Sunday October 29, 2006 at Philadelphia (Posted Sunday 11:02 P.M. EST)

 

Bears roll past Phantoms, 4-1

Hershey finishes October at 7-0-0-1

 

By Joe Shetrom, 7641 Sports

joe@7641.com

 

Officially, the Hershey Bears are off to their best start in franchise history. Taking advantage of numerous power play opportunities through the first forty minutes on Sunday, the visiting Bears were able to convert three times, cruising to a 4-1 victory and setting a new team record with their sixth consecutive road win to begin a season. Chris Bourque (PPG), Tyler Sloan (GWG), Tomas Fleischmann (PPG), and Eric Fehr (PPG) would supply the goal scoring, while Frederic Cassivi (5-1-0) would turn away 33 of 34 shots to give Hershey (7-0-0-1, 15 points) points in each of their first eight contests of 2006/07. Nolan Baumgartner registered the only marker for Philadelphia (3-5-1-0, 7 points), who are now winless in five straight games. Goaltender Scott Munroe fell to 0-3 on the year, finishing with 28 saves for the Phantoms.

 

TEAM	1ST	2ND	3RD	Total
Hershey	1	3	0	4
Philadelphia	0	1	0	1

 

FIRST PERIOD - Scoring: 1, Bourque 3 (power play) (Johansson, Hendricks), 17:14. Penalties: Baumgartner, PHI (hooking), :23; Hunt, HER (hooking), 7:52; Hendricks, HER (holding), 13:30; Meloche, PHI (hooking), 13:40; Giroux, HER (hooking), 18:57.

 

SECOND PERIOD - Scoring: 2, HER, Sloan 2 (game-winner) (Fleischmann, Engelland), 1:35. 3, PHI, Baumgartner 1 (power play) (Murray, Printz), 8:10. 4, HER, Fleischmann 8 (power play) (Giroux, Nycholat), 12:05. 5, HER, Fehr 4 (power play) (Nycholat, Johansson), 16:16. Penalties: Tolpeko, PHI (holding stick), 2:14; Baumgartner, PHI (tripping), 5:57; Nycholat, HER (slashing), 7:35; Bourque, HER (slashing), 8:10; Tolpeko, PHI (hooking), 10:12; Munroe, PHI (delay of game), 11:36; Tolpeko, INT (interference), 15:37; Laing, HER (tripping), 16:45; Fleischmann, HER (slashing), 17:11; Cullen, HER (tripping), 18:33.

 

THIRD PERIOD - Scoring: None. Penalties: Timonen, PHI (tripping), :26; Fehr, HER (hooking), 1:35; Hendricks, HER (goaltender interference), 2:04; Vandermeer, HER (interference), 5:18; Sloan, HER (interference), 9:09; Robitaille, HER (slashing), 15:57; Tolpeko, PHI (hooking), 16:59; Engelland, HER (holding), 17:06; Sloan, HER (hooking), 18:29.

 

Game Factoids: Hershey finished 3-9 on the power-play, while Philadelphia ended at 1-12 … The Phantoms outshot the Bears 34-32 … Fleischmann, who has now recorded 5 goals in the last 3 contests, extended his scoring streak to 7 games … Fehr has registered points in 6 straight (4G, 4A) … RW Jonas Johansson and D Lawrence Nycholat each ended with 2 assists … Sloan is the sixth different player to record a game-winner for Hershey this season … Philadelphia enjoyed seven of the last eight power play chances … The Bears have allowed just 2 power play goals in their last 33 man-down situations (94%) … The game was played at the Wachovia Center … Hershey Head Coach Bruce Boudreau started Jamie Hunt and Nycholat on defense, with Fleischmann, Alexandre Giroux, and Joey Tenute at forward … Scratched from Hershey: D Dean Arsene (healthy), D Trevor Byrne (healthy), D John Erskine (veteran), D Sasha Pokulok (injury), RW Matt Stefanishion (injury), RW Stephen Werner (healthy), and LW Chad Wiseman (veteran) … 3 Stars of the Game: (1) Fleischmann, (2) Nycholat, (3) Baumgartner … Referee: Nygel Pelletier … Attendance: 7,106.

 

6 Degrees of Separation: Bears LW Peter Vandermeer skated with the Phantoms from 2001-2004, racking up 1,046 penalty minutes … Giroux, Nycholat, Wiseman and Philly's Martin Grenier played together for all or parts of three seasons with the Hartford Wolf Pack … Byrne and Philadelphia C Troy Riddle both played on the 04/05 Worcester IceCats and the 05/06 Peoria Rivermen … Phantoms D Nate Guenin and Dave Steckel played together for two seasons at Ohio State.

 

Coming Up: The Bears return to Giant Center next weekend for a pair of home games, taking on the Syracuse Crunch Saturday at 7 PM, and the Phantoms Sunday evening at 5 o'clock.

