neill & Tim Erixon. At the 9:24 mark, the lead increased to two. Niclas Andersen scored his 2nd of the season, from Oskar Sundqvist. On a power play for the Penguins (14:19 mark), the lead went to three. Jean-Sebastien Dea scored his 7th of the season, from Tim Erixon (2nd assist of night) & Dominik Simon. With 14 seconds left in the period, the Bears would get on the board. Erik Burgdoerfer scored his 1st of the season, from Sean Collins & Nathan Walker. After the 2nd, the Penguins had the 22-13 shot advantage.

In the 3rd, the play would be a little more even than the 2nd. At the 5:39 mark, the Bears got within one. Riley Barber scored his 4th of the season. The Bears' penalty kill kept them in this game with two huge stops, but the power play late in the period wouldn't be able to tie the game up. The Penguins finished with the 33-27 shot advantage.

Next Game: Friday at Hartford, 7:15

Regular Season Game 19: Lehigh Valley Phantoms 6, Hershey Bears 5 (F/SO) (11/27/15)

Box Score

Hershey (10-5-0-3) at Lehigh Valley (8-10-1-0)

PPL Center: Allentown, PA

Goalies: Ellis (5-3-1, 2.81) vs. Knapp (1st Game)

1st Period

Scoring

1:22- LV Goal: Goulbourne (5), Goumas & Hagg
8:38- HER Goal: Moore (1), Carrick & Boyd
12:24- HER Goal: Lewington (1), Collins & Walker
14:09- LV Goal (PPG): Leier (5), Conner & MacDonald

Penalties

13:18- HER Penalty: Carrick for Slashing (2:00)

2nd Period
Scoring

4:35- HER Goal: Boyd (3), Fyten

10:51- LV Goal (PPG): Straka (13), Leier & Conner

16:58- LV Goal: Straka (14), Brent & Drewiske

Penalties

9:42- HER Penalty: Moore for High-Sticking (2:00)

11:16- HER Penalty: Lewington for Fighting (5:00)

11:16- LV Penalty: Goulbourne for Fighting (5:00)

17:34- LV Penalty: Morin for Interference (2:00)

17:47- HER Penalty: Ness for Cross-Checking (2:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

12:08- HER Goal: Walker (3), Sill & Collins

16:13- LV Goal: Goulbourne (6), Rankin & Goumas

16:33- HER Goal: Carey (9), Barber & Camper

Penalties

1:12- LV Penalty: Brent for Roughing (2:00)

7:17- HER Penalty: Bourque for Tripping (2:00)

12:35- HER Penalty: Gazley for Goaltender Interference (2:00)

Overtime

Scoring

No Goals

Penalties

No Penalties

Shootout

1st Round: LV- Leier (No Goal), HER- Carey (No Goal)

2nd Round: LV- Straka (No Goal), HER- Carrick (No Goal)

3rd Round: LV- Goulbourne (No Goal), HER- Bourque (No Goal)

4th Round: LV- Palushaj (No Goal), HER- Gazley (No Goal)

5th Round: LV- Brent (Goal), HER- Collins (No Goal)

LV wins shootout 1-0

Shots

HER: 8-8-10-2=28

LV: 9-16-4-4=33

Recap

The Bears need to figure out a way to win a shootout. It's been their kryptonite all season. This was one crazy game from beginning to end. The scoring started off quick in the 1st, as the first goal for Lehigh Valley was scored 1:22 into the game. Tyrell Goulbourne scored his 5th of the season, from Kevin Goumas & Robert Hagg. Around 7 minutes later, the Bears tied it at one. Mike Moore scored his 1st of the season, from Connor Carrick & Travis Boyd. At the 12:24 mark, the Bears would take the lead. Tyler Lewington scored his 1st AHL goal (in his 1st AHL game), from Sean Collins & Nathan Walker. A little more than a minute and a half later, on the power play, the Phantoms tied it at two. Taylor Leier scored his 5th of the season, from Chris Conner & Andrew MacDonald. After the 1st, the Phantoms had the 9-8 shot advantage.

In the 2nd, the scoring continued. At the 4:35 mark, the Bears took the 3-2 lead. Travis Boyd scored his 3rd of the season (2nd point of night), from Austin Fyten. At the 10:51 mark, the Phantoms would get another power play goal to tie it at three. Petr Straka scored his 13th of the season, from Taylor Leier (2nd point of night) & Chris Conner (2nd assist of night). Around 6 minutes later, the Phantoms took the 4-3 lead. Petr Straka scored his 2nd of the night (14th of season), from Tim Brent & David Drewiske. Between those two goals, a fight occurred between Hershey's Tyler Lewington & Lehigh Valley's Tyrell Goulbourne. After the 2nd, the Phantoms had the 25-16 shot advantage.

In the 3rd, the scoring took a break until later in the period, and then it continued like it had. At the 12:08 mark, the Bears tied the game at four. Nathan Walker scored his 3rd of the season (2nd point of night), from Zach Sill & Sean Collins (2nd assist of night). Around 4 minutes later (16:13 mark), the Phantoms took the lead again. Tyrell Goulbourne scored his 2nd of the night (6th of season), from Evan Rankin & Kevin Goumas (2nd assist of night). Only 20 seconds later, the Bears tied the game again. Paul Carey scored his 9th of the season, from Riley Barber & Carter Camper. In the overtime period, the Phantoms had more of the chances, but couldn't get one in the net. Going into the shootout, the Phantoms finished with the 33-28 shot advantage. It would take until the 5th round for someone to score, and it was Lehigh Valley's Tim Brent who scored the only goal in the shootout in that round.

Next Game: Tomorrow at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, 7:05

Regular Season Game 18: Hershey Bears 2, Providence Bruins 1 (F/OT) (11/25/15)

Box Score

Hershey (9-5-0-3) vs. Providence (4-9-3-1)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Peters (4-2-2) vs. Subban (1-4-1)

1st Period

Scoring

16:36- HER Goal (PPG): Carey (7), Stephenson & Ness

19:09- PRO Goal (PPG): Acciari (3), DeFazio & Youds

Penalties

15:25- PRO Penalty: Cherniwchan for Hooking (2:00)

17:31- HER Penalty: Burgdoerfer for Interference (2:00)

2nd Period

Scoring

No Goals

Penalties

0:37- HER Penalty: Ness for Holding (2:00)

3:16- PRO Penalty: Simonelli for Holding (2:00)

10:30- PRO Penalty: Bellemore for Tripping (2:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

No Goals

Penalties

4:20- HER Penalty: Carey for Holding (2:00)

8:00- PRO Penalty: Bellemore for Fighting (5:00)

8:00- HER Penalty: Moore for Fighting (5:00)

11:02- PRO Penalty: Sexton for High-Sticking (2:00)

13:58- HER Penalty: Gazley for Boarding (2:00)

Overtime

Scoring

3:43- HER Goal: Carey (8), Ness & Gazley

Penalties

No Penalties

Shots

HER: 6-4-8-3=21

PRO: 16-6-6-0=28

Recap

The goalies would be the focus of this game, as each would make sure to stand their ground. It would take until the 16:36 mark of the 1st for a goal to be scored, and it would come on a Hershey power play. Paul Carey scored his 7th of the season, from Chandler Stephenson & Aaron Ness. With 51 seconds left in the period, on the power play as well, Providence would tie the game up. Noel Acciari scored his 3rd of the season, from Brandon DeFazio & Ben Youds. In the 2nd, even with some power play chances, the score would stay the same. After the 2nd, the Bruins had the 22-10 shot advantage.

