The Hershey Bears met up with the Iowa Wild for the first time ever on Saturday night. It’s the lone Western Conference matchup for the Chocolate and White in 2023-24, with a rematch at Giant Center on Sunday in addition to two games in Iowa in April. In a tight checking first game, Pierrick Dube broke a 1-1 tie late in the third period on a deflection goal to lift the Bears to their fifth straight win by a 2-1 final score.
Skating Off the Turkey
“I thought we slept walked through the first period,” Bears head coach Todd Nelson said after the game. “We got better as the game went on, but we recognized as a staff those signs at the morning skate and yesterday’s practice. I think there was some turkey left in the boys. All in all, it was a good hockey game, it’s nice to see where teams from a different conference are at. Last year we didn’t have that until the Finals.”
It took the Bears some time to establish their offense in this game. The Wild brought a heavy physical presence, grinding out play along the boards against their hosts in Hershey looking to break a losing streak at three games going into play. It seemed to be the shock to the Chocolate and White to whip them back into their usual shape. Hunter Shepard shut the door early in a heavyweight goaltending matchup with Jesper Wallstedt, two of the American Hockey League’s top netminders.
Chef’s Kiss
The only way to beat either goaltender in this game is perfection. That phrase applied to all three goals scored in this game starting with the icebreaker from Alex Limoges in the second period. Limoges skated to the top of the faceoff circle and fired a perfect shot off the inside of the post with help from a screen by Joe Snively. The two Virginia natives jumped for joy at the goal to put the Bears ahead by a 1-0 count.
The Wild would counter with seconds to spare in the middle stanza. Jake Lucchini took a shot on the rush that was blocked by Hershey’s Logan Day, only for the puck to drop to Gavin Hain, who beat Shepard over the shoulder in the top right corner for his first AHL goal. Hain, playing in just his sixth AHL game, previously played five seasons for the University of North Dakota and was a sixth-round draft choice of the Philadelphia Flyers in 2018. He joined Iowa on an AHL contract this summer.
Dube Deals
Much as they did in their last win on Wednesday, the Bears tilted the ice in the third period by playing largely in the offensive zone. Some strong zone time and a great shift from Dube led to the decisive tally as the second year AHL player forced a turnover to keep the puck in the zone and went to the net. Day took a smart shot from the point that Dube deflected, changing directions and fooling Wallstedt to the elation of the crowd of 9,208. Hershey held the fort down and secured a 2-1 win for the second time in as many games.
Dube has been an excellent addition to the Bears, with his goal on Saturday marking his seventh of the season. He’s on pace to eclipse his previous best of 16 set a season ago with the Laval Rocket. Hershey’s National Hockey League affiliate, the Washington Capitals, nabbed him on an entry-level contract for two seasons in a savvy move. Chase Priskie had a solid outing on the back end as the only player with multiple points on this night.
Milestone Start
Shepard earned the win with 25 saves in his 100th professional game. Saturday’s tilt marked the quarter point of the season, with Hershey boasting a mark of 14-4-0-0. It’s Hershey’s best start in 18 games since the 2006-07 season, in which the team had a mark of 13-2-1-2, as well as the 1957-58 campaign where the team went 14-2-2.
Both of those teams put this iteration of the Chocolate and White in elite company, with the former going to the Calder Cup Finals and the latter taking the trophy home. The scary part? This Bears team has even more to give.
“That was not our A game, obviously,” Nelson said. “You’ve got to give them credit, they checked us really well. It’s nice to know that, against a team like that, it’s a good thing for our team to scratch out a win.”
Nelson has echoed a similar sentiment several times after games where his team has found ways to earn wins when they haven’t played their best. It’s been better across the board in recent time, with the team allowing just two goals against in their last three games. It helps Hershey maintain a lead in the Atlantic Division and the AHL in general, with the Hartford Wolf Pack contending for the top spot in recent time.
It all adds up to an afternoon rematch at Giant Center to cap off the weekend. The puck drops at 3:00 PM EST with both teams looking for valuable points to end the month of November.