 

Saturday October 28, 2006 vs Albany (Posted Sunday 1:48 A.M. EST)

 

Bears use goals, fists to beat Rats

Hershey rolls to 5-0 shutout win

 

By Joe Shetrom, 7641 Sports

joe@7641.com

 

There's an old saying, "To lose is to learn." The Albany River Rats, though - losers of fourteen straight games to the Hershey Bears coming into Saturday - quickly learned a "we're not going down without a fight" mentality by the 3rd period, dropping the gloves when buying a goal wasn't an option. After the dust settled, Hershey skated to their Giant Center dressing room with an impressive 5-0 victory over the River Rats - their 15th straight win over Albany dating back to the 2003/04 campaign. Maxime Daigneault (2-0) tossed his first career American Hockey League shutout, turning aside all 24 shots faced as Hershey (6-0-0-1, 13 points) continued one of its best starts in franchise history. Tomas Fleischmann, who has registered goals in five of six games played this season, scored a pair of markers for the second consecutive contest, while Quintin Laing and Chad Wiseman added 2nd period even strength tallies. Eric Fehr would cap the night's offense, taking a short-handed breakaway and beating River Rats goalie Tyler Weiman (2-3) to make it 5-0 Hershey at 18:37 of the 3rd.

 

TEAM	1ST	2ND	3RD	Total
Albany	0	0	0	0
Hershey	1	2	2	5

 

FIRST PERIOD - Scoring: 1, HER, Fleischmann 6 (game-winner) (Nycholat, Hunt), 7:11. Penalties: Tsimikalas, ALB (tripping), 12:14; Wiseman, HER (hooking), 13:17; Love, ALB (high-sticking), 16:01; Kelman, ALB (roughing), 18:59.

 

SECOND PERIOD - Scoring: 2, HER, Laing 1 (Schultz, Steckel), 2:30. 3, HER, Wiseman 2 (Hendricks, Erskine), 17:01. Penalties: Boychuk, ALB (fighting major), 2:52; Robitaille, HER (fighting major), 2:52; Hendricks, HER (hooking), 11:05; Boulerice, ALB (holding), 15:50; Giroux, HER (roughing), 15:50; Sloan, HER (holding), 17:53.

 

THIRD PERIOD - Scoring: 4, HER, Fleischmann 7 (power play) (Tenute, Bourque), 15:50. 5, HER, Fehr 3 (short-handed) (Steckel), 19:55. Penalties: Werner, HER (hooking), 2:52; McLeod, ALB (roughing, unsportsmanlike conduct), 5:00; Robitaille, HER (roughing, unsportsmanlike conduct), 5:00; Werner, HER (tripping), 5:42; Boulerice, ALB (hooking), 7:56; Barnes, ALB (interference), 10:22; Zancanaro, ALB (hooking), 14:01; McLeod, ALB (fighting major), 15:54; Robitaille, HER (fighting major), 15:54; Love, ALB (fighting major), 16:06; Werner, HER (fighting major), 16:06; DaSilva, ALB (fighting major), 16:29; Conboy, ALB (charging), 16:29; Hendricks, HER (roughing, fighting major), 16:29; Fehr, HER (roughing), 16:29; Wiseman, HER (hooking), 17:40; Boulerice, ALB (fighting major), 20:00; Kelman, ALB (fighting major), 20:00; Erskine, HER (fighting major), 20:00; Giroux, HER (fighting major), 20:00.

 

Game Factoids: Face-offs won (unofficial): Hershey: 29, Albany: 37 … Hershey finished on the power-play, while Albany ended at … The Bears outshot the River Rats 39-24 … Laing's marker was his first of the season … Weiman ended with 34 saves for Albany (3-5-0-0, 6 points) … Fleischmann's power play goal came from an odd carom off the Albany end boards, with the puck bouncing out to the front of the net, where Hershey's leading scorer deposited the vulcanized rubber past Weiman … Bears LW Louis Robitaille earned two fighting majors in the contest, taking on former Bear Johnny Boychuk in the 2nd period, and Cody McLeod in the 3rd. Robitaille chalked up losses in both scraps … RW Stephen Werner dropped the mitts for the second straight night, trading punches with Mitch Love at 16:06 of the 3rd … C Matt Hendricks shed his gloves, too, decisioning Dan DaSilva at 16:29 of the 3rd … The final buzzer saw two donnybrooks ensue, with Alexandre Giroux squaring off against former Bear Scott Kelman, and heavyweights John Erskine and Jesse Boulerice trading haymakers near the benches. Erskine landed the bigger and more powerful shots, earning the win over the veteran pugilist, who quickly skated to the visitors locker room … For the first time this season, Hershey registered the game's first goal … Hershey has allowed only one power play goal in its last 21 short-handed situations … Erskine has registered an assist in each of his first two games in a Bears uniform … Hershey Head Coach Bruce Boudreau started Jeff Schultz and Tyler Sloan on defense, with Chris Bourque, Laing, and Dave Steckel at forward … Scratched from Hershey: D Dean Arsene, D Deryk Engelland, D Timo Helbling, RW Jonas Johansson, D Sasha Pokulok, RW Matt Stefanishion, and LW Peter Vandermeer … 3 Stars of the Game: (1) Daigneault, (2) Fleischmann, (3) Wiseman … Referee: Chris Ciamaga … Attendance: 9,191.

 

6 Degrees of Separation: Boychuk (04/05), Jeff Finger ('03-'05), Kelman (05/06), Stephen Peat (05/06), and Shane Willis (03/04) are one-time Bears, while River Rats Head Coach Tom Rowe skated with Hershey in 81/82. Weiman and 'Rats RW David Svagrovsky both attended Bears training camp in 2004 … Boychuk played in the WHL alongside Schultz in Calgary, and with Fleischmann and Engelland in Moose Jaw … Albany C David Gove was teammates with Giroux in Grand Rapids (01/02) and Helbling in Utah (03/04) … Hendricks teamed with River Rats D Tim Conboy and Finger at St. Cloud State … Rats D Derrick Walser and Sloan played for Syracuse from 2002-2004 … Love, who led the WHL with 327 penalty minutes in 02/03, was teammates with Engelland and Fleischmann in Moose Jaw.

