Hershey Bears

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• Varlamov puts stamp on win
After the clock ran out on the Norfolk Admirals Sunday night at Giant Center, the Hershey Bears mobbed goalie Simeon Varlamov like they'd just won Game 7 of a playoff series.

• Late goals lift Bears
BEAR FACTS Goalie Simeon Varlamov won his sixth straight start to backstop the Hershey Bears to a 3-2 victory over the Norfolk Admirals Sunday night at Giant Center. Varlamov (9-2-0) made 32 saves and Hershey rallied from a 2-1 deficit in the final 10 minutes of the third period on goals by Alex Giroux (power play at 10:15) and Andrew Joudrey (17:50). It was Hershey's ninth consecutive victory, one shy of tying the club regular-season record of 10 set in 2001-02. FACING OFF Giroux's goal was his 17th, giving him the AHL goal-scoring lead. He is one ahead of Oskar Osala, who scored for the Bears 3:01 into the game, and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's Chris Minard. Osala leads AHL rookies in goal-scoring. Ex-Bear Grant Potulny (4:11 of the second) and Mathieu Curadeau (:40 of the third) scored for Norfolk. The Bears, who are 3-0-0-0 against the Admirals this season, are an AHL-best 18-5-0-1, 37 points. TURNING POINT Joudrey's redirection of a Chris Bourque backhander broke a 2-all tie. BLUE LINES Washington reassigned Bourque to Hershey. The left winger missed the last three games on recall. ... Darren Reid, punched in the head Saturday by Philadelphia's Garrett Klotz, sat out. Bears head coach Bob Woods said he likely would have played had Bourque not been reassigned. ... Potulny's tally ended a 12-0 goal run by Hershey dating back to Friday's game at Albany. CHATTER BOX "We have confidence in both goalies. The way Varly was playing, we said we knew he was going to hold us in there. We just wanted to make sure we kept working and getting pucks on net." -- Bears centerman Andrew Joudrey.

• Amadio helps Hershey pour it on
The Hershey Bears did loads of record-book damage Saturday night at Giant Center.

• Bears inflict historic loss
BEAR FACTS Greg Amadio and Alex Giroux both scored twice to lead the Hershey Bears to a 9-0 triumph over the Philadelphia Phantoms Saturday night at Giant Center. It was the worst loss in the history of the Phantoms, who joined the AHL in 1996-97. Graham Mink (power play), Darren Reid, Andrew Joudrey, Quintin Laing (power play) and Kyle Wilson (power play) also scored for Hershey. Goalie Daren Machesney (13 saves) earned his second shutout. FACING OFF Philly goalie Scott Munroe was pulled at 11:21 of the second period after surrendering seven goals on 26 shots. In three games against Hershey, Munroe has a 6.90 goals-against average and an .831 save percentage. Hershey outshot Philly 41-13. The three shots allowed in both the first and third tied season lows for shots allowed in a period by the Bears. TURNING POINT The Bears raced to a 4-0 lead in the first period on goals by Mink (4:12), Giroux (8:09 and 13:16) and Amadio (13:48). BLUE LINES Reid (lower body) returned to the lineup after missing three games. ... Michael Dubuc and Maxime Lacroix were healthy scratches. ... Hershey recorded the first 11 shots. ... Giroux and Keith Aucoin (three assists) extended their point streaks to seven games. ... In addition to Aucoin, Giroux and Amadio, Josh Godfrey (two), Mink (three), Joudrey (three) and Laing (two) had multi-point games. ... Counting a 5-0 third period on Nov. 15, Hershey has scored 14 straight goals against Philly at Giant Center. ... Philly had gone 114 regular-season games without being shut out. ... The Bears have allowed two or fewer goals in their last six games. CHATTER BOX "It's definitely up there. I've never scored two goals in a game in the American Hockey League. That was exciting." -- Bears defenseman Greg Amadio.

