Hershey Bears open Atlantic Division Finals with big win
HERSHEY, Pa. (WHTM) – The Hershey Bears topped the Hartford Wolf Pack 6-1 in Game 1 of the Atlantic Division Finals Thursday night at GIANT Center.
How it happened
The Bears got the first two on the board with Chase Priske netting his first career Calder Cup Playoffs goal off a pass from Henrik Rybinski. Ethen Frank scored on a power play off a one-timer from the left circle for his fourth goal of the playoffs.
The Wolf Pack staved off a shutout with a breakaway goal from Jake Leschyshyn at the 5:42 mark of the second period.
Hershey’s Alex Limoges answered with a power-play goal at 13:28 for his second score of the playoffs. The shot came off a Lapierre rebound and brought the score to 3-1 Bears.
Bears’ forward Garrett Roe earned his first-ever AHL playoff goal after Lucas Johansen’s shot hit Roe as it traveled toward the net. Mike Vecchione earned an assist on the goal, marking his first point of the 2024 Calder Cup Playoffs.
Hershey didn’t let up and at 11:01 in the third period, Ivan Mironshnichenko extended the Bears lead to 5-1. Mironshnichenko took the puck from a Hartford player at the defensive blue line on his way to scoring his third of the postseason.
During that goal, Hartford’s goalie Olof Lindbom suffered an apparent injury after sprawling onto the ice, causing him to exit the game. Goaltender Talyn Boyko took over netminding duties for the Wolf Pack for the rest of the night.
Scoring wrapped up with a shorthanded goal from Hershey’s Jimmy Huntington at 13:07, his first of the playoffs.
Shots were 30-14 for Hershey and goaltender Hunter Shepard was 13-for-14 in his fourth win of the 2024 Calder Cup Playoffs. Hershey was 2-for-4 on the power play.
What’s next
The Bears will stay at GIANT Center for Game 2 of the best-of-five Atlantic Division Finals series. The puck will drop against the Hartford Wolf Pack again on Saturday, May 18 at 7 p.m.
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC27.