 

Coming Up: Hershey wraps up its October schedule with a Sunday matinee in Philadelphia, facing off against the Phantoms at 7:05 PM from the Wachovia Spectrum. It is the first meeting of the season between the long-time Keystone State rivals.

 

Hershey's Maxime Daigneault make this first period save enroute to the Bears first shutout of the season.

 

Former Bear Johnny Boychuk and Hershey's Louis Robitaille get physical during secong period action.

 

Hershey's Chad Wiseman sneeks a shot past Albany's Tyler Weiman putting the Bears ahead 3-0 at 17:01 of the second.

 

Weiman makes a spectacular point blank save on the Bears Tomas Fleischmann.

 

Albany's Mitch Love shows none to the Bears Stephen Werner.

 

Eric Fehr slips Herhsey's fifth goal (shorthanded) past Weiman.

 

Friday October 27, 2006 at Albany (Posted Friday 10:55 P.M. EST)

 

Hershey exterminates the Rats, 4-3

Extends road unbeaten streak

 

TEAM	1ST	2ND	3RD	Total
Hershey	0	3	1	4
Albany	1	0	2	3

 

Scoring

 

1. ALB Boulerice, (3) (Walser, Kelman), 17:45 (PP)

2. HER Steckel, (1) (Byrne, Erskine), 1:42

2. HER Fleischmann, (4) (Helbling, Byrne), 8:20 (PP)

2. HER Fleischmann, (5) (Steckel), 15:57

3. ALB Boulerice, (4) (Gove, Guite), 2:56

3. ALB Conboy, (1) (Kelman, Boulerice), 6:16

3. HER Tenute, (4) (Fehr), 9:17

 

Penalties

 

1 - HER Engelland, 5:56 - Hooking , 2 min (PP)

1 - HER Arsene, 8:51 - Interference , 2 min (PP)

1 - HER Wiseman, 9:33 - Tripping , 2 min (PP)

1 - HER Helbling, 11:27 - Roughing , 2 min

1 - ALB Boulerice, 11:27 - Roughing , 2 min

1 - HER Arsene, 12:10 - Hooking , 2 min (PP)

1 - HER Erskine, 14:37 - Holding the stick , 2 min (PP)

1 - HER Johansson, 14:37 - Hooking , 2 min

1 - HER Helbling, 16:08 - Roughing , 2 min

1 - HER Helbling, 16:08 - Roughing , 2 min (PP)

1 - ALB Isbister, 16:08 - Roughing , 2 min

1 - ALB Boulerice, 17:53 - Interference , 2 min (PP)

1 - HER Wiseman, 20:00 - Unsportsmanlike conduct , 2 min

1 - ALB Barnes, 20:00 - Unsportsmanlike conduct , 2 min

2 - HER Laing, 7:37 - Fighting , 5 min

2 - HER Laing, 7:37 - Game misconduct - Secondary altercation (47.6), 10 min

2 - ALB Isbister, 7:37 - Instigating , 2 min

2 - ALB Isbister, 7:37 - Fighting , 5 min (3 PP)

2 - ALB Isbister, 7:37 - Misconduct - Instigating (47.10), 10 min

2 - ALB Isbister, 7:37 - Game misconduct - Aggressor (47.2), 10 min

2 - ALB Love, 7:37 - Fighting , 5 min

2 - ALB Love, 7:37 - Game misconduct - Secondary altercation (47.6), 10 min

2 - HER Vandermeer, 12:10 - Tripping , 2 min

2 - HER Werner, 13:46 - Fighting , 5 min

2 - ALB Barnes, 13:46 - Fighting , 5 min

 

Coming Up: Hershey and the Albany River Rats will meet for game 2 of a home and home series, faceoff 7 pm at the Giant Center.

 

Monday October 23, 2006 (Posted Monday 8:03 P.M EST)

 

Current Bears Statistical Leaders (through 10-23-06)

 

 

Saturday October 21, 2006 vs Bridgeport (Posted Sunday 1:07 A.M. EST)

 

Bears raise banner, drop shootout loss

Bridgeport spoils celebration, streak, with 3-2 win

 

By Joe Shetrom, 7641 Sports

joe@7641.com

 

Despite the pomp and circumstance of raising their ninth Calder Cup Championship banner, and regardless of another come-from-behind rally, the Hershey Bears were unable to capture their fifth straight win, falling to the Bridgeport Sound Tigers 3-2 in a shootout Saturday night at Giant Center. Peter Ferraro and Jeff Tambellini would give the visitors a 2-0 lead through the first 37-plus of action, but Hershey would answer with even strength markers from Alexandre Giroux (17:42) and Tomas Fleischmann (19:49), knotting the score at twos heading into the second intermission. Following a scoreless 3rd period and overtime, a shootout ensued between the East Division foes. In the breakaway competition, Sergei Ogorodnikov, Ferraro, and Luch Aquino potted goals for Bridgeport (3-1-0-1, 7 points), while the Bears (4-0-0-1, 9 points) came up empty handed, suffering their first loss of the 2006/07 campaign. Michael Mole (1-0), in his first-ever American Hockey League start, flashed the leather on several occasions, stonewalling notable Chris Bourque (1st period) and Giroux (under a minute left in OT) opportunities. At the other end, reigning Calder Cup Playoff MVP Frederic Cassivi (3-0-1) finished with 22 saves.

