After breaking their own world hockey record in the GIANT Teddy Bear Toss over the weekend, the Hershey Bears (21-10-3-0) continue the 2024-25 season, presented by Penn State Health, when they return to action this week by hosting the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on Tuesday to close out a club record-tying eight-game homestand, then hit the road for a pair of televised games in North Carolina against the Charlotte Checkers as the Bears will reach the halfway mark of the campaign this weekend.
2024-25 TEAM LEADERS:
Goals: Ethen Frank (20)
Assists: Mike Sgarbossa (21)
Points: Ethen Frank (28)
Power-Play Goals: Chase Priskie (5)
Shorthanded Goals: Bogdan Trineyev (1)
Plus/Minus: Ethan Bear (+15)
Wins: Hunter Shepard (15)
GAA: Hunter Shepard (2.54)
SV%: Hunter Shepard (.903)
Only includes qualified players
LOCAL PRACTICE SCHEDULE:
Monday, Jan. 6
Optional Practice, 11 a.m. at GIANT Center
Tuesday, Jan. 7
Morning Skate, 10:15 a.m. at GIANT Center
Wednesday, Jan. 8
Travel to Charlotte
Practice schedule is subject to change. Please check HersheyBears.com daily for updates.
LAST WEEK'S RESULTS:
- Saturday, Jan. 4 - Hershey 4 vs. Providence 3 (SO)
- Sunday, Jan. 5 - Hershey 5 vs. Providence 1
UPCOMING GAME SCHEDULE & PROMOTIONS:
Tuesday, Jan. 7 - vs. Lehigh Valley Phantoms, 7 p.m. - BUY TICKETS
Friday, Jan. 10 - at Charlotte Checkers, 7 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 11 - at Charlotte Checkers, 6 p.m.
Television Coverage: Antenna TV (Friday and Saturday); Video Coverage: AHLTV on FloHockey; Radio Coverage: Bears Radio Network, Capitals Radio Network
All times Eastern
TEAM NEWS AND NOTES:
TEDDY BEAR TOSS RECAP:
This past Sunday's win over the Providence Bruins was highlighted by the GIANT Teddy Bear Toss, which saw Hershey shatter its own world hockey record for the event by collecting 102,343 teddy bears and stuffed animals. Mike Sgarbossa netted the Teddy Bear Toss goal at 14:45 of the first period to tie the score at 1-1 en route to an eventual 5-1 win, marking the first time in his seven seasons with the club that Sgarbossa had struck to start the avalanche of bears after previously assisting on the goal in 2018 and 2019. Since hosting its first Teddy Bear Toss in 2001, Hershey has now collected and donated 566,450 teddy bears and stuffed animals to children in need throughout Central Pennsylvania. As part of the club's Hershey Bears Cares initiative, which showcases the philanthropic activities and volunteer efforts of Bears players and staff members throughout the community, teddy bears and stuffed animals are collected and donated to more than 35 local and regional organizations.
ENDING THE HOMESTAND ON A HIGH NOTE:
After a slow start to a franchise record-tying eight-game homestand, the Bears have rebounded after the New Year with consecutive wins on GIANT Center ice against Providence, improving to 3-4-0-0 over their last seven games as the club heads into Tuesday's game against Lehigh Valley. Hershey is 1-1-0-0 on home ice against the Phantoms this season, and 3-1-1-0 overall, winning its last encounter with Lehigh Valley by a 5-4 score on Dec. 8. Over the course of the homestand, Hershey has scored 16 goals, while allowing 17. Since the start of the homestand, Hershey has enjoyed five crowds of over 10,200 fans including four straight, and sits second in overall average league attendance for the season at 9,439.
POWER PLAY POWERS THROUGH:
After going 1-for-32 on the power play in the month of December, Hershey's man advantage unit has come alive in January. The Bears went 2-for-11 over the weekend against Providence, and enter Tuesday's game against Lehigh Valley with a 2-for-16 mark on the season against the Phantoms.
