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

Update on Next Few Games

Due to previously planned engagements, I will not be able to blog the next few games. These games are on the 17th, 18th, 23rd, and 24th. The next day (the 25th), I will be posting box scores from each game. I will then be back on schedule and doing the box score and recap for the game on that day. Thank you for your understanding. Go Bears!

Regular Season Game 1: Hershey Bears 5, Springfield Falcons 1 (10/10/15)

Box Score

Hershey at Springfield

MassMutual Center: Springfield, MA

Goalies: Ellis vs. Treutle

1st Period

Scoring

8:54- HER Goal (PPG): Camper (1), Carey & Vrana
11:45- HER Goal: Barber (1), Stephenson & Bourque
11:57- SPR Goal: Cunningham (1), Shinnimin & Smith

Penalties

5:19- HER Penalty: Bowey for Holding (2:00)
8:31- SPR Penalty: Dauphin for Slashing (2:00)
13:44- HER Penalty: Bourque for Boarding (2:00)
14:21- HER Penalty: Moore for Tripping (2:00)

2nd Period
Scoring

11:09- HER Goal: Carrick (1), Mitchell

14:24- HER Goal: Barber (2), Camper & Stanton

Penalties

5:17- SPR Penalty: Shinnimin for Delay of Game (2:00)

13:10- HER Penalty: Moore for Roughing (2:00)

13:10- SPR Penalty: Selleck for Roughing (2:00)

16:12- SPR Penalty: Delisle for Cross-Checking (2:00)

16:12- SPR Penalty: Lane for Roughing (2:00)

3rd Period

Scoring

13:09- HER Goal (PPG): Bourque (1), Ness & Vrana

Penalties

8:07- HER Penalty: Carrick for Roughing (2:00)

8:29- HER Penalty: Mitchell for Tripping (2:00)

9:42- HER Penalty: Stanton for Roughing (2:00)

9:42- SPR Penalty: Lessio for Roughing (2:00)

12:53- SPR Penalty: Potter for Tripping (2:00)

19:10- HER Penalty: Carrick for High-Sticking (2:00)

Shots

HER: 8-17-5=30

SPR: 7-2-11=20

Recap

What a way to start off the new season! The Bears made a statement with this one. In the 1st, the special teams came to the forefront. After a penalty kill, Hershey went on the power play, and got on the board 23 seconds into said power play (at the 8:54 mark). Carter Camper scored his 1st of the season, from Paul Carey & Jakub Vrana. During a 4-on-4, the Bears would take the 2-0 lead. Riley Barber scored his 1st of the season, from Chandler Stephenson & Chris Bourque. That was Barber's first AHL goal, and Bourque's 500th AHL point. 12 seconds later, the Falcons would get on the board. Craig Cunningham scored his 1st of the season, from Brendan Shinnimin & Derek Smith. The Bears' penalty kill would stand tall later on in the period, as they would kill a 5-on-3 advantage. After the 1st, the Bears had the 8-7 shot advantage.

In the 2nd, the Bears would take full control of the game. At the 11:09 mark, the lead was back to two. Connor Carrick scored his 1st of the season, from Garrett Mitchell. A little more than three minutes later, the lead went to three goals. Riley Barber scored his 2nd of the night, from Carter Camper (2nd point of night) & Ryan Stanton. The focus this period was the domination of the Bears in shots. Dan Ellis only saw two shots in the period, and due to it, the Bears went into the 3rd with the 25-9 shot advantage.

The 3rd would be less dominating for the Bears, due to some penalties. However, that wouldn't change much on the scoreboard. Ellis stood tall and saved all 11 shots in the period, including some on a 5-on-3 advantage (the 2nd that the Bears penalty kill survived). At the 13:09 mark, the lead increased to four. Chris Bourque scored his 1st of the season (2nd point of night), from Aaron Ness & Jakub Vrana (2nd assist of night). The final shot tally was 30-20 in favor of the Bears.

Next Game: Saturday at Portland, 7:00

Bears Announce Team Captains

The Bears have announced who their team captains will be for the 2015-16 season. Garrett Mitchell, who was an alternate captain last season, will be team captain this season. He has played all of his career AHL games in Hershey. There will be three alternate captains this season. Mike Moore, who was an alternate captain last season, will once again be one. Chris Bourque, who returns to the Bears after playing for Hartford last season, will be one. And the last one is Zach Sill, who is one of the new Bears this season. If you would like to read more about each player, here is the article on the announcement from the Bears' website: http://www.hersheybears.com/news/detail.php?id=4739

Bears Preseason Games

Thursday, October 1st: Albany 2, Hershey 1
HER: Walker (5:49, 2nd)
ALB: Novak (:46, 2nd), Coleman (13:27, 3rd)

Saturday, October 3rd: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 5, Hershey 3
HER: Vrana (12:16, 1st), Barber (14:28, 2nd), Vrana (18:38, 3rd)
WBS: Marcantuoni (4:33, 2nd), Bakker (17:35, 2nd), Seymour (5:24, 3rd), Sundqvist (15:23, 3rd), Gill (19:26, 3rd)

I was at the game on Saturday, and you could definitely see some good signs from this team. If they get their power play going, they will be just fine with how quick some of their players can shoot. You could tell that there are some things that have to be improved, but that is what training camp is for. The season begins in 5 days!

Plan for Preseason Games

Hello everyone! The regular season is only 9 days away! For the preseason games, I will be doing the same thing I did last season. As the games are usually not on TV or radio, I will get the stats after each game and put them in one post after they are done. As I will be attending one of them, I will try to take a couple photos from the game to share. Go Bears!