 

TEAM	1ST	2ND	3RD	OT	SO	Total
Bridgeport	1	1	0	0	1	3
Hershey	0	2	0	0	0	2

 

FIRST PERIOD - Scoring: 1, BRI, Ferraro 3 (Marjamaki, Mitchell), 10:43. Penalties: Hendricks, HER (tripping), 3:18; Mitchell, BRI (hooking), 8:22; Tenute, HER (holding stick), 12:08; Fata, BRI (roughing), 17:01; Robitaille, HER (double roughing minor), 17:01.

 

SECOND PERIOD - Scoring: 2, BRI, Tambellini 3 (Nilsson, Nielsen), 15:25. 3, HER, Giroux 4 (Fleischmann, Arsene), 17:42. 4, HER, Fleischmann 3 (Fehr, Cassivi), 19:49. Penalties: Fleischmann, HER (tripping), :14; Regier, BRI (tripping), 3:06; Berry, BRI (slashing), 4:45; Wotton, HER (hooking), 10:03.

 

THIRD PERIOD - Scoring: None. Penalties: Hendricks, HER (tripping), 4:13; Marjamaki, BRI (closing hand on puck), 7:00; Ferraro, BRI (slashing), 10:02; Nycholat, HER (hooking), 16:03; Mitchell, BRI (slashing), 19:06.

 

OVERTIME -- Scoring: None. Penalties: None.

 

SHOOTOUT

 

Shooter Name	Team	Result
Sergei Ogorodnikov	BRI	Goal
Eric Fehr	HER	No Goal
Jeff Tambellini	BRI	No Goal
Timo Helbling	HER	No Goal
Peter Ferraro	BRI	Goal
Tomas Fleischmann	HER	No Goal
Luch Aquino	BRI	Goal

 

Game Factoids: Face-offs won (unofficial): Hershey: 32, Bridgeport: 31 … Hershey finished 0-7 on the power-play, while Bridgeport ended at 0-6 … The Bears outshot the Sound Tigers 36-25 … Mole, recalled last week from Pensacola (ECHL), ended with 34 saves in 65 minutes. He also stopped all 3 shots faced in the shootout … Hershey has failed to score in 8 of its last 15 shootouts … Bourque saw his 4-game scoring streak end … Bears RW Stephen Werner made his 06/07 debut … Bridgeport C Frans Nielsen is attempting to become the first native of Denmark to play in the NHL … Hershey Head Coach Bruce Boudreau started Dean Arsene and Tyler Sloan on defense, with Bourque, Matt Hendricks, and Louis Robitaille at forward … Scratched from Hershey: D Trevor Byrne, D Deryk Engelland, D John Erskine, D Sasha Pokulok, C Dave Steckel, RW Matt Stefanishion, and LW Peter Vandermeer … 3 Stars of the Game: (1) Mole, (2) Fleischmann, (3) Bourque … Referee: Joe Ernst … Attendance: 10,630 … Prior to opening face-off, Hershey's 9th Calder Cup Championship banner was unfurled from the Giant Center rafters, and players from the 2005/06 club were awarded championship rings. Former captain Boyd Kane, currently skating with the Philadelphia Flyers, made an unexpected trip back to Hershey to receive his ring. Another former Bear, Mark Wotton - the current Bridgeport captain - was the first to receive his ring. One-time Bears Willie Marshall, Steve Andrascik, Dave Parro, Mitch Lamoureux, and Dave Fenvyes participated in the ceremonies, awarding Bears coaches and management with championship rings … The Bears donned special Calder Cup Champions jerseys, which were auctioned off after the game. Fetching the highest bids were: Fleischmann ($4,100), Arsene ($4,000), and Cassivi ($3,500).

 

6 Degrees of Separation: Sound Tigers d-man Rick Berry played with Hershey from 1998-2001 … Wotton and Helbling both spent time on the Utah Grizzlies blueline in 03/04 … Sound Tigers LW Masi Marjamaki played with Fleischmann during the 03/04 season in Moose Jaw (WHL) … Hendricks and Sound Tigers D Allan Rourke were teammates with Lowell in 04/05 … Bridgeport G Billy Thompson and Giroux spent the 03/04 season together with Binghamton.

 

Coming Up: Hershey heads to the Empire State next Friday for 7 PM face-off against the Albany River Rats. It will be the first meeting this season between the East Division rivals. The Bears currently own a 13-game winning streak on the Carolina Hurricanes/Colorado Avalanche affiliate dating back to the end of the 2003/04 campaign.

 

Former Bear Dave Fenvyes Brings the Calder Cup into the Ring Ceremony.

 

Mark Wotton, now Captain of the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, receives his ring.

 

Boyd Kane, the Captain of the Calder Cup Champs and now Philadelphia Flyer, was present to receive his ring.

 

Calder Cup championship banner number 9 is dropped from the rafters.

 

Hershey's Frederic Cassivi makes an early point-blank save on Bridgeport's Jeff Tambellini.

 

The Bears Alexandre Giroux puts Hershey on the board with this shot over a diving Michael Mole.

