The Hershey Bears and the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins gathered at Giant Center on the day before Thanksgiving to duke it out for precious points in the Atlantic Division. Wednesday’s game was the fifth installment of the I-81 rivalry series with each team holding two wins. This time, the Bears took a 2-1 lead and held down the fort before a crowd of 9,259 fans for their fourth straight win.
Thanksgiving Showdown
There’s plenty for Bears fans to be thankful for in the year 2023, with Wednesday’s decision added to a lengthy list that includes a Calder Cup. The Thanksgiving Eve matchup is a staple of the Hershey schedule that took an absence last year due to a scheduled event, and Wednesday’s crowd helped add to an attendance figure that’s among the best in the American Hockey League. Hershey has a record of 7-2-0-0 in their den, making it perhaps the Giant Center the toughest road destination in the AHL.
The crowd didn’t have to wait long to get on their feet. Hershey struck just 2:46 into the game as captain Dylan McIlrath scored his first goal of the season on a well-placed shot from the point through some traffic. McIlrath returned to the lineup after nearly three weeks spent with Hershey’s National Hockey League affiliate, the Washington Capitals, on recall. It’s McIlrath’s first tally since sinking an empty net goal in the first round of the Calder Cup Playoffs last spring.
Wilkes-Barre pushed their hosts hard in this game, as the fierce competition brings out the best in each side. The Penguins took over the second half of the opening stanza when Rem Pitlick scored on the rush to deadlock the game at one each. They’d push for more in the frame, but Calder Cup MVP Hunter Shepard was up to the task by ultimately posting 22 saves in the win.
Smart Lines
The Bears pulled ahead in the second period with Riley Sutter’s second goal in as many games on a beautiful feed by Ivan Miroshnichenko. The young Russian rookie was re-inserted into the lineup with Sutter and Matt Strome in a different line formation after head coach Todd Nelson had him sit out of his team’s last game. Hershey’s bench boss paired him with those two players for a specific reason.
“They made me look smart,” Nelson said with a smile. “We wanted to break up Miroshnichenko and [Pierrick] Dube because they’re pretty similar players. I wanted to put Miro with two really responsible defensive guys, Riley Sutter and Matt (Strome). It paid off, Riley has a goal and an assist. I think it helped Miro too, they are two veteran guys who can help him in the defensive zone. Miro made a heck of a play on Sutter’s goal. I like their play, they won us the game tonight.”
The trio factored in on both of Hershey’s goals on Wednesday night, as the trio were the only Bears forwards to collect points on this night. After waiting his turn through the early stages of the season to play, Matt Strome earned an assist for the third consecutive game and was acknowledged as the game’s third star. Strome and his linemates were responsible for holding the Penguins at bay in this game to lock down two more points for the Bears.
“He’s a good character guy,” Nelson said of Strome. “He’s got a good hockey IQ, he makes plays, he’s smart. He’s always the first guy over the boards with Sutter for the penalty kill, we depend on them a lot. I know what I’m going to get out of Stromer every game, he brings a lot of structure to our hockey team. He’s been great.”
Sixty Minutes in Hershey
The Bears locked down the third period, only allowing Shepard to face five shots and suffocated the visitors with their aggressive forecheck and impenetrable defense. Nelson lauded his team’s complete effort on this night and noted his team’s improvement from Friday’s narrow win in which the Bears nearly coughed up a four-goal lead.
“You want to invite adversity to see how your team reacts,” Nelson said. “That third period [Friday versus Bridgeport] wasn’t pretty. I had the honor of breaking it down. It wasn’t pretty, but we watched clips from it, we learned from it, and the guys responded to it. We were winning some games where we weren’t playing our best hockey, so it was a wakeup call and our last two games have been pretty good.”
Nelson is not satisfied entirely, however, as the former power play coach for the Dallas Stars would like to see his club break their drought. Hershey has gone six games without finding the back of the net after a hot start. The Bears have countered this largely by outscoring their opponents at even strength, tallying 19 goals over that span, but have also come up empty in 19 attempts at the man advantage.
All Roads Lead Home
The two teams will take the road less traveled before meeting up again for another Wednesday matchup next week. The Penguins will most likely take a flight to Charlotte from the nearby Harrisburg International Airport to take on the Checkers in a pair of games this weekend. The Bears will remain home and play their first ever matchups with the Iowa Wild on Saturday and Sunday.
