Hershey kicks off their first three games in three nights weekend of the season tonight, with the first stop being a trip to upstate New York to take on the Syracuse Crunch.
The Bears come into tonight having won five of their last six games, including their last three on the road. They also got some good news pregame- Brett Leason’s visa issues were finally solved earlier this week, and he would be able to suit up tonight.
Ivan Miroshnichenko was also pictured this morning practicing in a normal jersey this morning. While he is not 100% yet, it is a big step for Miroshnichenko as he looks to get back on the ice.
Only one change in the lineup for the Bears from Sunday’s win over Rochester. Brett Leason came in for Alex Suzdalev. That change did see the Bears forward lines get shifted around a bit, but that was the only player change.
Postgame Takeaways
- Hershey started really strong tonight. The Crunch were not able to push them around like they did opening weekend, and Hershey had the far better chances, even though none went into the net.
- Brett Leason was very noticeable right from puck drop. His 200 foot game will be really helpful for this group and his NHL experience showed. He was a clear step ahead of multiple Crunch players.
- Clay Stevenson continues to really impress. After only putting up a save percentage above .900 in his first four starts, Stevenson has put up a .929 save percentage or better in his last three. Most importantly, they’ve all been wins for the Bears.
- The goals came from the rookies tonight. It was Ilya Protas who connected for the Bears opener on a second period power play. That was Hershey’s first power play goal since the Halloween matchup against Springfield.
- This was a really well taken goal by Protas, who looked a lot like his brother on this one. Started from behind the net, came out in front and beat Halverson blocker side.
- Protas would get the secondary assist on Andrew Cristall’s goal in the third. Great effort here from Cristall, who stayed with the rebound after his first shot was stopped. His patience and puck handling ability really shown through on this goal, as he deked out Halverson and put it home on the backhand.
- Huge credit for that goal should go to Bogan Trineyev though. He took the puck down low after a miscommunication from Syracuse, and instead of just firing it back on net, he was patient and got the puck down low to Protas who found the open Cristall. Really smart play there.
- Corey Scheuneman has been excellent since coming over from Springfield. He plays a true 200 foot game like Derek King said, and he’s allowed Cam Allen to tap into his offensive game more by being the steadying presence in that pairing.
- Hershey’s penalty kill was again very impressive. 1/6 on the kill tonight and it was a big reason why the Bears were able to shut down one of the league’s best offenses.
- That 1 power play tally for Syracuse ended Hershey’s PK success streak at 22 straight. A really impressive mark for the Bears, and it took a 6 on 4 opportunity for someone to break through. Solid special teams will lead to solid hockey teams.
Now Watch This Goal
Two to choose from tonight. I’m going with Ilya’s. Both goals were impressive, but Ilya’s stands out with his excellent finish blocker side.
The Chocolate Roar 