 

Hershey's Tomas Fleischmann keeps his poise and fires this wrister to knot the game while being hauled down.

 

The Bears wore special "Champions Jerseys" which were auctioned off after the game.

 

Calder Cup MVP Frederic Cassivi was one of the top dollar jerseys of the night.

 

Sunday October 15, 2006 at Toronto (Posted Sunday 9:07 P.M. EST)

 

Comeback kids do it again

Hershey rallies three times; win 5-4 in OT

 

By Joe Shetrom, 7641 Sports

joe@7641.com

 

Entering the 2006/07 campaign, Hershey Bears head coach Bruce Boudreau made "Let's Make History" this season's motto. Four games into the matrix, the Bears are well on their way, coming from behind on Sunday on three different occasions to force overtime against the Toronto Marlies. 2:24 into the extra session, Lawrence Nycholat would pocket the game-winner - his second goal of the contest - giving the Bears their best start in 24 years with a 5-4 win at Ricoh Coliseum. Joey Tenute and Alexandre Giroux would each collect a goal and two assists, while Frederic Cassivi (3-0) turned away 35 shots for the East Division-leading Bears (4-0-0, 8 points). Jiri Tlusty, Chris Harrington, Colin Murphy, and Brett Engelhardt tallied goals for Toronto (1-2-1, 3 points), who saw 1-0, 3-1, and 4-3 leads evaporate in the loss to Hershey. Mikael Tellqvist (0-1), down from the parent Toronto Maple Leafs for a rehab start, suffered the Marlies defeat with 30 saves.

 

TEAM	1ST	2ND	3RD	OT	Total
Hershey	1	2	1	1	5
Toronto	1	2	1	0	4

 

FIRST PERIOD - Scoring: 1, TOR, Tlusty 2 (Westrum, Earl), 7:28. 2, HER, Tenute 3 (Fleischmann, Arsene), 19:39. Penalties: Hendricks, HER (tripping), :39; Hendricks, HER (goaltender interference), 11:22; Mitchell, TOR (hooking), 16:26.

 

SECOND PERIOD - Scoring: 3, TOR, Harrington 1 (Westrum, Devereaux), 5:57. 4, TOR, Murphy 1 (power play) (Harrington), 12:24. 5, HER, Giroux 2 (Hunt, Tenute), 13:56. 6, HER, Nycholat 1 (Johansson, Bourque), 14:22. Penalties: Engelhardt, TOR (interference), 2:27; Earl, TOR (hooking), 5:12; Fehr, HER (hooking), 5:16; Helbling, HER (interference), 10:20; Arsene, HER (high-sticking), 11:41.

 

THIRD PERIOD - Scoring: 7, TOR, Engelhardt 2 (Harrington, Murphy), 2:54. 8, HER, Robitaille 2 (power play) (Tenute, Wiseman), 6:24. Penalties: Arsene, HER (roughing), :46; Moro, TOR (holding), 3:46; Sifers, TOR (interference), 5:29; Fleischmann, HER (slashing), 9:16; Fleischmann, HER (roughing), 15:11; Engelhardt, TOR (roughing), 15:11.

 

OVERTIME -- Scoring: 9, HER, Nycholat 2 (game-winner) (Fehr, Giroux), 2:24. Penalties: None.

 

Game Factoids: Hershey finished 1-5 on the power-play, while Toronto ended at 1-7 … The Marlies outshot the Bears 39-35 … Louis Robitaille potted Hershey's other goal, a 3rd period power play marker that tied the contest at 4-4 … Bears LW Chris Bourque extended his scoring streak to 4 games … For the fourth time in as many games this season, Hershey has surrendered the first goal … The 82/83 Bears began the season 6-0 before losing 4-1 in Nova Scotia on 10/24/82 … G Maxime Daigneault, who left Saturday's game with an apparent leg injury, dressed as Cassivi's back-up … Dating back to last season, Hershey has won 6 straight regular season contests … Tlusty, the 13th overall pick in this year's NHL Entry Draft, is the AHL's youngest player (18 years, 7 months) … Marlies D Boyd Devereaux, signed last weekend, is a veteran of 509 career NHL games. He won a Stanley Cup with Detroit in 2002 … Harrington is the son of John Harrington, who played on the United States' 1980 Olympic "Miracle on Ice" gold medal-winning team … RW Nathan Perrott, released by the New Jersey Devils on Saturday, signed a PTO with the Marlies. He did not dress, though … Toronto RW Jeff Corey hails from Boothwyn, PA, situated in Delaware County … Ricoh Coliseum will host this season's AHL All-Star Game, with Boudreau and Bob Woods serving as coaches … Boudreau started Dean Arsene and Trevor Byrne on defense, with Bourque, Matt Hendricks, and Quintin Laing at forward … Scratched from Hershey were: D Deryk Engelland (healthy), D Sasha Pokulok (concussion symptoms), D Tyler Sloan (healthy), C Dave Steckel (forearm), RW Matt Stefanishion (injury), LW Peter Vandermeer (veteran), and RW Stephen Werner (injury) … With Steckel and Pokulok returning to Hershey due to their injuries, the Bears recalled C Malcolm MacMillan from the Reading Royals (ECHL). MacMillan, who spent time in Hershey's training camp this year, made his AHL debut, donning jersey #15 … 3 Stars of the Game: (1) Harrington, (2) Tenute, (3) Giroux … Referee: Francois St. Laurent ... Attendance: 2,754

