The Hershey Bears (35-15-5-0) continue the 2024-25 season, presented by Penn State Health, with three games this week, as the club battles the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on Wednesday before traveling to Chicago for the first time since the 2005-06 season, where they will face the Chicago Wolves in a pair of games on Saturday and Sunday. Hershey sits only two points behind the Laval Rocket for the league lead and enters the week with a Magic Number of nine points needed to clinch a berth in the 2025 Calder Cup Playoffs.
2024-25 TEAM LEADERS:
Goals: Ivan Miroshnichenko (17)
Assists: Ethan Bear (31)
Points: Ethan Bear (40)
Power-Play Goals: Chase Priskie (8)
Shorthanded Goals: Grant Cruikshank, Bogdan Trineyev (1)
Plus/Minus: Ethan Bear (+27)
Wins: Hunter Shepard (20)
GAA: Clay Stevenson, Hunter Shepard (2.88)
SV%: Hunter Shepard (.890)
Only includes qualified players on active roster
LOCAL PRACTICE SCHEDULE:
Monday, March 10
Practice, 10:45 a.m. at Hersheypark Arena
Tuesday, March 11
Practice, 10:30 a.m. at Hersheypark Arena
Wednesday, March 12
Morning Skate, 10:15 a.m. at Hersheypark Arena
Thursday, March 13
Travel to Chicago
Thursday, March 13-Sunday, March 23
No local practices during this period
Practice schedule is subject to change. Please check HersheyBears.com daily for updates.
LAST WEEK'S RESULTS:
- Wednesday, March 5 - Hershey 2 vs. Belleville 6
- Friday, March 7 - Hershey 3 at Cleveland 0
- Saturday, March 8 - Hershey 4 at Cleveland 3
UPCOMING GAME SCHEDULE & PROMOTIONS:
Wednesday, March 12 - at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, 7:05 p.m.
Saturday, March 15 - at Chicago Wolves, 8 p.m.
Sunday, March 16 - at Chicago Wolves, 4 p.m.
Television Coverage: Antenna TV; Video Coverage: AHLTV on FloHockey; Radio Coverage: Bears Radio Network, Capitals Radio Network
All times Eastern
TEAM NEWS AND NOTES:
AHL DEADLINE DAY FRIDAY:
The AHL trade deadline is Friday, March 14 at 3 p.m. ET. While trades in the modern AHL are rare, Hershey has occasionally been an active participant at the league's trade deadline. The Bears most recently were part of a deadline-day move in 2017, when Hershey received Mattias Backman on loan from the Dallas Stars, and in return the Washington Capitals loaned Darren Dietz to the Texas Stars. Hershey also acquired forward Kris Newbury from the Adirondack Phantoms on loan from the Philadelphia Flyers at the 2014 deadline in exchange for Derek Whitmore. In both 2010 and 2011, the Bears completed loan-based transactions at the deadline with the Chicago Wolves, at the time an affiliate of the Atlanta Thrashers. At the 2010 trade deadline, the Bears gained the services of defenseman Grant Lewis from Chicago Wolves via a Thrashers loan. Lewis went on to skate in 10 regular-season contests with the Bears and one playoff game as Hershey won the 2010 Calder Cup; the following year, Hershey gained left wing Andrew Kozek via a loan while Bears defenseman Josh Godfrey was loaned by Washington to Chicago.
MIRO THE MAGICIAN:
Ivan Miroshnichenko pushed his recent point streak to six games (5g, 4a) with a goal and an assist last Saturday against Cleveland. The forward leads the Bears in the month of March with eight points (4g, 4a) through five contests, and his 17 goals lead the active roster.
ROAD WARRIORS:
This season, the Bears have been the best road team in the league, owning an .800 road points percentage on the strength of an 18-3-4-0 record away from GIANT Center. Hershey needs eight more wins out of its remaining 11 road contests to match the franchise mark for road victories in a season (26, 2009-10) and 13 out of an available 22 points to match the club record for road points percentage (.736, 2023-24).