In the 3rd, the power play chances would come, but the goalies would continue to stand their ground. A fight would occur in the period between Hershey's Mike Moore and Providence's Brett Bellemore. In the overtime period, it would be the Bears that would get the extra point. Paul Carey scored his 2nd of the night (8th of season), from Aaron Ness (2nd assist of night) & Dustin Gazley. Justin Peters finished with the strong 27-save performance (Hershey finished with 21 shots).

Next Game: Tomorrow at Lehigh Valley, 7:05

Regular Season Game 17: Hershey Bears 4, Portland Pirates 2 (11/21/15)

Box Score

Hershey (8-5-0-3) vs. Portland (7-7-0-0)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Ellis (4-3-1, 2.91) vs. Brittain (1-2-0, 3.87), McKenna (6-5-0)

1st Period
Scoring

8:42- HER Goal: Bourque (6), Walker & Stanton
17:44- HER Goal (PPG): Boyd (2), Bourque & Ness
18:01- HER Goal (PPG): Brown (1), Barber & Collins

Penalties

3:20- HER Penalty: Carrick for Tripping (2:00)
12:33- POR Penalty: McKegg for Boarding (2:00)
12:33- POR Penalty: McKegg for Fighting (5:00)
12:33- HER Penalty: Sill for Fighting (5:00)
16:07- POR Penalty: Racine for Cross-Checking (2:00)
16:48- POR Penalty: Gaunce for Cross-Checking (2:00)
18:01- POR Penalty: Flick for Fighting (5:00)
18:01- HER Penalty: Mitchell for Fighting (5:00)

2nd Period
Scoring
11:34- HER Goal: Carey (6), Stanton & Stephenson

Penalties
2:55- POR Penalty: McFarland for Hooking (2:00)
12:08- HER Penalty: Collins for High-Sticking (2:00)
15:57- HER Penalty: Stanton for Delay of Game (2:00)
16:41- HER Penalty: Gazley for Tripping (2:00)

3rd Period
Scoring
17:16- POR Goal: Rau (7), Balisy & Gaunce
18:13- POR Goal (PPG): Shaw (7), Acolatse & McKegg

Penalties
7:27- POR Penalty: Weegar for Delay of Game (2:00)
17:44- HER Penalty: Bowey for Cross-Checking (2:00)
18:04- HER Penalty: Stanton for Slashing (2:00)

Shots
HER: 13-6-11=30
POR: 5-9-13=27

Next Game: Wednesday vs. Providence, 7:00

Note: The recaps will return either the next game or the following one.

Regular Season Game 16: Hershey Bears 3, Portland Pirates 2 (11/20/15)

Box Score

Hershey (7-5-0-3) vs. Portland (7-6-0-0)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Peters (3-2-2, 2.72) vs. McKenna (6-4-0, 2.81)

1st Period
Scoring
12:36- POR Goal: Shaw (6), McFarland & Matheson

Penalties
1:05- POR Penalty: Acolatse for Fighting (5:00)
1:05- HER Penalty: Sill for Fighting (5:00)
3:47- HER Penalty: Gazley for High-Sticking (Double Minor) (4:00)
7:40- POR Penalty: Gaunce for Hooking (2:00)
18:31- POR Penalty: Flick for Cross-Checking (2:00)
18:31- POR Penalty: Matheson for Roughing (2:00)
18:31- HER Penalty: Brown for Roughing (2:00)

2nd Period
Scoring
8:06- HER Goal (PPG): Bourque (5), Ness & Camper

Penalties
6:09- POR Penalty: Regner for Delay of Game (2:00)
10:34- HER Penalty: Mitchell for Interference (2:00)
12:32- HER Penalty: Stanton for Cross-Checking (2:00)

3rd Period
Scoring

2:41- HER Goal: Gazley (4), Stanton & Brown

3:12- POR Goal: Olsen (1), Simpson

19:45- HER Goal (SHG): Carrick (3), Ness & Mitchell

Penalties

17:43- HER Penalty: Moore for High-Sticking (Double Minor) (4:00)

19:58- HER Penalty: Bench Minor for Unsportsmanlike Conduct (Served by Boyd) (2:00)

Shots

HER: 9-8-15=32

POR: 8-6-10=24

Recap

What a way to end this game! The Bears played a much better game than they have in the past few games, and the effort got rewarded with a victory. In the 1st, the tension between the teams started early. 1:05 in, there was a fight between Portland's Sena Acolatse & Hershey's Zach Sill. The period was even in play and penalties, but Portland would be able to get on the board first. Logan Shaw scored his 6th of the season, from John McFarland & Michael Matheson. After the 1st, the Bears had the 9-8 shot advantage.

In the 2nd, the play would once again be pretty even. At the 8:06 mark of the period, the Bears would finally break their power play scoreless streak. Chris Bourque scored his 5th of the season, from Aaron Ness & Carter Camper. Later in the period, the Bears would have two penalty kills back-to-back, but they would be able to get past those and keep it tied. After the 2nd, the Bears had the 17-14 shot advantage.

In the 3rd, the shots would come in bunches for both teams. 2:41 into the period, the Bears would take the 2-1 lead. Dustin Gazley scored his 4th of the season, from Ryan Stanton & Chris Brown. 31 seconds later, the Pirates would tie the game up again. Dylan Olsen scored his 1st of the season, from Wayne Simpson. With 2:17 left in the period, Mike Moore took a double minor penalty for high-sticking that looked to spell doom for the Bears. However, with 15 seconds left, the Bears would get a shorthanded goal that would be the game winner. Connor Carrick scored his 3rd of the season, from Aaron Ness (2nd assist of night) & Garrett Mitchell. The Bears finished with the 32-24 shot advantage.

