Coming into weekend number three on a three game win streak is exactly where the Bears wanted to be at the start of the year. This weekend, already their fifth and sixth home games of the year, the Bears take on the Providence Bruins, who have started slow at 1-4 through their first five games.
That does not mean Hershey can come into this weekend underestimating the Bruins though. This is still a hard working, hard checking Providence team that can physically push any team.
Hershey will also be without Justin Holl for the second straight game and will also miss Jonny Brodzinski, who was called up to Washington today, with the Capitals dealing with a bug hampering their forward corps, with Pierre-Luc Dubois and Justin Sourdif both under the weather.
Even with that in mind, only two changes in the end for Hershey from Sunday’s performance. Alex Suzdalev returns to the starting lineup, replacing Brodzinski in the forward group. The lines do get shuffled with that in mind. Joey Anderson takes Brodzinski’s spot on the top line, while Suzdalev comes in on the second line with Sikora and Trineyev.
The other change is in net. Cal Petersen gets the start, after Mitch Gibson got the start and win on Sunday.
First Period
The Bears would start fast and would do so on the man advantage. It has been coming for Lynden Lakovic since game one of this season and he would finally break through today on the power play. A nice set up from Spencer Smallman found Lakovic right in his wheelhouse to make it 1-0 Bears.
It would be a mostly back and forth period from there, as both the Bears and the Bruins traded chances. Providence would get the better of the opportunities, but Cal Petersen held strong in net and kept the Bruins off the board.
Thanks to the work of Petersen, Hershey would strike again late in the first. With only 13 seconds left on the clock, Eriks Mateiko would do a great job following up a Cam Allen shot to force home a rebound to make it 2-0 Bears right at the end of the period.
That’s Mateiko’s second of the season as the 20-year old from Latvia continues to impress through the Bears first five games.
Second Period
The second period was a bit more helter-skelter. After Lakovic seemed to finish a gifted chance that was ruled no-goal after a video review, Providence would come down the ice and score twice in seventeen seconds to tie up the game at two.
First, a three on two for Providence would be converted by Mikey Eyssimont, who beat Petersen glove side to cut the Hershey lead in half. There was a miscommunication on coverage between the Cam Allen and the foreword back checking that left Eyssimont wide open to have that shot. Not someone you want to leave open, as he converted his fourth goal in only three games played this season.
Then, 17 seconds later, it would be Henri Jokiharju who’d get on the scoresheet. This one Cal Petersen would want back, as Jokiharju surprised Petersen with a snap shot from the low side that snuck between Petersen’s skates and went into the net to make it all square at two.
Maybe last season the avalanche of bad would have continued for Hershey. But, so far, that has not been the case for this group of Bears. 1:09 later Cam Allen would do a great job of walking the line and get open in the slot to rip one past Zajicek to give Hershey back their lead at 3-2.
Allen’s skating has been a strength since he arrived in Hershey last year and it was on full display tonight in what was clearly his best game of the season so far.
The Bears would tack on another late period goal to regain their two goal lead. Josh Dunne said after the first weekend that he’s going to get a lot of goals in front of the net. He did it again tonight, finishing a rebound off a Bogdan Trineyev shot to bring the Bears advantage to 4-2.
Third Period
Hershey would have to buckle down to start the third. Back to back penalties from Jacob MacDonald and Joey Anderson would put the Bears on the penalty kill for four straight minutes. The PK has been a strength for Hershey to start the year though and that pattern continued tonight as Hershey would go 4-4 on the kill, bringing them to 12 for 13 on the season so far, one of the top units in the AHL to start the season.
Anderson would make up for his penalty right after exiting the penalty box. He made a great play on the boards to force a turnover and start a two-on-one with Grant Cruikshank. Anderson would play a great pass to Cruikshank, who had all net to shoot at and he buried it to make it 5-2 Bears and put the game out of reach for the Bruins.
Providence would not give up, as a second blast from Jokiharju for his second of the night would bring the Bruins back within two, but that’s where the night would end. Hershey secured a 5-3 victory and their fourth straight win to move to 4-1 on the season.
Joe’s Thoughts
Four in a row! That’s a good feeling Bear Nation. Hershey has this seven game homestead to start the year and thus far they are taking full advantage of being in front of the best fans in the AHL.
It was not perfect tonight, and Coach King admitted as such postgame, but the positives continue to outweigh the negatives in every way possible. This team can score, they can kill penalties at a high level and the goaltending has come up in the big moments when needed.
Hershey does need to be more careful with their turnovers, especially when exiting their zone, but those continue to get cleaned up and I trust that will only continue to improve with more time on the ice together for this unit.
Great night for the prospects. First goal as a pro for Lakovic, a three-point night for Allen, another goal for Mateiko, Petr Sikora doing Petr Sikora things by going toe to toe with Billy Sweezey in a fight. The veterans have been crucial for Hershey so far this season, but tonight was lead by the youth. It’s great to see they can take over games too.
4-1 to start the year. Hershey has a chance at five in a row and a 5-1 start tomorrow afternoon in a rematch against Providence.
Postgame Comments
Derek King: https://youtu.be/C-2EulFRNOE?si=w-Hkv-xX8PTozKrw
Lynden Lakovic: https://youtu.be/BMZ6aDPDTss?si=RhwjWpJb7ySCzRh8
