The Hershey Bears were three seconds away from seeing their first regulation loss on the road. A late third period goal for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms seemed to spell doom for the visitors. However, Henrik Rybinski scored with three seconds left to send the game to overtime. Hershey went on to score the winner in the extra session to lift the Bears to a 3-2 win. The win spoiled the party for the Phantoms on their Teddy Bear Toss Night for the latest close call in this matchup.
Night for Bears
Saturday’s matchup marked the fourth clash between the two interstate rivals. The crowd of 8,452 clutched their teddy bears for nearly two full periods of scoreless action. It’s nothing new to see fans sweat it out with their stuffed animals, but the Phantoms fans eventually got their moment. Despite being shorthanded with 44 seconds left in the second, Jacob Gaucher scored on a breakaway to send the fur flying in Allentown.
The official tally in the toss won’t be known until counting is complete on Monday, the team said. Lehigh Valley is looking to surpass last year’s count of 10,869 from last year, and they’re hoping to eclipse 11,000. Hershey returns the favor after Lehigh Valley visited for the Bears’ Teddy Bear Toss in January. The Bears are the plush kings of the hockey world, having seen 74,599 thrown during that game. Hershey’s event is still on the schedule on January 5.
Third Period Thrills
It looked like Gaucher’s goal might be the only one to find twine in this game. Goaltender Cal Petersen had all the answers to Hershey’s offense as has been the case during his time in Allentown. However, the Bears broke through by moving the puck side-to-side quickly. Ethan Bear made a nice play to keep the puck in at the blue line and find Brad Hunt. Hunt found Bear on the other side for his fifth goal of the season.
However, Lehigh Valley had an answer that appeared to be the dagger. Helge Grans, recently reassigned to the Phantoms after an impressive stint in Philadelphia, scored his third of the year. He’d stuff a wrap-around through Clay Stevenson’s legs with 3:39 to play in regulation time.
Suddenly, Hershey’s unbeaten record in regulation on the road was in jeopardy. Todd Nelson’s team got the puck in the zone and went to work. With time ticking down, Spencer Smallman got the puck across to Henrik Rybinski, who tapped it in for his sixth goal. Rybinski, who had three points in Hershey’s win on Wednesday, passed his best count in a season in goals. The game would need overtime to determine a winner.
Priskie’s Precision
The extra session would prove to be a tactical one for both teams. Stevenson had the biggest save of the game after Olle Lycksell found himself on a breakaway. Lycksell, who had the winner in overtime last time the two teams met on Stevenson, would be a safe bet to end the game. However, the goaltender had the answer, and the two teams would play on. Stevenson got some redemption for the way it ended last time the two teams squared off.
With less than 30 seconds left in overtime, Hershey tallied for the extra point. Mike Vecchione stole the puck and forced it the other way, feeding Mike Sgarbossa on a two-on-one rush. Sgarbossa beat the sliding defender and found Chase Priskie, who deflected the puck past Petersen. It’s his sixth goal of the season and his first at even strength. Hershey moves to 10-0-2-0 on the road and the team has just one regulation loss in their last eight games.
Rematch, Your Place?
The two teams are set to run it back on Sunday evening at Giant Center. Through four games of the season series, each team has two wins and one each in overtime. It’s a close matchup after the Bears took eight of 12 in last year’s set. One team will walk away with the edge at the halfway mark upon the conclusion of Sunday’s game.
It’s another solid effort for the Bears, who were looking to carry their improved play forward. Hershey didn’t quite get the explosive offense of Wednesday’s game, but the team’s defense played a pivotal role in this game. They limited shots against and allowed the offense room to find the win. Their task will be to do it again on Sunday and find some success on home ice.