 

6 Degrees of Separation: Marlies LW Owen Fussey played 50 games for Hershey last season … Toronto Assistant Coach Joe Paterson spent parts of two seasons with the Bears from 1984-1986 … Marlies G Justin Pogge played all or portions of two years on a Calgary Hitmen (WHL) club that featured current Bears D Jeff Schultz … Tenute, along with Toronto's Kris Newbury and David Pszenyczny, spent time together with Sarnia (OHL) … Marlies D David Cloutier played part of the 99/00 season with Robitaille in Montreal (QMJHL) … Hershey D Timo Helbling and Toronto D Marc Moro each spent time on the Milwaukee Admirals' blueline in 01/02 … Giroux and Marlies D Dominic D'Amour both saw action with Rouyn-Noranda (QMJHL) during the 00/01 campaign.

 

Coming Up: The undefeated Bears kick off the home portion of their 06/07 schedule on Saturday, raising their 9th Calder Cup Championship banner from the Giant Center rafters before facing off against the Bridgeport Sound Tigers at 7 PM. Former Bear Mark Wotton, a key ingredient in Hershey's playoff run last spring, captains the Islanders' AHL affiliate.

 

Saturday October 14, 2006 at Syracuse (Posted Saturday 11:55 P.M. EST)

 

Syracuse crunched by Bears, 6-3

 

By Joe Shetrom, 7641 Sports

joe@7641.com

 

The Hershey Bears continued their impressive start to the 06/07 campaign, erasing a 1-0 deficit to scorch the Syracuse Crunch for four straight goals en route to a 6-3 win Saturday night at the Onondaga County War Memorial. Eric Fehr tallied two goals and an assist, while goaltender Maxime Daigneault (1-0), making his first start of the season, stopped 30 shots before leaving in the 3rd period with an apparent leg injury. Tomas Fleischmann, Louis Robitaille, Chris Bourque, and Matt Hendricks also lit the lamp for Hershey (3-0-0, 6 points), off to their best start since 99/00. Mark Flood, Geoff Platt, and Philippe Dupuis potted markers for the winless Crunch (0-4-0, 0 points), while netminder Tomas Popperle finished with 31 saves.

 

TEAM	1ST	2ND	3RD	Total
Hershey	3	1	2	6
Syracuse	1	2	0	3

 

FIRST PERIOD - Scoring: 1, SYR, Flood 1 (Motzko, Platt), 7:53. 2, HER, Fleischmann 2 (power play) (Giroux, Fehr), 11:34. 3, HER, Robitaille 1 (power play) (Byrne, Laing), 12:29. 4, HER, Fehr 1 (unassisted), 12:08. Penalties: Novak, SYR (hooking), :24; Vandermeer, HER (fighting major), 4:36; Szwez, SYR (fighting major), 4:36; Verot, SYR (hooking), 5:30; Helbling, HER (holding), 5:36; Tenute, HER (hooking), 5:49; Canzanello, SYR (high-sticking), 10:07; Methot, SYR (holding), 11:24; Bourque, HER (hooking), 12:57; Robitaille, HER (interference), 14:42; Tenute, HER (boarding), 18:26; Giroux, HER (tripping), 19:32.

 

SECOND PERIOD - Scoring: 5, HER, Fehr 2 (game-winner) (power play) (Fleischmann, Helbling), 8:53. 6, SYR, Platt 1 (power play) (Novak, Motzko), 17:24. 7, SYR, Dupuis 1 (power play) (Labelle, Flood), 19:09. Penalties: Arsene, HER (hooking), 3:36; Pushor, SYR (tripping), 4:03; Methot, SYR (cross-checking), 7:03; Canzanello, SYR (hooking), 8:20; Verot, SYR (unsportsmanlike conduct), 9:38; Kloucek, SYR (slashing), 12:02; Tenute, HER (holding), 13:37; Giroux, HER (hooking), 15:26; Steckel, HER (tripping), 17:10; Murray, SYR (interference), 19:24.

 

THIRD PERIOD - Scoring: 8, HER, Bourque 2 (unassisted), 13:20. 9, HER, Hendricks 2 (Laing), 13:33. Penalties: Szwez, SYR (hooking), 3:02; Fehr, HER (holding), 4:08; Robitaille, HER (unsportsmanlike conduct), 4:08; Simon, SYR (unsportsmanlike conduct), 4:08; Goertzen, SYR (unsportsmanlike conduct), 4:08; Kloucek, SYR (hooking), time unknown; Methot, SYR (cross-checking), 15:46; Hendricks, HER (holding), time unknown; Methot, SYR (holding), time unknown; SYR penalty, 19:46.*

 

*3rd period statistics incomplete at post time

 