Next Game: Tomorrow vs. Portland, 7:00

Regular Season Game 15: Hershey Bears 3, Rochester Americans 1 (11/15/15)

Box Score

Hershey (6-5-0-3) vs. Rochester (6-7-0-0)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Ellis (3-3-1) vs. Lieuwen (4-2-0)

1st Period

Scoring

No Goals

Penalties

5:43- RCH Penalty: Kea for Fighting (5:00)

5:43- HER Penalty: Moore for Fighting (5:00)

7:13- RCH Penalty: Dupuy for Tripping (2:00)

7:13- HER Penalty: Barber for Closing Hand on Puck (2:00)

15:04- HER Penalty: Bowey for High-Sticking (Double Minor) (4:00)

2nd Period

Scoring

9:07- HER Goal: Carey (5), Ness

Penalties

0:22- HER Penalty: Moore for Holding (2:00)

3:12- HER Penalty: Ness for Cross-Checking (2:00)

6:56- HER Penalty: Ness for Cross-Checking (2:00)

14:06- RCH Penalty: Donovan for Hooking (2:00)

16:41- RCH Penalty: Robak for Holding (2:00)

19:02- RCH Penalty: Donovan for Delay of Game (2:00)

19:29- HER Penalty: Carey for Interference (2:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

6:54- RCH Goal: Carrier (2), Sanguinetti

16:13- HER Goal: Mitchell (3)

19:14- HER Goal (EN): Sill (2), Walker

Penalties

9:29- HER Penalty: Camper for Hooking (2:00)

Shots

HER: 12-9-10=31

RCH: 2-11-13=26

Next Game: Friday vs. Portland, 7:00

Note: The recaps will return with the next game.

Regular Season Game 14: Bridgeport Sound Tigers 5, Hershey Bears 0 (11/14/15)

Box Score

Hershey (6-4-0-3) vs. Bridgeport (11-4-0-0)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Peters (3-1-2, 2.27), Ellis (3-3-1, 3.32) vs. Gibson (6-2-0, 2.28)

1st Period

Scoring

0:31- BRI Goal: Kearns (10), Czuczman & Whitney

16:33- BRI Goal: Finn (1), Holmstrom & Florek

Penalties

3:52- BRI Penalty: Graham for High-Sticking (2:00)

6:31- BRI Penalty: Holmstrom for Unsportsmanlike Conduct (2:00)

8:55- BRI Penalty: Bench Minor for Too Many Men (Served by Halmo) (2:00)

13:51- HER Penalty: Walker for Tripping (2:00)

2nd Period

Scoring

2:48- BRI Goal: Quine (7), Strome & Gibson
3:31- BRI Goal: Pulock (4)

Penalties

1:43- BRI Penalty: Vaive for Roughing (2:00)
1:43- HER Penalty: Brown for Roughing (2:00)
4:30- BRI Penalty: Finn for Tripping (2:00)
4:35- HER Penalty: Carey for Hooking (2:00)
9:17- BRI Penalty: Strome for Hooking (2:00)
11:43- HER Penalty: Boyd for Tripping (2:00)

3rd Period
Scoring

13:17- BRI Goal: Czuczman (2), Florek & Whitney

Penalties

18:10- BRI Penalty: Vaive for Tripping (2:00)

Shots

HER: 4-14-9=27

BRI: 7-8-7=22

Recap

This weekend has been a rough one for the Bears. They have been outscored 12-0 this weekend, and there's still one game to go. From the beginning, the Sound Tigers had the mental edge, as they got their first goal 31 seconds into the game. Bracken Kearns scored his 10th of the season, from Kevin Czuczman & Joe Whitney. Later in the period, shortly after a missed opportunity on a power play, the Sound Tigers made it 2-0. Matt Finn scored his 1st of the season, from Ben Holmstrom & Justin Florek. After the 1st, the Sound Tigers had the 7-4 shot advantage.

In the 2nd, based on the shot advantage, you would think the Bears would have stopped the meltdown. It didn't happen, as 2:48 into the period, the lead increased to 3-0. Alan Quine scored his 7th of the season, from Ryan Strome & Christopher Gibson. 43 seconds later, they made it 4-0. Ryan Pulock scored his 4th of the season. Dan Ellis would come in and have the goaltending duties for the rest of the game. After the 2nd, the Bears had the 18-15 shot advantage.

In the 3rd, not much happened except for the Bears trying to break their scoreless streak. It wouldn't happen, as Bridgeport's Christopher Gibson would get a shutout. However, the Sound Tigers would get one more goal to make it 5-0. Kevin Czuczman scored his 2nd of the season (2nd point of night), from Justin Florek & Joe Whitney (both 2nd assists of night). The Bears finished with the 27-22 shot advantage.

Next Game: Tomorrow vs. Rochester, 5:00

Note: For tomorrow's game, I have previously planned events that could either cause me to post about the game later than normal for a 5:00 game, or cause me to just post a box score. Apologies in advance!

Regular Season Game 13: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 7, Hershey Bears 0 (11/13/15)

Box Score

Hershey (6-3-0-3) at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (9-1-0-0)

Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza: Wilkes-Barre, PA

Goalies: Ellis (3-2-1, 2.94), Peters (3-1-2, 1.96) vs. Murray (7-1-0, 1.75)

1st Period

Scoring

4:59- WBS Goal (PPG): Mouillierat (3), Sheary & Pouliot

Penalties

4:31- HER Penalty: Carrick for Delay of Game (2:00)
5:50- HER Penalty: Bourque for Slashing (2:00)

2nd Period
Scoring

0:19- WBS Goal: Simon (5), Rowney & Erixon

7:39- WBS Goal: Sheary (2), Simon

10:34- WBS Goal (PPG): Wilson (7), Mouillierat & Sheary

Penalties

7:53- WBS Penalty: Kostopoulos for Holding (2:00)

9:49- HER Penalty: Brown for Interference (2:00)

10:44- HER Penalty: Bourque for Cross-Checking (2:00)

10:44- WBS Penalty: Kostopoulos for Roughing (2:00)

10:44- WBS Penalty: Sundqvist for Charging (2:00)

11:09- HER Penalty: Boyd for Hooking (2:00)

11:31- HER Penalty: Galiev for High-Sticking (2:00)

15:04- WBS Penalty: Warsofsky for Hooking (2:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

9:25- WBS Goal: Dea (4), Sheary

18:21- WBS Goal (PPG): Sundqvist (3), Erixon & Oleksy

18:46- WBS Goal: Kuhnhackl (4), Warsofsky & Archibald

Penalties

5:49- HER Penalty: Mitchell for Roughing (2:00)

5:49- WBS Penalty: Mouillierat for Roughing (Double Minor) (4:00)

13:01- WBS Penalty: Wilson for Slashing (2:00)

13:10- HER Penalty: Bourque for Holding the Stick (2:00)

15:38- HER Penalty: Mitchell for Boarding (2:00)

15:38- HER Penalty: Mitchell for Fighting (5:00)

15:38- WBS Penalty: Kostopoulos for Roughing (2:00)

15:38- WBS Penalty: Kostopoulos for Fighting (5:00)

17:51- HER Penalty: Collins for High-Sticking (2:00)

18:58- WBS Penalty: Oleksy for Interference (2:00)

Shots

HER: 7-13-4=24

WBS: 10-9-13=32

Recap

This was definitely the roughest game to watch this season. Even though the Bears didn't struggle too badly in the shot advantage battle (until the 3rd period), they struggled in just about everything else. The 1st period wasn't too bad for the Bears, but they once again gave up the first goal of the game (on a penalty kill). Kael Mouillierat scored his 3rd of the season, from Conor Sheary & Derrick Pouliot. After the 1st, the Penguins had the 10-7 shot advantage.