• Depleted Bears turn back Rats
BEAR FACTS Despite losing captain Bryan Helmer, who joined the lengthy list of Washington Capitals recalls, the Hershey Bears earned a 3-2 overtime victory over the Albany River Rats Friday night at Times Union Center in Albany, N.Y. Francois Bouchard scored the game-winner, beating goalie Justin Peters at 2:25 of overtime. Hershey won its seventh straight game. It's the club's longest winning streak since March of 2006-07 (seven games). FACING OFF Hershey, which trailed 2-1 at second intermission, tied the game 2-2 on Kyle Wilson's power-play goal at 10:06 of the third. Hershey played without Helmer, Karl Alzner, Chris Bourque, Sami Lepisto and Graham Mink, who all were called up to Washington this week. Mink, waiting to see if Washington needs him again, was reassigned to Hershey but hasn't rejoined the team. Alex Giroux also scored for Hershey. Jakub Petruzalek and Harrison Reed (power play) scored for Albany. TURNING POINT Bouchard scored on Hershey's lone shot of overtime to deliver the Bears' first OT victory of the season. BLUE LINES Bears goalie Simeon Varlamov (18 saves) won his fifth straight game to improve to 8-2-0. ... Mathieu Perreault assisted on Wilson's goal to extend his point streak to seven games. Giroux and Keith Aucoin, who assisted on Giroux's goal, extended their point streaks to six games. ... Hershey signed defenseman Patrick Wellar from Reading (ECHL). Wellar, a 2002 third-round Washington draft pick, made his Hershey debut. ... Helmer played in Washington's 3-0 victory over Montreal, his first NHL game since 2003-04 with Phoenix. ... Hershey leads the season series with Albany 3-0-0-0, with all three games played at Times Union Center. The three remaining games between the clubs are scheduled for Giant Center. ... Daren Machesney is expected to start in goal tonight when Philadelphia visits. ... Former Bear Jonathan Paiement plays for Albany. ... Hershey has gone 9-3-0-1 on the road. ... Hershey (16-5-0-1, 33 points) leads the AHL in wins and points.

• Bears soar back into 1st
Four major roster subtractions didn't prevent the Hershey Bears from making a sixth straight addition to the win column Wednesday night at Giant Center.

• Fame is Boudreau's reward
Since he's now head coach of the Washington Capitals, Bruce Boudreau figured the call couldn't be about a fine when AHL president and CEO Dave Andrews phoned him late last week.

• Bears jump back into first place
BEAR FACTS After being frustrated by goalie Yann Danis for the first two periods, the Hershey Bears broke through for three third-period goals to defeat the Bridgeport Sound Tigers 4-1 Saturday night at Giant Center. The victory moved Hershey past Bridgeport and back into first place in the East Division. Sami Lepisto's power-play goal broke a 1-1 tie at 3:07 of the third. Oskar Osala and Graham Mink also scored third-period goals. FACING OFF Danis (3-3-0) made 28 saves in the first two periods, allowing only Keith Aucoin's power-play goal at 12:08 of the first that answered a first-period goal by Bridgeport's Jesse Joensuu (10:34). Hershey has won five straight games, tying a season high. The Bears opened 2008-09 by winning their first five games. Hershey (14-5-0-1, 29 points) is one point ahead Bridgeport. TURNING POINT Lepisto and Osala (4:30) scored on consecutive third-period shots to break open a tie game. BLUE LINES Grant McNeill practiced all week with a broken wrist before it was formally diagnosed. "It was bothering him," Bears head coach Bob Woods said. "It just wasn't getting any better, and finally we said we've got to get this checked out. That's the type of guy he is.." ... With Darren Reid (lower body) sidelined, Hershey recalled Steve Pinizzotto from South Carolina (ECHL). ... Osala (13) took over the goal-scoring lead among AHL rookies. CHATTER BOX "We were slumping a bit there, and we were embarrassed by our effort [in a 4-1 loss Nov. 9 at Bridgeport]. We wanted some redemption. We were fighting for first place. Now we're in first place. It's a good feeling." -- Bears defenseman Greg Amadio.

• Hershey's rookie line playing like veterans
Finn Oskar Osala became a Toronto Argonauts fan during his two junior seasons playing for Mississauga in the Ontario Hockey League.

• Bears' top line leads assault
It would have been understandable if Giant Center's scoreboard imitated the Wachovia Spectrum's chronically malfunctioning scoreboard and shut down on Sunday night.

• Hershey extends streak
BEAR FACTS The Hershey Bears extended their winning streak to three in a row with a 9-0 drubbing of the Binghamton Senators Sunday night at Giant Center. Goalie Daren Machesney (6-3-0) had 26 saves. Alex Giroux and Graham Mink scored two goals apiece. Andrew Gordon, Francois Bouchard, Keith Aucoin, Kyle Wilson and Mathieu Perreault also scored for Hershey, which hit the nine-goal mark in the regular season for the first time since Oct. 23, 1993. FACING OFF The Giroux-Aucoin-Mink line accounted for 13 points. Bouchard and Perreault added assists for multi-point games. Defenseman Josh Godfrey, playing his first Hershey game since Oct. 10 at Norfolk, finished a team-best plus-5. Aucoin, Giroux, Mink, Karl Alzner and Patrick McNeill all finished plus-4. Starting Binghamton goalie Jeff Glass was pulled after surrendering seven goals on 33 shots in the first two periods. TURNING POINT Second-period goals by Gordon (9:23) and Mink (10:28) gave Hershey a 3-0 lead in what became a six-goal period for the Bears. BLUE LINES Injured Bears president-GM Doug Yingst attended the game. ... Hershey has outscored foes 19-5 in the last three games. ... It was Hershey's first home shutout of the season. ... The most decisive regular-season shutout in Hershey's 71-year AHL history was 11-0 over Pittsburgh on Nov. 8, 1944, at Hersheypark Arena. CHATTER BOX "He knows what it takes. He worked hard in practice this week. He wanted to show his teammates that he was going to get back on track." -- Bears head coach Bob Woods on Machesney.