Game Factoids: Hershey finished 3-14 on the power-play, while Syracuse ended at 2-11 … The Crunch outshot the Bears 41-37 … G Frederic Cassivi, pressed into duty with 8:07 left in the 3rd period, turned aside all 8 shots faced … Bourque has collected points in all 3 contests this season … Hershey has allowed the first goal in each of its first 3 games … LW Quintin Laing registered 3 assists … The contest was slowed due to numerous penalties, including - at last count - 10, 5-on-3 man advantage opportunities … C Dave Steckel left during the 3rd period with an apparent forearm injury … Bears D Sasha Pokulok made his professional debut … The Bears scored a combined 3 goals in Daigneault's three starts last season … Popperle has surrendered 12 goals in 2 contests this season … The Bears have won 4 of their last 5 against Syracuse … Hershey Head Coach Bruce Boudreau started Timo Helbling and Tyler Sloan on defense, with Fleischmann, Alexandre Giroux, and Joey Tenute at forward … Giroux is the only Bear to start all 3 games … Scratched from Hershey were: D Deryk Engelland (healthy), D Jamie Hunt (healthy), D Jeff Schultz (healthy), RW Matt Stefanishion (injury), RW Stephen Werner (injury), and RW Chad Wiseman (veteran) … 3 Stars of the Game: (1) Fehr, (2) Fleischmann, (3) Platt … Referee: Nygel Pelletier … Attendance: 5,312.

 

6 Degrees of Separation: Sloan spent all or parts of 3 seasons with Syracuse from 2002-2005 … Hendricks and Crunch RW Joe Motzko played together for 3 seasons at St. Cloud State … Helbling and Syracuse C Ben Simon each spent time with the Milwaukee Admirals during the 03/04 campaign. The prior year, Helbling and Crunch D Tomas Kloucek logged ice for the Admirals … Crunch captain Jamie Pushor (17 games) suited up for a Hartford Wolf Pack 03/04 squad that included current Bears Lawrence Nycholat, Giroux, and Wiseman.

 

Coming Up: Hershey concludes its four-game road trip on Sunday, skating into Toronto for a faceoff against the Marlies from Ricoh Coliseum. It will be the Bears' only stop in "TO" during the 2006/07 campaign. Hershey will look to begin the regular season at 4-0 for the first time since 82/83, when Gary Inness's club reeled off six straight wins to start the campaign. Prior to their home opener next Saturday versus the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, Hershey will raise its 9th Calder Cup Championship banner. Gametime is set for 7 PM.

 

Friday October 13, 2006 at Hamilton (Posted Friday 10:35 P.M. EST)

 

Bears pull out dramatic win over the Bulldogs, 3-2

Fleischmann nets game winner at 19:56 of the 3rd period

 

By Joe Shetrom, 7641 Sports

joe@7641.com

 

TEAM	1ST	2ND	3RD	Total
Hershey	1	0	2	3
Hamilton	2	0	0	2

 

Game Factoids: Hershey finished 0 for 5 on the power-play, while Hamilton ended at 1 for 9… The Bears outshot the Bulldogs 39-33 … Hershey hasn't begun the regular season at 2-0 since Mike Foligno's club reeled off three straight wins to start the 99/00 campaign … Entering Friday's contest, the Bears held an 11-6-3 all-time record against the Bulldogs … Hershey C Joey Tenute hails from Hamilton … Hershey Head Coach Bruce Boudreau started Trevor Byrne and Timo Helbling on defense, with Giroux, Fehr and Hendricks at forward … 3 Stars of the Game: (1) Tomas Fleischmann, (2) Ajay Baines , (3) Frederic Cassivi … Referee: Bob Langdon… Attendance: 3082

 

6 Degrees of Separation: Bulldogs D Patrick Traverse skated with Hershey during the 1997/98 campaign, and teamed with Bears G Frederic Cassivi during the 1995/96 season with the defunct P.E.I. Senators. In total, he has played with 9 different AHL clubs (New Haven, Prince Edward Island, Worcester, Hershey, Grand Rapids, Quebec, Houston, Iowa, and Hamilton) … Bears LW Peter Vandermeer played for Hamilton last season … Bulldogs C Maxim Lapierre and LW Michael Lambert played alongside Hershey LW Louis Robitaille with the Montreal Rocket in 01/02 … Hamilton RW Duncan Milroy was teammates with Bears captain Lawrence Nycholat during the 99/00 season with Swift Current (WHL) … Hershey D Sasha Pokulok and Bulldogs d-men Jon Gleed and Ryan O'Byrne played two seasons together at Cornell … Hamilton D Danny Groulx and Vandermeer spent the 04/05 season with Grand Rapids … Bulldogs D Dan Jancevski and Bears D Timo Helbling each spent time on the blueline with the Utah Grizzlies in 03/04 … Hamilton Assistant Coach Ron Wilson played junior hockey with Boudreau in 74/75 with the Toronto Marlboros.

 

Coming Up: The Bears continue their road trip Saturday in Syracuse, facing off against the Crunch from the Onondaga County War Memorial at 7:30 PM. It will be Hershey's only visit to the Salt City this season. The Crunch make their only 06/07 stop to Chocolatetown on November 4th.

 

Saturday October 7, 2006 at Wilkes-Barre (Posted Saturday 11:04 P.M. EST)

 

Bears win barnburner with Pens, 7-4

Hershey reels off four unanswered goals

 

By Joe Shetrom, 7641 Sports

joe@7641.com

 

The Hershey Bears began their 2006 Calder Cup defense in fine fashion, erasing a 2-0 Wilkes-Barre lead and clubbing the reigning East Division-champion Penguins 7-4 before 8,178 fans Saturday night at the Wachovia Arena. Joey Tenute potted two power play goals within one minute during the 2nd period, while Chad Wiseman and Alexandre Giroux would follow suit in the 3rd, registering short-handed and even-strength markers, respectively, within sixty seconds, sending Hershey to its sixth consecutive win over the Penguins. Tyler Sloan and Matt Hendricks would also find the back of the net for Hershey (1-0-0, 2 points), as did Petr Taticek, who tallied a goal against his former team. Reigning Playoff MVP Frederic Cassivi (1-0) turned aside 33 of 37 shots for his 72nd career Bears victory, passing Phil Sauve for sixth place in club history. Jonathan Filewich and Kyle Brodziak initially lifted Wilkes-Barre to a 2-0 advantage in the 1st period, while Connor James and Daniel Carcillo rounded out the scoring for the Pens (1-1-0, 2 points). Andrew Penner (1-1), who ended with 23 saves, took the loss for WBS.