The 2nd period is where the game fell apart. Hershey would actually have more shots than the Penguins, but the good chances were few and far between. 19 seconds into the period, the Penguins made it 2-0. Dominik Simon scored his 5th of the season, from Carter Rowney & Tim Erixon. At the 7:39 mark, the Pens widened their lead to three. Conor Sheary scored his 2nd of the season (2nd point of night), from Dominik Simon (2nd point of night). On a power play around three minutes later, it became 4-0. Scott Wilson scored his 7th of the season, from Kael Mouillierat (2nd point of night) & Conor Sheary (2nd assist/3rd point of night). Justin Peters would come in to have the Bears' goaltending duties for the rest of the evening. After the 2nd, the Bears had the 20-19 shot advantage.

The 3rd period would bring more goals for the Penguins. At the 9:25 mark, the lead became 5-0. Jean-Sebastien Dea scored his 5th of the season, from Conor Sheary (3rd assist/4th point of night). The rest of the game would get chippy, as the penalties would continue to come for both teams. A fight did occur between the captains of the teams: Hershey's Garrett Mitchell & Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's Tom Kostopoulos. At the 18:21 mark, on a power play, the Penguins got their sixth goal. Oskar Sundqvist scored his 3rd of the season, from Tim Erixon (2nd assist of night) & Steve Oleksy. 25 seconds later, the Penguins finished the game up by a touchdown. Tom Kuhnhackl scored his 4th of the season, from David Warsofsky & Josh Archibald. The Penguins finished with the 32-24 shot advantage.

Next Game: Tomorrow vs. Bridgeport, 7:00

Regular Season Game 12: St. John's IceCaps 4, Hershey Bears 3 (F/SO) (11/7/15)

Box Score

Hershey (6-3-0-2) vs. St. John's (6-5-1-1)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Peters (3-1-1, 1.79) vs. Fucale (4-2-0, 3.16)

1st Period
Scoring
2:05- HER Goal: Galiev (2), Camper & Carrick
11:57- HER Goal: Galiev (3), Collins & Camper
14:53- HER Goal: Collins (2), Camper & Carrick

Penalties
4:15- STJ Penalty: Dumont for High-Sticking (2:00)
12:50- STJ Penalty: Neilson for Boarding (2:00)
17:09- STJ Penalty: Dumont for Delay of Game (2:00)
17:09- HER Penalty: Carrick for Delay of Game (2:00)
20:00- STJ Penalty: Ellis for Roughing (2:00)
20:00- HER Penalty: Mitchell for Roughing (Double Minor) (4:00)

2nd Period
Scoring

7:54- STJ Goal: Lernout (1), Eisenschmid

13:38- STJ Goal: Ellis (2), McCarron & Carr

Penalties

15:00- HER Penalty: Moore for Interference (2:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

17:04- STJ Goal: Carr (5), Bennett & Dumont

Penalties

1:01- STJ Penalty: Carr for Holding the Stick (2:00)

Overtime
Scoring
No Goals

Penalties
No Penalties

Shootout
1st Round: HER- Barber (No Goal), STJ- Carr (No Goal)
2nd Round: HER- Bourque (No Goal), STJ- Hudon (Goal)
3rd Round: HER- Galiev (Goal), STJ- Halloway (No Goal)
4th Round: HER- Collins (No Goal), STJ- Dumont (Goal)

Shots
HER: 16-11-7-4=38
STJ: 9-15-12-1=37

Recap

A heartbreaking game to lose. The Bears had a dominating first period and overtime periods, but those 2nd and 3rd periods were all IceCaps. That's another shootout loss. As I said, the Bears dominated that first period. The first goal of the period for them was at the 2:05 mark. Stanislav Galiev scored his 2nd of the season, from Carter Camper & Connor Carrick. At the 11:57 mark, Hershey made it 2-0. Stanislav Galiev scored another one, from Sean Collins & Carter Camper (2nd assist of night). St. John's looked to have made it 2-1, but before the refs could look at the goal, Hershey scored one themselves. The refs said the St. John's chance was a no goal, so the score became 3-0. Sean Collins scored his 2nd of the season (2nd point of night), from Carter Camper (3rd assist of night) & Connor Carrick (2nd assist of night). After the 1st, the Bears had the 16-9 shot advantage.

In the 2nd, the momentum started to go towards St. John's. At the 7:54 mark, the IceCaps would start their comeback. Brett Lernout scored his 1st of the season, from Markus Eisenschmid. At the 13:38 mark, the lead was trimmed to one. Morgan Ellis scored his 2nd of the season, from Michael McCarron & Daniel Carr. After the 2nd, the Bears had the 27-24 shot advantage.

In the 3rd, the IceCaps dominated a good amount of the play. Justin Peters did his part by saving a good amount of shots, but with 2:56 left in the period, St. John's tied the game at 3. Daniel Carr scored his 5th of the season (2nd point of night), from Mac Bennett & Gabriel Dumont. In the overtime period, the Bears dominated most of the play. Stanislav Galiev's breakaway was a point that could be looked back on, as he was taken down on the play but no call came for a penalty or penalty shot. Going into the shootout, the Bears finished with the 38-37 shot advantage. In said shootout, the IceCaps would get on the board first in the 2nd round. However, Galiev would tie it up to take it to the extra rounds. It would only go one more round, as Dumont would score to give the IceCaps the victory.

