The ice is back at Giant Center and the Hershey Bears are set to defend their back-to-back Calder Cup titles. The puck is set to drop on October 12 when the games will count for real. Hershey’s goal remains the same: develop players for the Washington Capitals while racking up wins. This season marks a big opportunity for the Bears to make some team and league history by winning a third straight championship.
Key Offseason Moves
It’s a short list of departures for the Chocolate and White, but some significant names highlight the group. Joe Snively signed with the Detroit Red Wings, Jimmy Huntington signed with the Pittsburgh Penguins, and Matthew Phillips signed in Colorado. Defenseman Lucas Johansen is not set to return as he remains a free agent. As part of the development process, playoff MVP Hendrix Lapierre is most likely going to play in Washington. Other young players like Ivan Miroshnichenko and Ethen Frank will battle for time with the Caps.
“(Lapierre) is getting better and better,” Bears head coach Todd Nelson said. “I don’t expect to see him (in Hershey). (Miro) is a young guy, had a good first pro season. We’ll see how Ethen Frank does, we were talking with the coaching staff and there’s some openings to see who is going to fit in certain spots.”
The good news for Bears fans is that the pantry has been restocked and ready to roar. The Capitals acquired forwards Luke Philp and Spencer Smallman as likely Hershey additions. Hershey signed skilled veteran defenseman Brad Hunt to round out the blue line as well as add to the power play. Up-and-coming forwards Zac Funk and Alexander Suzdalev will battle for ice time.
“There’s a lot of question marks, especially for me coaching in Hershey,” Nelson said ahead of training camp. “We’re going to have a good team, I just don’t know who we’re going to have.”
History on the Table
The Bears have the opportunity to make history in 2024-25. Hershey has won back-to-back titles three times in their storied history. The team has never won championships in three consecutive years. Only one team has accomplished that feat in AHL history: the Springfield Indians in the early 1960s. Hershey will have the opportunity to earn another distinction in their storied history battling for a 14th Calder Cup.
There will be major questions for the Bears to answer after this season. Many players will need new contracts and others will fit differently in the AHL’s development rule. Washington has up-and-coming prospects who will take larger roles as well. In contrast to most Calder Cup teams, the Bears have retained a familiar roster, a rarity in the AHL. For the Bears, the goal remains the same.
“We’re going after (the Calder Cup) again this year,” Nelson said. “That’s our goal, to develop players and win hockey games in Hershey.”
Bears Roaring for More
There will be a battle for playing time in Hershey just as there will be in Washington. The Bears have players looking to take larger roles and further their development. Some, like Henrik Rybinski and Bogdan Trineyev, took big strides to help the Bears lift the Calder Cup this past spring. Others like Ryan Hofer played in the regular season but remained as an extra during the postseason. Nelson is looking for these players to take even bigger roles this time around.
“Rybinski got off to a little bit of a slow start last season but was a stud for us down the stretch,” Nelson said. “He played really well. I’m curious to see how he’s going to be at camp, really grew as a player. Bogdan, he played a huge role killing penalties and that line ended up scoring the winner in Game Six.”
“It’ll be a highly competitive camp (in Hershey). You ought to see a guy like Ryan Hofer take the next step. He was in and out of the lineup last year. Big body, works extremely hard, great person. I want to see where he is. There’s a lot of question marks.”
Despite a lot of returning faces, the roster turnover will force changes. One of those question marks is the power play, where Philp and Hunt are likely candidates for the top unit. Some of the incoming players like Funk and Suzdalev will be considered for those units to further their development. The young players will have to earn their playing time as Hershey’s roster will be just as deep as it was a year ago.
Familiar Faces
Contrary to most Calder Cup teams, the Bears have many returning players. Washington extended Hardy Haman Aktell, Chase Priskie, Alex Limoges, Ethen Frank, and Mitch Gibson. At the AHL level, Hershey signed Logan Day, Nicky Leivermann, Dmitry Osipov, Matt Strome, Garrett Roe, and Jon McDonald. The Bears signed a slew of depth players including some interesting ones to watch like Austin Magera. The entire coaching staff including Nelson returns to give plenty of familiarity this fall.
It’s a luxury for the Bears. Training camp will be an important step to see where players stick at. Washington has some question marks to be answered, particularly with former Hershey forward Jakub Vrana. He signed a professional tryout agreement with the Caps to try and get back in the NHL. If he sticks with the Caps, that’s one more big decision to make that grants the Bears one more great player. Vrana won the Stanley Cup with Washington in 2018 and last played for Hershey in 2016-17.
Hershey’s returning tandem of Hunter Shepard and Clay Stevenson will push the projected starters in Washington. The Capitals acquired Logan Thompson during free agency to bring him back to the organization. He was previously on an AHL contract with Hershey in 2019-20 and played one preseason game for the Bears. Thompson likely would have made his official AHL debut as a Bear had the season played out as intended. If Shepard does find his way to Hershey, he’ll be one of the top players to watch out for on waivers.
Three Keys to Hershey’s Success
Fresh Legs
Entering the season off of a championship is hard. Hershey’s roster features players who only had three months of summer to rest. Others have had two straight short summers. It’ll be up to Nelson and his staff to keep the group motivated and focused to avoid complacency. The Bears had one of their most successful years ever in 2023-24 and this year will be a completely different beast.
By virtue of the same token, the Bears have a lot of options to spread the wealth around. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see the team ice a lot of different lineup combinations with so much depth. Hershey has the luxury of not needing players to dress for all 72 games and can continue relying on their depth. It’ll be a balancing act of rest and keeping their collective foot on the gas pedal.
Replace Lost Scoring
Although the Bears did not lose many players over the summer, their losses were significant. Snively led the team in points and finished 15th overall as an assist machine while Lapierre led the team in the playoffs. Huntington was a leader and an essential center for the team. It’s no secret that all of those players contributed in a major way to the team’s championship, too.
It’s an issue that mirrors Hershey’s last set of back-to-back championships in 2009 and 2010. The Bears lost some key players like Alexandre Giroux, Chris Bourque, and Bryan Helmer when the team entered the playoffs in 2011. It added up to a first round exit after an impressive 100-point season. It’s a cautionary tale for the present as the Bears look for more this time around. Hitting the ground running will be key for this year’s group.
Exceptional Bears
The Bears were pushed to their absolute limit in 2024. Their depth shined amidst a plethora of key injuries that might have sunk other teams. This is particularly evident in the gauntlet of a schedule from the Eastern Conference. However, it takes the correct mixture of talent and depth to win the Calder Cup. Had the Bears not received Lapierre, much like Connor McMichael and Aliaksei Protas the year prior, it’s hard to say if they win it all.
It’ll take another standout performance by someone new in this group of Bears to push this team to similar heights. These storylines are what make the development of young players in the AHL so fun to watch. The right mixture of young talent, veteran leadership, and good coaching is the difference between winning and losing a championship.
The Road Ahead
Hershey is set to open training camp on September 30, just a few days ahead of preseason action. Players are already on their way to the Sweetest Place on Earth from Washington to start the process. The 2024-25 season kicks off by raising another banner on October 12 versus the Cleveland Monsters. It’s one of 72 games in the regular season slate through mid-April as the Bears look to achieve some rare history.
