BEARS HOST PENGUINS SATURDAY NIGHT

January 15, 2010

HERSHEY returns home Saturday night to face the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins at Giant Center. Face-off is at 7:00 p.m. Alexandre Giroux became the first HERSHEY player this season to record five points in a single game as the BEARS bashed the Albany River Rats 10-4 Friday at Times Union Center. Keith Aucoin and Chris Bourque each recorded three points to help pace the offense, and eight different players recorded at least one goal. The win evened the season series at two wins apiece between the two teams. Goaltender Jason Bacashihua, who had not played since December 29, earned his eighth win of the season. The BEARS had scored at least nine goals in four different games over the last season and a half, but in reaching 10 goals on Friday night, the Chocolate and White reached double digits for the first time in nearly 18 years. HERSHEY last scored 10 in a game against the New Haven Nighthawks on October 17, 1992 in a game at HERSHEYPARK Arena. Six times in franchise history, the BEARS have scored more than 10 goals. The franchise record for goals in a single game is 15, reached on two different occasions. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton lost Friday night in Binghamton 3-0, dropping to 20 points behind the front-running BEARS in the East Division standings. Joe Vitale and Wyatt Smith each have collected four points against HERSHEY this season, tops on the club. Goaltender John Curry has played every minute this season for the Pens against the BEARS. Curry has a 1-4-0 record and a 3.64 goals against average against the Chocolate and White this season. 12 other games are on the slate for Saturday around the American Hockey League, including Portland at Lowell, Bridgeport at Albany and Lake Erie at Abbotsford. Hamilton visits Grand Rapids Saturday at Van Andel Arena, Providence is in Hartford to skate with the Wolf Pack, Springfield is at Binghamton, Manchester is on the road at Worcester to swim with the Sharks, and Adirondack plays the second game of a two-game series in Norfolk. Rochester is down the Thruway against Syracuse Saturday, Milwaukee is at Manitoba, Rockford stays in-state to play Peoria and Toronto is in Houston to face the Aeros Saturday’s game can be heard via the BEARS Radio Network (100.1 FM and www.Sportsjuice.com) beginning at 6:55 p.m. John Walton, Ed Coffey and Jim Jones have the call of the action from Giant Center.