Next Game: Friday at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, 7:05

Regular Season Game 11: Hershey Bears 4, Lehigh Valley Phantoms 2 (11/6/15)

Box Score

Hershey (5-3-0-2) at Lehigh Valley (4-5-0-0)

PPL Center: Allentown, PA

Goalies: Ellis (2-2-1, 3.12) vs. LaBarbera (1-3-0, 4.46)

1st Period
Scoring
7:58- LV Goal: Palushaj (4), Gostisbehere & Brent
11:17- HER Goal: Galiev (1), Camper & Collins

Penalties
7:14- LV Penalty: Straka for Hooking (2:00)
7:52- HER Penalty: Bourque for Tripping (2:00)
12:42- HER Penalty: Mitchell for Roughing (2:00)
12:42- LV Penalty: Martel for Interference (2:00)
18:07- LV Penalty: MacDonald for Interference (2:00)
18:07- LV Penalty: MacDonald for Unsportsmanlike Conduct (2:00)

2nd Period
Scoring
18:41- HER Goal: Walker (2), Carrick

Penalties
1:12- LV Penalty: Lashoff for Hooking (2:00)
7:37- HER Penalty: Collins for Tripping (2:00)
8:41- HER Penalty: Carrick for Tripping (2:00)
15:14- LV Penalty: Martel for Tripping (2:00)

3rd Period
Scoring
1:03- HER Goal: Camper (2), Stanton & Collins
4:28- LV Goal: Goulbourne (3), Alt & Sundher
19:08- HER Goal (EN): Bourque (4)

Penalties
9:41- HER Penalty: Stanton for Delay of Game (2:00)
11:23- LV Penalty: Lashoff for Holding (2:00)
11:23- LV Penalty: Lashoff Misconduct for Unsportsmanlike Conduct (10:00)

Shots
HER: 12-9-7=28
LV: 8-11-3=22

Recap

A good road game for the Bears in this one. A conditioning stint for a player familiar to Bears' fans gave some spark to the team in this game. In the 1st, as it seems to happen quite often this season, the opponents got on the board first. Aaron Palushaj scored his 4th of the season, from Shayne Gostisbehere & Tim Brent. At the 11:17 mark, that conditioning stint player tied the game at one. Stanislav Galiev scored his 1st of the season, from Carter Camper & Sean Collins. The penalties would come in the period, but no one could score on those power plays. After the 1st, the Bears had the 12-8 shot advantage.

In the 2nd, there would once again be opportunities for each team to get power play goals, but neither team could do it. However, a goal would come with 1:19 left in the period, and it gave the Bears the lead. Nathan Walker scored his 2nd of the season, from Connor Carrick. After the 2nd, the Bears had the 21-19 shot advantage.

In the 3rd, the Bears would get that important insurance goal only 1:03 in. Carter Camper scored his 2nd of the season (2nd point of night), from Ryan Stanton & Sean Collins (2nd assist of night). The importance of that goal was huge, as the Phantoms would get a goal just 3:25 later to make it 3-2. Tyrell Goulbourne scored his 3rd of the season, from Mark Alt & Kevin Sundher. Lehigh Valley would struggle to get shots on the net, and with 52 seconds left, the Bears put it away with an empty-net goal. Chris Bourque scored his 4th of the season. Hershey finished with the 28-22 shot advantage.

Next Game: Tomorrow vs. St. John's, 7:00

Regular Season Game 10: Hershey Bears 4, Bridgeport Sound Tigers 2 (11/4/15)

Box Score

Hershey (4-3-0-2) at Bridgeport (8-3-0-0)

Webster Bank Arena: Bridgeport, CT

Goalies: Peters (2-1-1, 1.74) vs. Gibson (4-1-0, 2.24)

1st Period

Scoring

7:42- BRI Goal (PPG): Kearns (7), Quine & Whitney
16:47- HER Goal: Carey (3), Bourque & Boyd

Penalties

6:13- HER Penalty: Stanton for Tripping (2:00)
6:59- HER Penalty: Sill for Tripping (2:00)
9:24- BRI Penalty: Vaive for Holding (2:00)
18:14- BRI Penalty: Johnston for Hooking (2:00)

2nd Period

Scoring

5:00- HER Goal: Carrick (2), Collins & Camper

Penalties

16:35- HER Penalty: Carey for Hooking (2:00)
18:41- BRI Penalty: Halmo for Interference (2:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

9:41- BRI Goal: Quine (4), Collberg & Pulock
14:25- HER Goal: Carey (4), Bourque & Burgdoerfer
15:41- HER Goal: Walker (1), Gazley

Penalties

16:28- BRI Penalty: Halmo for Holding (2:00)

Shots

HER: 7-7-6=20
BRI: 13-9-19=41

Recap

With how the shot totals were in this game, this should have been a win for Bridgeport. However, Justin Peters played out of his mind in this game. If it weren't for him, who knows how many goals Bridgeport could have had. In this 1st, during a 5-on-3 power play, the Sound Tigers got on the board. Bracken Kearns scored his 7th of the season, from Alan Quine & Joe Whitney. Later on in the period, the Bears would be able to get a goal to tie it. Paul Carey scored his 3rd of the season, from Chris Bourque & Travis Boyd. After the 1st, Bridgeport had the 13-7 shot advantage.

In the 2nd, the shots would be a little closer, due to Hershey controlling play for most of the period. That control led to a goal at the 5:00 mark for the Bears to take the lead. Connor Carrick scored his 2nd of the season, from Sean Collins & Carter Camper. After the 2nd, Bridgeport had the 22-14 shot advantage.

In the 3rd, the shots would come like crazy for Bridgeport, and Peters continued to stand strong. However, he had no chance at the 9:41 mark, as Bridgeport tied the game at 2. Alan Quine scored his 4th of the season (2nd point of game), from Sebastian Collberg & Ryan Pulock. However, even with the small shot total in the period, the Bears would come out of nowhere to score two goals in 1:16 to take the 4-2 victory. The first goal was scored by Paul Carey (2nd of game/4th of season), from Chris Bourque (2nd assist of game) & Erik Burgdoerfer. The 2nd goal was scored by Nathan Walker (1st of season), from Dustin Gazley. Justin Peters finished with 39 saves on 41 shots in a great performance (Hershey had 20 shots).

Next Game: Friday at Lehigh Valley, 7:05

Regular Season Game 9: Lehigh Valley Phantoms 5, Hershey Bears 4 (F/SO) (11/1/15)

Box Score

Hershey (4-3-0-1) vs. Lehigh Valley (3-5-0-0)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Ellis (2-2-0, 2.97) vs. LaBarbara (0-3-0, 4.74)

1st Period
Scoring
9:59- LV Goal (PPG): Martel (3), Morin & Straka

Penalties
5:34- LV Penalty: Morin for Tripping (2:00)
9:05- HER Penalty: O'Brien for Tripping (2:00)
13:37- HER Penalty: Carrick for Holding (2:00)

2nd Period
Scoring
1:40- HER Goal: Djoos (1), Boyd & Carey
4:11- LV Goal: Straka (5), Martel & Gostisbehere
5:39- LV Goal: Palushaj (3), Brent & Drewiske
8:08- LV Goal (SHG): Straka (6), Lashoff & LaBarbara
19:52- HER Goal (PPG): Collins (1), Bourque & Ness