• Fast, furious 3rd
BEAR FACTS Oskar Osala produced a hat trick as the Hershey Bears rallied for a 7-3 victory over the Philadelphia Phantoms Saturday night at Giant Center. Left winger Osala leads Hershey with 12 goals and is tied for the AHL goal-scoring lead among rookies. Sami Lepisto (power play), Chris Bourque (power play), Keith Aucoin and Quintin Laing (power play) also scored for Hershey. Goalie Simeon Varlamov (22 saves) improved to 5-2-0. FACING OFF Hershey's rookie line of Osala, Mathieu Perreault and Francois Bouchard has produced eight goals and 10 assists in five games against Philly. Osala has scored six goals against the Phantoms. Bouchard assisted on Osala's goals, including a sweet feed from the top of the right circle that set up the go-ahead goal. TURNING POINT Bourque (7:04) and Osala (8:52) scored back-to-back third-period goals to turn a 3-2 deficit into a 4-3 lead. BLUE LINES Sean Collins suffered what was termed an upper body injury Friday at Philly. The defenseman was seen with an ice pack on his right shoulder. Josh Godfrey was recalled from South Carolina (ECHL). ... Aucoin ended a nine-game goal drought. ... Alex Giroux had two assists to end a six-game point drought. ... AHL president and CEO Dave Andrews attended the game to award Aucoin his player of the month plaque for October and to visit injured Hershey president-GM Doug Yingst. ... Hershey's 23-shot third tied a season high for shots in a period. ... Hershey has gone 2-5-0-1 in games it trailed after two. ... Hershey faced a season-high 11 power plays. CHATTER BOX "I got caught up in it, as well. Your focus changes and you're worrying more about [referee Nygel Pelletier] than you're worrying about what's going on on the ice." -- Bears head coach Bob Woods.

• Osala rallies Bears
Nygel Pelletier frustrated the Hershey Bears Saturday night at Giant Center. Ultimately, the often perplexing referee motivated them.

• Bears end brief skid
BEAR FACTS Despite a 36-save effort from goalie Scott Munroe, the Hershey Bears defeated the Philadelphia Phantoms 3-2 Friday night at the Wachovia Spectrum to end a two-game losing streak. Francois Bouchard, Graham Mink and Chris Bourque (power play) scored for Hershey. Former Bear Boyd Kane and Jonathon Kalinski (short-handed) scored for Philadelphia. Bears goalie Simeon Varlamov (4-2-0) made 22 saves. FACING OFF Bourque also assisted on Mink's goal to improve his point total to 16, second on the team to Keith Aucoin (19). Varlamov, who is expected to draw the start again tonight when the Phantoms visit Giant Center, is 2-0-0 at Philadelphia. Kane has scored six goals this season, five of them against Hershey. The Bears outshot the Phantoms 39-24, recording their highest shot total in six games this month. TURNING POINT Mink (7:36) and Bourque (10:42) broke open a 1-1 game with second-period goals. BLUE LINES Bears president-GM Doug Yingst, recovering from serious injuries when he fell off his roof on Sunday, was released from Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. ... Oskar Osala suffered an 18-stitch skate cut on a forearm in the first period but returned to action at the start of the second. ... Woods moved Alex Giroux, held without a point in the last six games, onto a line with Bouchard and Mathieu Perreault in the third. Osala took Giroux's slot on the second line with Kyle Wilson and Andrew Gordon. ... The Wachovia Spectrum scoreboard again malfunctioned. It blinked out at 2:01 of the second before coming back to life midway through the period. CHATTER BOX "It's tough to play in this building. The boards always take funny bounces. I thought the ice was bouncy. It's tough to get things going. You've got to go out there and you've really got to play a simple game and you've got to muck it out." -- Bears head coach Bob Woods.