BRUINS BUSTERS:
Hershey's win against Providence on Sunday completed the regular-season series with the Bruins, as the Bears went a perfect 4-0-0-0 against their Atlantic Division foes. Combined with last season's 5-1-0-0 record against Providence, this also marks the first time in franchise history that the Bears have recorded at least four wins against the Bruins in consecutive seasons. Mike Sgarbossa led the way in scoring against Providence with four points (2g, 2a) in three games, while Hunter Shepard went 3-0-0 with a 1.62 goals-against average and a .936 save percentage.
SMALLMAN LOOMING LARGE:
Spencer Smallman netted three goals over the weekend, turning in his first multi-goal game performance of the season in Sunday's victory against the Bruins. After notching just three assists in his first 11 games of the campaign, the forward has enjoyed a surge of 16 points (6g, 10a) in his last 19 contests. The club has posted a record of 11-1-1-0 when Smallman records at least a point, and 5-0-0-0 when he finds the net. His next game will mark the 300th of his professional career (currently at 274 AHL GP, 30 ECHL GP).
SENSATIONAL SHEP:
Hunter Shepard leads all Eastern Conference netminders this season with 15 victories, and has posted a 2-2-0 record with a 1.98 goals-against average and .921 save percentage over his last four starts. Shepard enters the week with 70 career wins with Hershey, putting him one away from moving into a three-way tie with Vitek Vanecek and Philippe Sauve on the franchise's wins list for goaltenders.
QUEEN CITY QUEST:
After going 1-3-0-0 in the home portion of its season series with Charlotte, Hershey will visit the Checkers for the first time this season on Friday and Saturday with a pair of games at Bojangles' Coliseum. The Bears went a franchise-best 5-3-0-0 against Charlotte last season, including a 3-1-0-0 road record, also a franchise-best.
FRANKLY SPEAKING:
Bears forward Ethen Frank enters the week atop the team leaderboard with 20 goals, but has relinquished his hold on first place atop the American Hockey League, as Calgary's Rory Kerins now sits in place with 21. As the season enters its second half, Frank looks to become the first Bear to win the Willie Marshall Award for the league's goal-scoring crown since Alexandre Giroux paced the AHL with 50 in 2009-10.
NELSON WINS WATCH:
Last Saturday's win against Providence gave Bears head coach Todd Nelson his 117th win with Hershey, passing Murray Henderson for sole possession of ninth on the franchise list. Up next in eighth place is Ralph "Cooney" Weiland, who went 126-70-30 in 226 games behind the bench for the Chocolate and White from 1941-45 and guided the club to appearances in the Calder Cup Finals in 1941, 1942, and 1945. Nelson has 427 wins on his AHL resume, which positions him five victories behind Kevin Dineen, who sits in fifth place on the league's career wins list.
DOWN ON THE FARM:
The South Carolina Stingrays earned points in all three of its games last week, going 2-0-0-1 with an 11-3 victory at Savannah on Dec. 31 and a 2-1 home win over Jacksonville on Jan. 5. Kyler Kupka - who appeared in training camp with the Chocolate and White - had the game-winning goal in both contests for the Stingrays and is fifth in scoring among ECHL rookies with 29 points (14g, 15a). South Carolina boasts the fifth-best power play (23.4%) and top penalty kill (90.8%) in the ECHL and is scoring an average of 3.90 goals per game (3rd) while allowing an average of 2.45 goals per game (6th).
BEARS BITES:
Pierrick Dube recorded an assist on Sunday for the 100th point of his AHL career...Mike Sgarbossa is one assist away from his 300th AHL helper, and two games away from his 600th AHL contest...Ethan Bear is a pair of assists away from his 100th pro assist (AHL/NHL)...Chase Priskie's 17 points (6g, 11a) are tied for 14th in league scoring among defensemen...Hershey's road penalty kill ranks third in the league at 38-for-43 (88.4%)...Hershey is 10th in goals per game at 3.21 and allows the fourth-fewest shots per game (26.32)...The Bears are 13-0-1-0 when leading after two periods.
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