Penalties
6:42- LV Penalty: Drewiske for Tripping (2:00)
18:48- LV Penalty: Lashoff for Holding (2:00)

3rd Period
Scoring

9:18- HER Goal (PPG): Bourque (3), Djoos & Barber

17:53- HER Goal: Sill (1), Mitchell & O'Brien

Penalties

8:17- LV Penalty: Martel for Holding (2:00)

14:54- LV Penalty: Straka for Holding (2:00)

Overtime

Scoring

No Goals

Penalties

2:54- LV Penalty: Brent for Hooking (2:00)

Shootout

1st Round: HER- Carrick (No Goal), LV- Leier (Goal)

2nd Round: HER- Bourque (No Goal), LV- Straka (No Goal)

3rd Round: HER- Barber (Goal), LV- Martel (No Goal)

4th Round: HER- Mitchell (No Goal), LV- Palushaj (No Goal)

5th Round: HER- Boyd (No Goal), LV- Gostisbehere (No Goal)

6th Round: HER- Camper (No Goal), LV- Padakin (No Goal)

7th Round: HER- Gazley (No Goal), LV- Brent (No Goal)

8th Round: HER- Collins (Goal), LV- Alderson (Goal)

9th Round: HER- Carey (No Goal), LV- Goulbourne (No Goal)

10th Round: HER- Walker (No Goal), LV- Sundler (Goal)

Phantoms win shootout 3-2

Shots

HER: 8-10-13-2=33

LV: 17-8-12-3=40

Recap

What a game. The fact that the Bears even got to overtime with how this game was going says something about this team. They'll never quit. In the 1st, the game went very similar to how last night's did: domination by the other team, and great play from the Bears' goalie (this time, Dan Ellis). At the 9:05 mark, the Phantoms got on the board. Danick Martel scored his 3rd of the season, from Samuel Morin & Petr Straka. After the 1st, the Phantoms had the 17-8 shot advantage.

In the 2nd, the goals came from everywhere. 1:40 into the period, the Bears tied it up at one. Christian Djoos scored his 1st AHL goal, from Travis Boyd & Paul Carey. 2 and a half minutes later, the Phantoms took the lead again. Petr Straka scored his 5th of the season (2nd point of night), from Danick Martel (2nd point of night) & Shayne Gostisbehere. At the 5:39 mark, Lehigh Valley increased their lead to two. Aaron Palushaj scored his 3rd of the season, from Tim Brent & Davis Drewiske. On a Bears' power play, only 2 and half minutes later, the Phantoms made it 4-1. Petr Straka scored his 2nd of the night (6th goal of season, 3rd point of night), from Matt Lashoff & Jason LaBarbara. With 8 seconds left in the period, on a power play, the Bears got a crucial goal to get within two. Sean Collins scored his 1st of the season, from Chris Bourque & Aaron Ness. After the 2nd, the Phantoms had the 25-18 shot advantage.

In the 3rd, the shots would keep coming, but only the Bears would take advantage. A penalty in the middle of the period would lead to the Bears getting to within one on the power play (at the 9:18 mark). Chris Bourque scored his 3rd of the season (2nd point of night), from Christian Djoos (2nd point of night) & Riley Barber. With 2:07 left in the game, the Bears would complete the comeback by tying the game at 4. Zach Sill scored his 1st of the season, from Garrett Mitchell & Liam O'Brien. In the overtime, the Bears would have a chance with a power play, but nothing would come of it. Going into the shootout, the Phantoms finished with the 40-33 shot advantage. The Phantoms would get a goal in the first round, but Hershey's Riley Barber would get one in the 3rd round to send it to extra rounds. Each team would get a goal in the 8th round, but it would be Lehigh Valley's Kevin Sundher who would score in the 10th round to give the Phantoms the victory.

Next Game: Wednesday at Bridgeport, 11:00am

Regular Season Game 8: Hershey Bears 4, St. John's IceCaps 2 (10/31/15)

Box Score

Hershey (3-3-0-1) vs. St. John's (6-2-1-1)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Peters (1-1-1, 1.65) vs. Fucale (4-0-0, 2.50)

1st Period

Scoring

3:51- STJ Goal: Dietz (2), Barberio & Eisenschmid

Penalties

4:00- HER Penalty: Stanton for High-Sticking (2:00)

5:29- HER Penalty: Burgdoerfer for Elbowing (2:00)

14:54- STJ Penalty: McCarron for Goaltender Interference (2:00)

17:36- STJ Penalty: Ellis for Delay of Game (2:00)

2nd Period

Scoring

1:09- STJ Goal: Hudon (4), Lernout & Andrighetto

3:50- HER Goal: Mitchell (2)

Penalties

5:48- HER Penalty: Ness for Cross-Checking (2:00)

9:39- STJ Penalty: de la Rose for Hooking (2:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

4:14- HER Goal: O'Brien (1), Gazley & Sill

8:58- HER Goal: Carey (2), Bourque & Djoos
19:35- HER Goal (EN): Gazley (3), Mitchell & Peters

Penalties

No Penalties

Shots
HER: 5-14-11=30
STJ: 14-7-4=25

Recap

That 2nd and 3rd period is the kind of hockey that the Bears need to play all season. Those periods were possibly the best they have looked in this early season. However, the 1st period was a struggle for the Bears. 3:51 into the period, St. John's got on the board. Darren Dietz scored his 2nd of the season, from Mark Barberio & Markus Eisenschmid. If it weren't for Justin Peters making some amazing saves, this game could have been 4-0 after the 1st. After the 1st, the IceCaps had the 14-5 shot advantage.

In the 2nd, at the 1:09 mark, the IceCaps would make it 2-0 on their 1st shot of the period. Charles Hudon scored his 4th of the season, from Brett Lernout & Sven Andrighetto. It was around this point that the game completely changed. From this point on, the Bears controlled most of the play. It started with a goal to make it 2-1 at the 3:50 mark. Garrett Mitchell scored his 2nd of the season. Even though there were no more goals, there was a sense of a changed momentum. After the 2nd, the IceCaps had the 21-19 shot advantage.

In the 3rd, the whistles would go away as there was no penalties in the period. However, the goals would come for the Bears. At the 4:14 mark, the game would be tied at 2. Liam O'Brien scored his 1st of the season, from Dustin Gazley & Zach Sill. A little less than 5 minutes later, with the momentum, the Bears took the lead. Paul Carey scored his 2nd of the season, from Chris Bourque & Christian Djoos. This was Bourque's 400th game in a Bears' jersey, and that assist was his 400th point with the team as well. The Bears would get another goal with an empty-netter to finish the game. Dustin Gazley scored his 3rd of the season (2nd point of night), from Garrett Mitchell (2nd point of night) & Justin Peters. Justin Peters finished with 24 saves on 25 shots (Hershey had 30 shots).

