Joey Leach scores his first career AHL goal as he leads the Bears past the Wolf Pack 3-1. Joe Snively records 1 goal and 2 assists for his first career multi-point game. Samsonov gets his 20th win of the season. First time two Bears goalies (Samsonov and Vanecek) have 20 win seasons in the same year since 2007-2008 (Darren Machesney and Frederic Cassivi).
Photos in this post are courtesy of Just Sports Photography / Hershey Bears.
Follow Cory Lyons on Twitter @CoryLyonsAHL for live game updates of the Hershey Bears.
Overview
The Hershey Bears (42-25-3-4) face off against the Hartford Wolf Pack (29-35-7-4) for the final regular season game of the season. Playoff positioning is locked in for the Bears. They will battle against the Bridgeport Sound Tigers in the first round of the Calder Cup Playoffs.
The schedule is HERE! The 2019 Calder Cup Playoffs presented by @CJsTire begin next week versus @TheSoundTigers. Tickets for Hershey's home games in the opening round go on sale on Tuesday, April 16 at 10 a.m. #HBH #DefendTheDenhttps://t.co/n8vgUixwL3 pic.twitter.com/19HukuMq2o
— Hershey Bears (@TheHersheyBears) April 14, 2019
Before the game started, Zack Fisch (voice of the Hershey Bears) presented the team awards for the regular season. Here are the winners:
- IOA/American Specialty AHL Man of the Year: Beck Malenstyn
- Kenny Smith Memorial Player of the Game Award: Riley Barber
- Arlene Tighe Award for Unsung Hero: Ryan Sproul
- Dan Sernoffsky Most Improved Player: Tobias Geisser
- Jack Gingrich Rookie of the Year Award: Garrett Pilon
- AHL 2nd Team All-Star: Aaron Ness
- John Travers and Steve Summer Award for best plus-minus: Aaron Ness
- Milton Garland Memorial Award for best defensemen: Aaron Ness
- The PNC Bank Award for Team MVP: Aaron Ness
Also, congrats to @Aaron_Ness for winning everything else. pic.twitter.com/E7bML6MYxT
— Chocolate Hockey (@ChocHockey) April 14, 2019
1st Period:
It took less than a minute for the Wolf Pack get themselves on the scoresheet. After a flurry of shots for Ilya Samsonov, the Bears tried to clear the zone. Darren Raddysh intercepted the puck and threw a low wrist shot on net that surprised Samsonov and just squeeked by him. This opened the scoring and gave Hartford a 1-0 lead.
Hershey responded in the second half of the period. Joe Snively rushed the puck up the ice and created space for Shane Gersich to advance on a 2 on 1. Gersich found Chris McCarthy on the opposite side. McCarthy selected a wrist shot as his weapon and scored his first goal as a Hershey Bear. This tied the game at 1-1 going into the locker room.
Goals on the transition 😍
CONGRATS to Chris McCarthy on his first goal as a Bear! #HBH #DefendTheDen pic.twitter.com/DtqnjaUbaD
— Hershey Bears (@TheHersheyBears) April 14, 2019
1st Period Shots: HER – 7, HFD – 8
1st Period Scoring:
0:32 – HFD: Darren Raddysh(9) ASST: None
11:09 – HER: Chris McCarthy(1) ASST: Shane Gersich(16), Joe Snively(4)
2nd Period:
Recently called up from the South Carolina Sting Rays, Joey Leach returns to the Bears and scores his first career AHL goal. The shot came from the point and was a blast! The puck deflected off of a defenseman in front and past Adam Huska. This gave Hershey a 2-1 lead.
FIRST GOAL FEELS! Congrats Joey Leach (@joeyleach24) on your FIRST AHL Goal! #HBH #DefendTheDen pic.twitter.com/6wzQWyGth3
— Hershey Bears (@TheHersheyBears) April 14, 2019
2nd Period Shots: HER – 11, HFD – 8
2nd Period Scoring:
5:04 – HER: Joey Leach(1) ASST: Joe Snively(5), Chris McCarthy(2)
3rd Period:
The Bears locked down the defensive zone, making it incredibly difficult for Hartford to enter the zone. When the Wolf Pack actually made it past the blue line, they never got the puck into the slot and created offense to get back into the game.
Joe Snively scored an empty net goal, recording his 7th point in just his 9th career game. This was his first multi point game of his career.
The Bears go on to defeat the Wolf Pack 3-1!
3rd Period Shots: HER – 15, HFD – 9
Overall Shots: HER – 33, HFD – 24
3rd Period Scoring:
18:34 – HER: Joe Snively(2) ASST: Chris McCarthy(3), Nathan Walker(22)
Three Stars:
- HER: Chris McCarthy (1 goal)
- HER: Joey Leach (1 goal, GWG)
- HER: Joe Snively (1 goal, 2 assists)
Official Box Score: https://theahl.com/stats/game-summary/1019482
Photos in this post are courtesy of Just Sports Photography / Hershey Bears.