CLAY WALL:
Clay Stevenson enters the week with wins in his last four decisions. The netminder has posted a 1.83 goals-against average, a .925 save percentage, and two shutouts over his last five outings. Stevenson has gone 132:56 without allowing a goal on the road, dating back to Feb. 15 at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. The longest documented road shutout streak in Hershey's history belongs to Ilya Samsonov at 159:54 during the 2018-19 season.
ANOTHER 20-WIN SEASON FOR SHEPARD:
Thanks to Saturday's victory at Cleveland, Bears goaltender Hunter Shepard is now tied for second in the AHL with 20 wins this season. The victory marked Shepard's 75th career win for the Chocolate and White, moving him past Braden Holtby for sole possession of eighth on the franchise's wins list. The University of Minnesota Duluth alumnus is only the fifth Bears goaltender in club history to post at least three consecutive seasons of 20 or more wins, joining Freddy Cassivi, Bob Perreault, Gordon "Red" Henry, and Nick Damore. Shepard is two wins away from his 100th career pro win across the ECHL, AHL, and NHL.
NELSON TO HIT 200TH GAME WITH BEARS:
Wednesday's game at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton will mark Todd Nelson's 200th game as the head coach of the Bears. The Hershey bench boss is in his third season at the helm of the Chocolate and White, and has posted a 132-48-10-9 record through 199 games, which ranks 12th in franchise history for games coached. His .711 points percentage ranks as the best by a coach in club history, and his 132 victories are currently eighth.
PAGING THE PENGUINS:
The Bears renew their I-81 rivalry with the ninth of 12 total meetings with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on Wednesday. Hershey is 5-3-0-0 against the Penguins this season. Ethan Bear leads Hershey with 10 points (2g, 8a) in seven contests, while Ville Koivunen, Filip Kral, and Emil Bemstrom (recalled) each lead Wilkes-Barre/Scranton against the Bears with 10 points. Hershey visits Wilkes-Barre/Scranton again as part of this road trip on March 22 after returning from Chicago and swinging through New England.
RUNNING WITH THE WOLVES:
Hershey will be making its first visit to Rosemont, Illinois since Dec. 23, 2005, when the Bears defeated the Chicago Wolves 4-3 in overtime. Since the Wolves joined the AHL in the 2001-02 season, Hershey has a lifetime 1-0-1-0-0 record at Chicago. The Bears hosted the Wolves in a pair of games in the second weekend of the season in October, winning once and falling once in overtime. Bears head coach Todd Nelson won the 2008 Calder Cup with the Wolves as an assistant coach, while forward Spencer Smallman was part of Chicago's 2022 championship victory, and defender Brad Hunt skated in two stints with the Wolves from 2011-13 and 2016-17.
DOWN ON THE FARM:
The South Carolina Stingrays won all three of their games last week, topping Savannah 2-1 in overtime on Wednesday before beating the Ghost Pirates at home over the weekend by 6-3 and 2-1 scores. South Carolina now sits one point back of the Florida Everblades for first overall in the ECHL; the Stingrays lead the circuit with 39 wins and own the top-ranked penalty kill (86.8%), the third-ranked power play (23.0%), and a league-leading 3.74 goals scored per game.
BEARS BITES:
Dalton Smith is one point away from his 100th pro point...Hendrix Lapierre is three points away from his 100th pro point...Hershey has won its last three road contests...Ethan Bear leads all Eastern Conference skaters in plus/minus with a +27...Mike Vecchione needs one more assist to earn his 100th as a Bear...The Bears have the third-fewest penalty minutes per game and the fewest in the Eastern Conference (10.76)...Hershey is tied with Manitoba, San Diego, and Texas for the league lead with 10 wins when tied after the second period...The Bears are tied with Laval for the league lead with 22 wins in games decided by one goal. Hershey's franchise record for wins decided by one goal is 24, set last season (24-2-0-5).
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