Next Game: Tomorrow vs. Lehigh Valley, 5:00

Regular Season Game 7: Syracuse Crunch 4, Hershey Bears 1 (10/30/15)

Box Score

Hershey (3-2-0-1) at Syracuse (3-3-0-1)

War Memorial at Oncenter: Syracuse, NY

Goalies: Ellis (2-1-0, 2.63) vs. Vasilevskiy (1-0-0, 1.00)

1st Period

Scoring

2:46- HER Goal: Gazley (2), Bowey

Penalties
4:29- SYR Penalty: McGinn for Elbowing (2:00)
16:12- HER Penalty: Gazley for Slashing (2:00)

2nd Period
Scoring

11:36- SYR Goal (PPG): Taormina (2), Gourde & Tambellini

11:52- SYR Goal: DeAngelo (3), Peca & Taormina

Penalties

10:54- HER Penalty: Burgdoerfer for Holding (2:00)

14:23- HER Penalty: Mitchell for Roughing (2:00)

14:23- SYR Penalty: Broll for Roughing (2:00)

16:39- HER Penalty: Walker for High-Sticking (2:00)

18:26- HER Penalty: Carrick for High-Sticking (Double Minor) (4:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

2:28- SYR Goal: Tambellini (3), Taomina
6:43- SYR Goal (PPG): Blunden (3), Blujus & DeAngelo

Penalties

4:36- SYR Penalty: Blunden for Boarding (2:00)
6:07- HER Penalty: Bowey for Holding (2:00)
8:11- HER Penalty: Mitchell for Roughing (2:00)
8:11- SYR Penalty: Paradis for Roughing (Double Minor) (4:00)
18:37- SYR Penalty: Darcy for Cross-Checking (2:00)

Shots
HER: 11-10-7=28
SYR: 8-18-6=32

Recap

With the way this game started, I thought it would stay a low-scoring game. It ended up turning into a bad game for the Bears. In that first period, Hershey got on the board quickly. Dustin Gazley scored his 2nd of the season, from Madison Bowey. The penalty kills of each team would stand strong in the period. After the 1st period, the Bears had the 11-8 shot advantage.

The 2nd period is where everything changed. Syracuse started to pick up their play, but Dan Ellis stayed with them until the 11:36 mark of the period, where Syracuse would tie it up on the power play. Matt Taormina scored his 2nd of the season, from Yanni Gourde & Jeff Tambellini. Only 16 seconds later, they would take the lead. Anthony DeAngelo scored his 3rd of the season, from Matthew Peca & Matt Taormina (2nd point of night). After the 2nd, the Crunch had the 26-21 shot advantage.

Things didn't get much better for the Bears in the 3rd period. 2:28 into the period, right after the end of a power play, the Crunch got the insurance goal. Jeff Tambellini scored his 3rd of the season (2nd point of night), from Matt Taormina (2nd assist/3rd point of night). A little more than 4 minutes later, just as a power play was starting, Syracuse increased the lead to 3. Mike Blunden scored his 3rd of the season, from Dylan Blujus & Anthony DeAngelo (2nd point of night). Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 27 of the Bears' 28 shots to get the win (Syracuse had 32 shots).

Next Game: Tomorrow vs. St. John's, 7:00

Regular Season Game 6: Hartford Wolf Pack 3, Hershey Bears 2 (F/SO) (10/25/15)

Box Score

Hershey (3-2-0-0) vs. Hartford (4-1-1-0)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Peters (1-1-0, 1.52) vs. Malcolm

1st Period

Scoring

9:06- HFD Goal: Tarnasky (1), Skjei & Nehring

11:52- HER Goal: Bowey (1), Boyd & Ness

Penalties

5:01- HER Penalty: O'Brien for Cross-Checking (2:00)

12:03- HER Penalty: Herbert for Slashing (2:00)

2nd Period

Scoring

No Goals

Penalties

11:40- HFD Penalty: Hrivik for Tripping (2:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

12:44- HFD Goal: Tarnasky (2), Graves & Nehring

19:47- HER Goal: Vrana (2), Bourque & Barber

Penalties

2:43- HFD Penalty: Nejezchleb for Boarding (2:00)

5:11- HER Penalty: Stanton for Hooking (2:00)

Overtime

Scoring

No Goals

Penalties

No Penalties

Shootout

1st Round: HER- Vrana (No Goal), HFD- Tambellini (No Goal)

2nd Round: HER- Barber (No Goal), HFD- Gibbons (Goal)

3rd Round: HER- Bourque (Goal), HFD- Hrivik (Goal)

Shots

HER: 7-10-7-2=26

HFD: 9-6-10-2=27

Recap

To get 5 points out of a 3-game weekend is something to be happy about. Although the Bears didn't win this one, they at least got a point out of it with the last-minute goal. In the first, you could tell this would be a well-fought matchup. At the 9:06 mark of the 1st, Hartford would get on the board. Nick Taransky would get his 1st of the season, from Brady Skjei & Chad Nehring. Less than 3 minutes later, the Bears would tie it back up. Madison Bowey got his 1st AHL goal, from Travis Boyd & Aaron Ness. After the 1st, the Wolf Pack had the 9-7 shot advantage.

The 2nd would have a few good chances for each team, but no goals came out of it. Each goalie was standing strong. In the 3rd, the Wolf Pack would be able to get one past Justin Peters at the 12:44 mark. Nick Taransky scored his 2nd of the night, from Ryan Graves & Chad Nehring (2nd assist of night). It was looking like this would a regulation loss, but with 13 seconds left, the Bears were able to tie it up. Jakub Vrana scored his 2nd of the season, from Chris Bourque & Riley Barber. In overtime, the chances were limited as each defense played well in the period. With that period over, the Wolf Pack finished with the 27-26 shot advantage. In the shootout, Hartford's Brian Gibbons was able to get one past Peters in the 2nd round. Chris Bourque was able to tie it up for Hershey in the 3rd round, but Marek Hrivik scored right after him to win it for the Wolf Pack.

Next Game: Friday at Syracuse, 7:00

Other News: It was announced last night that Bears GM Doug Yingst will be retiring after this season.

