Week of October 24, 2022
October 25, 2022 – American Hockey League (AHL) – Hershey Bears News Release
(Hershey, PA) – The Hershey Bears continue the 2022-23 season, presented by Penn State Health, with their first of six three-in-threes this season. The Bears travel to Hartford on Friday to face the Wolf Pack for the first time this season, before returning home to GIANT Center to host the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on Saturday and the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on Sunday.
TEAM INFO:
Record: 2-1-1-0
Standings Position: 5th in Atlantic
Click here for full AHL standings
TEAM LEADERS:
Goals: Henrik Borgstrom, Riley Sutter, Mike Vecchione (2)
Assists: Mason Morelli (4)
Points: Mason Morelli, Mike Vecchione (4)
Power-Play Goals: Henrik Borgstrom, Sonny Milano, Mike Sgarbossa (1)
Shorthanded Goals: Riley Sutter (1)
Plus/Minus: Vincent Iorio (+2)
Wins: Zach Fucale (2)
GAA: Zach Fucale (2.02)
SV%: Hunter Shepard (.912)
Only includes players on active roster
RECENT RESULTS:
Friday, Oct. 21: Hershey 4 at Charlotte 5
The Bears built an initial 3-0 lead by the midway point of the second period in their first road game of the season, but a power-play goal by Charlotte’s Anton Levtchi late in the frame ignited an offensive surge for the Checkers, as Charlotte reeled off five consecutive goals, including a pair from Zac Dalpe, while Levtchi led the evening with three points (1g, 2a.) Henrik Borgstrom scored in the final second of the contest to pull Hershey back to within one, but Zach Fucale took the loss with a 19-save effort.
Saturday, Oct. 22: Hershey 2 at Charlotte 3 (OT)
Hershey twice led during Saturday’s rematch, as Ethen Frank netted his first of the season at 6:08 of the first, and Sonny Milano tallied a power-play goal at 2:43 of the second for his first as a Bear, but Logan Hutsko equalized both times for Charlotte, eventually sending the game to overtime. While Hunter Shepard came up with several remarkable saves in the third period to secure the point for Hershey, Chris Tierny ultimately netted the game-winner 1:28 into the extra frame for Charlotte, as Shepard finished the night with 31 stops.
PRACTICE SCHEDULE FOR WEEK OF OCT. 24:
Monday, Oct. 24
10:30 a.m. at Hersheypark Arena
Tuesday, Oct. 25
Day off
Wednesday, Oct. 26
10:30 a.m. at GIANT Center
Thursday, Oct. 27
9:30 a.m. at GIANT Center
Travel to Hartford
All practices are open to the public. Practice dates and times are subject to change.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE:
– Friday, Oct. 28 at Hartford, 7 p.m.
– Saturday, Oct. 29 vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, 7 p.m.- Sunday, Oct. 30 vs. Lehigh Valley, 5 p.m.Tickets: https://www.hersheybears.com/tickets/single-game.php
Video Coverage: AHLTV; Radio Coverage: Bears Radio Network
TEAM NEWS AND NOTES:
MAGIC MIKE:
Mike Vecchione has managed to record a point in each game the Bears have played this season. The sixth-year pro is currently tied for the team lead with four points (2g, 2a). The Bears have won in both of the games in which the Union College alumnus has found the back of the net. Since joining Hershey last season, Vecchione has 48 points (18g, 39a) in 63 games with the Chocolate and White.
IF YOU’RE NOT FIRST, YOU’RE LAST:
Hershey and the expansion Coachella Valley Firebirds are the only two teams in the AHL to have played at least four games this season and have scored the first goal in each game. The Bears have received their first-goal offense by committee, with Sam Anas, Henrik Borgstrom, Ethen Frank, and Hendrix Lapierre all contributing first goals for the Chocolate and White.
WELL-BEHAVED BEARS:
Through the first two weeks of the season, Hershey ranks second in the AHL and first in the Atlantic Division with the lowest average penalty minutes, with players spending 7.00 minutes per game in the penalty box. Hershey’s conversion with the power play of 18.8% is already tracking ahead of last season’s rate of 17.4%. Conversely, opposing teams against Hershey have averaged 9.50 penalty minutes per game. The Bears are one of a handful of teams that have already collected a shorthanded goal this season, thanks to Riley Sutter’s shorthanded tally in the first period on Oct. 21 at Charlotte.
MAKING IT COUNT:
Henrik Borgstrom is one of two players in the AHL with a 100% shooting percentage and at least two goals, joining Abbotsford’s Carson Focht. The fifth-year pro is in his first season with Hershey after previously suiting up in the AHL with Springfield, where his career-high for goals was 11 with Springfield in 2019-20, resulting in a shooting percentage of 12.5%.
BEARS BITES:
The Bears and Wolf Pack will each host three games against each other during the 2022-23 campaign. The Wolf Pack enter the week as one of two teams (and the lone Eastern Conference club) without a win in the 2022-23 campaign. Hershey went 1-3-0-2 against Hartford during the 2021-22 season, and is 15-7-0-2 overall in the last five seasons. Bears captain Dylan McIlrath previously played for the Hartford/Connecticut franchise between 2010-17…Hershey went 8-3-1-0 versus Wilkes-Barre/Scranton last season, but the Bears fell to the Penguins in three games in the opening round of the 2022 Calder Cup Playoffs. The Chocolate and White own a 33-19-2-2 record against the Penguins over the previous five seasons…The Bears are 27-24-5-3 over the last five seasons against the Phantoms, and went 6-8-0-0 against their division rivals in the 2021-22 campaign. Mike Vecchione, Logan Day and Matthew Strome are all former Phantoms.
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