Bears Weekly : Week Of Oct. 17, 2022
October 18, 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 a pair of Atlantic Division contests this week. The Bears visit Charlotte on Friday and Saturday at Bojangles Coliseum.
TEAM INFO:
Record: 2-0-0-0
Standings Position: 2nd in Atlantic
TEAM LEADERS:
Goals: Five players (1)
Assists: Mason Morelli, Garrett Pilon (2)
Points: Five players (2)
Power-Play Goals: Henrik Borgstrom, Mike Sgarbossa (1)
Shorthanded Goals: N/A
Plus/Minus: Lucas Johansen, Aaron Ness (+2)
Wins: Zach Fucale (2)
GAA: Zach Fucale (1.00)
SV%: Zach Fucale (.943)
Only includes players on active roster
RECENT RESULTS:
Saturday, Oct. 15: Hershey 3 vs. Utica 1
The Bears opened their season with a 3-1 victory over the Comets, as Henrik Borgstrom opened the scoring with a power-play goal at 8:42, and Mike Vecchione tallied at 17:42 to extend the lead to a pair of goals. Former Bears forward Brian Pinho scored 24 seconds into the middle frame, before Riley Sutter added an insurance goal for Hershey with 30 seconds left in regulation. Zach Fucale made 19 saves for the win.
Sunday, Oct. 16: Hershey 2 vs. Lehigh Valley 1
Hendrix Lapierre opened the scoring for Hershey at 16:04 of the first period, and Mike Sgarbossa broke a 1-1 tie with a power-play goal at 9:23 of the third period, while Zach Fucale made 14 saves for his second consecutive win and his 50th career AHL victory.
PRACTICE SCHEDULE FOR WEEK OF OCT. 17:
Monday, Oct. 17
Day Off
Tuesday, Oct. 18
10:30 a.m. at Hersheypark Arena
Wednesday, Oct. 19
10:30 a.m. at Hersheypark Arena
Thursday, Oct. 20
Travel day to Charlotte, no practice in Hershey
All practices are open to the public. Practice dates and times are subject to change.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE:
– Friday, Oct. 21 at Charlotte, 7 p.m.
– Saturday, Oct. 22 at Charlotte, 6 p.m.
Video Coverage: AHLTV; Radio Coverage: Bears Radio Network
TEAM NEWS AND NOTES:
FANTASTIC MR. FUCALE:
Hershey netminder Zach Fucale statistically ranks among the AHL’s top goaltenders in the early stages of the 2022-23 campaign after getting the start in both of the past week’s games and winning both outings to reach 50 career AHL victories. In Saturday’s home opener he made 19 saves including a spectacular glove save on Utica’s Zach Senyshyn with 1:07 left in the first period; less than 24 hours later, Fucale stopped 14 Lehigh Valley chances in a 2-1 win over the Phantoms. Fucale’s effort was also the first time in his career as a Bear that he started back-to-back games on consecutive days.
SHOT SUPPRESSORS:
While Fucale’s weekend performance was admirable, the Bears’ blue line is also deserving of some recognition as well – through two games Hershey owns the best shots against average in the AHL, surrendering a league-low 17.5 shots, a full five shots fewer than second-place Iowa (22.5 shots against).
SONNY DAYS AHEAD:
Sonny Milano has been assigned to the Bears by the Washington Capitals after clearing waivers on Monday afternoon. The eighth-year pro was a former first-round selection of the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2014 NHL Draft and got into his first practice with Hershey on Tuesday morning. Milano has 115 points (45g, 70a) in 166 career AHL games with San Diego, Lake Erie/Cleveland and Springfield, and helped Lake Erie capture the 2016 Calder Cup. He posted 34 points (14g, 20a) in 66 games with the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks last year.
SHOOT TO THRILL:
Sam Anas currently leads the Bears with nine shots on goal. The Bears forward led the team on Saturday against Utica with four shots and then exceeded that total with five on Sunday. Rookie forward Hendrix Lapierre is not far behind Anas with eight on the season, and in fact led Hershey with six shots on goal in Sunday’s contest. Lapierre’s first shot of the game resulted in the opening goal for Hershey in the eventual 2-1 win. It marked his first AHL goal after he posted a goal in his NHL debut with the Washington Capitals on Oct. 13, 2021 versus the New York Rangers.
SPECIAL TEAMS SUCCESS:
The Bears’ special teams turned in a sterling performance through the opening two games of the season. Hershey’s power play is tied for ninth in the AHL after going 2-for-7 (28.6%) over the weekend, while the penalty kill is tied for 11th after a 5-for-6 (83.3%) effort.
BEARS BITES:
Hershey was 3-5-0-0 against Charlotte during the 2021-22 season, with Garrett Pilon and Mike Sgarbossa each sharing the team scoring lead against the Checkers with identical 4g, 4a statlines, while Seattle Kraken prospect Alexander True led Charlotte against Hershey with 10 points (5g, 5a)…The Bears and Checkers will each host four games against each other during the 2022-23 campaign…Charlotte is off to an identical 2-0-0-0 start after sweeping a pair of games against Hartford on Friday and Saturday…The Checkers are in their second season as an affiliate of the Florida Panthers after opting out of the 2020-21 season and previously playing as a Carolina Hurricanes affiliate during their tenure in the AHL…Similar to Hershey this season, the Checkers have a revamped bench; while Geordie Kinnear remains head coach, Charlotte has added Bobby Sanguinetti and Jared Staal as assistants on the bench…The Bears have a lifetime record of 22-19-0-1 (.536) record against the Checkers.
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