 

TEAM	1ST	2ND	3RD	Total
Hershey	1	2	4	7
Wilkes-Barre	2	1	1	4

 

FIRST PERIOD - Scoring: 1, WBS, Filewich 1 (power play) (Christensen, DuPont), 8:27. 2, WBS, Brodziak 1 (Kennedy, Dixon), 10:38. 3, HER, Sloan 1 (Laing, Bourque), 16:27. Penalties: DuPont, WBS (hooking), 4:43; Tenute, HER (hooking), 5:33; Giroux, HER (roughing), 7:35; Nycholat, HER (cross-checking), 8:13; Skolney, WBS (high-sticking), 13:19; DuPont, WBS (hooking), 16:43; Nycholat, HER (hooking), 17:47.

 

SECOND PERIOD - Scoring: 4, HER, Tenute 1 (power play) (Helbling, Nycholat), 12:51. 5, HER, Tenute 2 (power play) (Helbling, Fehr), 13:48. 6, WBS, Connor 1 (power play) (Schremp, Gilbert), 17:30. Penalties: Wiseman, HER (hooking), :39; Welch, WBS (hooking), 6:24; Wiseman, HER (roughing), 8:16; DuPont, WBS (roughing), 8:16; Bonvie, WBS (tripping), 9:56; Bonvie, WBS (holding), 12:25; Carcillo, WBS (boarding), 12:51; Stone, WBS (hooking), 13:33; Bourque, HER (hooking), 15:38.

 

THIRD PERIOD - Scoring: 7, WBS, Carcillo 1 (Filewich, Schremp), 1:56. 8, HER, Taticek 1 (Hunt, Johansson), 2:24. 9, HER, Hendricks 1 (game-winner) (power play) (Nycholat), 6:35. 10, HER, Wiseman 1(short-handed) (unassisted), 12:37. 11, HER, Giroux 1 (Wiseman, Nycholat), 13:33. Penalties: Skolney, WBS (unsportsmanlike conduct), 5:14; Schultz, HER (holding), 7:33; Taticek, HER (tripping), 11:13; Arsene, HER (holding), 16:45.

 

Game Factoids: Hershey finished 3-9 on the power-play, while Wilkes-Barre ended at 2-9 … The Penguins outshot the Bears 37-30 … Newly-named Bears captain Lawrence Nycholat collected a game-high 3 points (all assists) … 13 different players registered at least one point for Hershey … The 7 goals were the most for a regular season opener since Hershey defeated the Rochester Americans 7-3, ironically, on 10/7/88 … Bears D Timo Helbling notched 2 assists … Highly-regarded Wilkes-Barre rookie Rob Schremp finished with 2 assists … Earlier in the day, Bears LW Tomas Fleischmann was recalled to the Washington Capitals. He skated 8-plus minutes in the Caps' 5-2 win over the defending Stanley Cup-champion Carolina Hurricanes … Hershey Head Coach Bruce Boudreau started Dean Arsene and Jeff Schultz on defense, with Giroux, Tenute, and Wiseman at forward … Scratched from Hershey were: D Trevor Byrne, D Deryk Engelland, D Sasha Pokulok, RW Matt Stefanishion, LW Peter Vandermeer, and RW Stephen Werner … 3 Stars of the Game: (1) Tenute, (2) Wiseman, (3) Nycholat … Referee: Chris Ciamaga.

 

6 degrees of separation: Helbling played parts of 2 seasons with the Milwaukee Admirals from 2002-2004, where his Assistant Coach was Todd Richards, Wilkes-Barre's new bench boss … James played 14 games for Boudreau's Manchester Monarchs in 04/05 … Sloan and WBS C Erik Christensen played together for 2 seasons with the WHL's Kamloops Blazers. Sloan and Penner each spent time with the Dayton Bombers and Syracuse Crunch during the 04/05 season … Taticek and Pens C Tyler Kennedy were teammates during the 02/03 campaign with Sault Ste. Marie (OHL) … Hershey RW Eric Fehr and WBS D Wade Skolney skated together for 2 seasons with the Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL). Fehr and Pens C Ryan Stone also spent 4 years together on the same club … Tenute and Carcillo were teammates for 2 seasons with the OHL's Sarnia Sting … Penguins RW Dennis Bonvie played all or parts of 2 years with Hershey (2003-2005) … Wilkes-Barre Assistant Coach Dan Bylsma played 2 games for Boudreau's Lowell Lock Monsters during the 99/00 campaign.

 

Coming Up: Hershey continues its current four game road swing Friday in Hamilton, facing off against the Bulldogs from Copps Coliseum at 7:30 PM. The Bears won both head-to-head match-ups last season, outscoring the Bulldogs 8-2.