Bears Scare Monsters on Opening Night, 7-3

October 12, 2024

The Hershey Bears (1-0-0-0) raised their 2024 Calder Cup championship banner to the rafters, then opened the 2024-25 season, presented by Penn State Health, with a 7-3 victory over the Cleveland Monsters (0-1-0-0) on Saturday night in front of a sold-out crowd of 10,588 at GIANT Center. Ethen Frank led the way for the Chocolate and White with his fourth career hat trick.

BOX SCORE

NOTABLES:

• Ethen Frank scored a pair of power-play goals from the left circle in the second period, with Mike Sgarbossa getting on the scoresheet with assists on both. Frank then capped his three-goal performance in the third period. Frank's hat trick marked the first by a Bear in a season-opening game since Andrew Gordon on Oct. 3, 2009 vs. Norfolk (3-1 W). Frank's second goal proved to be the game-winner, the 15th of his Hershey career; his third goal marked his 100th career AHL point, all with the Bears.
• Alex Limoges matched his career-high with his sixth career three-assist game, and his first since Oct. 29, 2023 vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
• Luke Philp (1g, 1a) recorded his first points as a Bear.
• Ethan Bear played in his first AHL game since May 10, 2019 in the Calder Cup Playoffs, when he was a member of the Bakersfield Condors. The veteran defenseman scored his first regular-season AHL goal since April 6, 2019 at San Antonio.
• Bears head coach Todd Nelson earned his 98th win as Hershey's head coach; should he win Hershey's next two games, he will tie Mark French (147 games) for fastest head coach to 100 wins in franchise history.
• The Bears now own a lifetime 41-39-4-2-1 record in the first game of the regular season and a lifetime 43-35-4-3-2 record in home openers

SHOTS: HER 35, CLE 33

GOALTENDING: HER - Hunter Shepard, 30-for-33; CLE - Jet Greaves, 28-for-35

POWER PLAY: HER - 2-for-6; CLE - 1-for-4

THEY SAID IT:

"We have a lot of things to improve. I didn't like our rush defense. I thought our F3 got caught. I thought our compete got better throughout the game. We were still kind of in summer hockey mode. The first period we're giving up too many chances. And like I said, if [Hunter Shepard] wasn't sharp, the game could be totally different. This Cleveland team works their butts off and they never quit. We saw that last year and they have the same mentality this year. Doesn't matter what the score is." - Todd Nelson on his team's performance in the first game of the season

"I don't really want to say bittersweet, but it kind of was because it's time to turn the page. It's a new year. We've got a new target on our back, we've got a new group, a hungry group, and an excited group. So yeah, we're excited to see where it can go this year." - Ethen Frank on the emotion of celebrating the Calder Cup championship one final time with the banner-raising ceremony

"That's a really good question because yeah, with how packed the rink was tonight and how much energy everyone had, the cheering - everyone understands when to cheer and when not to cheer -  and you know what? It really feels like an NHL-type atmosphere and it makes it enjoyable. Obviously we did well tonight, so that helps. But I know it was a lot of fun and I think if you're playing in the AHL, it's a spot to be." - Ethan Bear on Hefshey's stature as a hockey town.

UPCOMING GAMES:

The Bears continue the 2024-25 regular season, presented by Penn State Health, when they host the Cleveland Monsters on Sunday, Oct. 13 at 5 p.m. at GIANT Center for PNC Bank Magnet Schedule Night. Purchase tickets for the game by CLICKING HERE.