Regular Season Game 5: Hershey Bears 3, Hartford Wolf Pack 2 (F/OT) (10/24/15)

Box Score

Hershey (2-2-0-0) vs. Hartford (4-1-0-0)

Giant Center: Hershey, PA

Goalies: Ellis vs. Hellberg

1st Period

Scoring

No Goals

Penalties

4:18- HER Penalty: Camper for Tripping (2:00)

14:35- HER Penalty: Boyd for Tripping (2:00)

16:58- HFD Penalty: Brown for Tripping (2:00)

2nd Period

Scoring

12:49- HFD Goal: Megna (2), Gibbons

16:39- HER Goal: Stanton (1), Carey & Bowey

Penalties

2:02- HFD Penalty: Graves for Holding (2:00)

3:30- HER Penalty: Vrana for Tripping (2:00)

7:29- HER Penalty: Barber for Slashing (2:00)

11:56- HFD Penalty: O'Donnell for Embellishment (2:00)

11:56- HER Penalty: Sill for Tripping (2:00)

12:25- HFD Penalty: Glass for Roughing (2:00)

12:25- HER Penalty: Ness for Roughing (2:00)

18:26- HFD Penalty: Glass for Tripping (2:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

2:17- HER Goal (PPG): Boyd (1), Bourque & Barber

3:44- HFD Goal: O'Donnell (1), Tamasky & Graves

Penalties

1:48- HFD Penalty: McCarthy for Hooking (2:00)

16:47- HFD Penalty: Bodie for Roughing (2:00)

16:47- HFD Penalty: Gibbons for High-Sticking (2:00)

16:47- HER Penalty: O'Brien for Roughing (2:00)

Overtime

Scoring

2:50- HER Goal (PPG): Bourque (2), Boyd & Vrana

Penalties

1:18- HFD Penalty: Tambellini for Slashing (2:00)

Shots

HER: 7-7-15-2=31

HFD: 3-9-12-0=24

Next Game: Tonight vs. Hartford, 5:00

Regular Season Game 4: Hershey Bears 1, Utica Comets 0 (10/23/15)

Box Score

Hershey (1-2-0-0) at Utica (1-2-0-0)

Utica Memorial Auditorium: Utica, NY

Goalies: Peters vs. Cannata

1st Period

Scoring

No Goals

Penalties

3:09- HER Penalty: Burgdoerfer for Tripping (2:00)

5:05- UTI Penalty: Vey for Hooking (2:00)

12:19- HER Penalty: Moore for Hooking (2:00)

2nd Period

Scoring

No Goals

Penalties

10:30- UTI Penalty: Grenier for Tripping (2:00)

17:02- UTI Penalty: Kenins for High-Sticking (2:00)

19:49- HER Penalty: Burgdoerfer for Goaltender Interference (2:00)

19:49- HER Penalty: Stanton for Roughing (2:00)

19:49- UTI Penalty: Pedan for Roughing (2:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

18:49- HER Goal: Mitchell (1), Carey & Carrick

Penalties

1:02- HER Penalty: Mitchell for Boarding (2:00)

4:21- UTI Penalty: Hamilton for Elbowing (2:00)

10:37- UTI Penalty: Hamilton for Checking to the Head (2:00)

Shots

HER: 6-12-6=24

UTI: 8-6-5=19

Recap

This game was a defensive one, as the shots would barely get on the net. The goalies stood strong throughout the game. In the 1st, there would be some power play chances, but none would come through. The same would happen in the 2nd period. The goalies stood strong through the chances. In the 3rd, it would be until 1:11 left in the game that a goal would finally be scored, and it was by the Bears. Garrett Mitchell scored his 1st of the season, from Paul Carey & Connor Carrick. Justin Peters finished with the 19 save shutout (Bears finished with 24 saves).

Regular Season Game 3: Portland Pirates 5, Hershey Bears 2 (10/18/15)

Box Score

Hershey (1-1-0-0) at Portland (1-1-0-0)

Cross Insurance Arena: Portland, ME

Goalies: Ellis vs. Brittain

1st Period

Scoring

16:32- POR Goal (PPG): Schremp (2), Weegar & Harper

Penalties

13:10- POR Penalty: Wilson for Slashing (2:00)

16:08- HER Penalty: Burgdoerfer for Interference (2:00)

2nd Period

Scoring

1:11- POR Goal: Rau (2), Simpson

10:40- POR Goal: Schremp (3), Gaunce & Harper

15:20- HER Goal: Carey (1), Camper

17:53- POR Goal: Rau (3), Matheson & Simpson

Penalties

5:26- HER Penalty: Burgdoerfer for Cross-Checking (2:00)

9:39- HER Penalty: Moore for Hooking (2:00)

9:39- POR Penalty: McFarland for Holding the Stick (2:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

5:34- HER Goal: Barber (3), Boyd & Vrana

16:43- POR Goal (Penalty Shot): McFarland (1)

Penalties

No Penalties

Shots

HER: 7-9-3=19

POR: 8-11-9=28

Regular Season Game 2: Portland Pirates 3, Hershey Bears 2 (10/17/15)

Box Score

Hershey (1-0-0-0) at Portland (0-1-0-0)

Cross Insurance Arena: Portland, ME

Goalies: Peters vs. McKenna

1st Period

Scoring

6:30- HER Goal (SHG): Gazley (1)

Penalties

5:48- HER Penalty: Bench Minor for Too Many Men (Served by Barber) (2:00)

11:38- POR Penalty: Regner for Tripping (2:00)

12:11- POR Penalty: Weegar for Tripping (2:00)

15:19- HER Penalty: O'Brien for Tripping (2:00)

2nd Period

Scoring

2:42- POR Goal (PPG): Shaw (1), McKegg & Grimaldi

9:46- POR Goal (PPG): Shaw (2), Wilson & McKegg

15:51- HER Goal (PPG): Vrana (1), Bourque & Camper

18:52- POR Goal: Megan (1), Harper

Penalties
1:34- HER Penalty: Moore for Hooking (2:00)
6:22- HER Penalty: Carrick for Roughing (2:00)
6:22- POR Penalty: Acolatse for Hooking (2:00)
6:22- POR Penalty: McFarland for Roughing (2:00)
9:11- HER Penalty: Stanton for Tripping (2:00)
12:57- HER Penalty: Gazley for Unsportsmanlike Conduct (2:00)
12:57- HER Penalty: Gazley Misconduct for Unsportsmanlike Conduct (10:00)
12:57- HER Penalty: Sill Misconduct for Continuing Altercation (10:00)
12:57- HER Penalty: Walker for Unsportsmanlike Conduct (2:00)
12:57- POR Penalty: Acolatse Misconduct for Continuing Altercation (10:00)
12:57- POR Penalty: Wilson for Unsportsmanlike Conduct (2:00)
12:57- POR Penalty: Wilson Misconduct for Unsportsmanlike Conduct (10:00)
15:21- POR Penalty: Bench Minor for Too Many Men (Served by Harper) (2:00)

3rd Period
Scoring
No Goals

Penalties
1:43- HER Penalty: O'Brien for Fighting (5:00)
1:43- POR Penalty: Racine for Fighting (5:00)
3:19- POR Penalty: Weegar for Boarding (2:00)

Shots
HER: 7-4-15=26
POR: 8-10-6=24