January 17, 2010
BEARS CLAW OUT WIN OVER CRUNCH
Hershey Breaks Franchise Record with 12th Straight Home Win
By Jess Mikula
The BEARS battled to a 4-3 win over the visiting Syracuse Crunch Sunday night, eclipsing the franchise record for consecutive home victories. HERSHEY has won 12 straight games on
Giant Center ice since Nov. 29.
The BEARS and Crunch traded goals in the first period. Mathieu Perreault fed Chris Bourque from behind the Syracuse net, Bourque potting his 11th goal of the season at 4:47. Francois Bouchard tallied the secondary assist. The Crunch answered on the power play at 6:07, as Jordan LaVallee-Smotherman capitalized on a turnover in front of BEARS netminder Braden Holtby. Keith Aucoin and Andrew Gordon set up Alexandre Giroux’s 20th of the year midway through the period, with Giroux launching a one timer from the point to give HERSHEY the go-ahead goal at 9:10. Giroux and Aucoin now show points in 11 consecutive games, an AHL-best this season. Sean Collins lofted the puck into the Crunch zone, and Kyle Wilson deflected the floater to elude an upright Dan Taylor at 16:56. Boyd Kane added the secondary assist on Wilson’s 16th goal of the season. Derek MacKenzie rifled a shot past Holtby from the left circle at 17:22 to bring Syracuse back within one. The BEARS held a one-goal advantage after 20 minutes.
With Dan LaCosta between the pipes in relief of Taylor, the visiting Crunch knotted the game at three apiece with a goal from Maksim Mayorov at 14:16. The Chocolate and White failed to convert on four power play opportunities in the second period, and the score remained at a 3-3 deadlock at the conclusion of two.
Aucoin potted a wrister just 12 seconds into the third period to give the BEARS the game winner with a power play tally from Patrick McNeill and Bourque. Taylor returned in net for the Crunch, as an injured LaCosta left the game. HERSHEY held off a late Syracuse rush, as Holtby denied the game-tying goal with a point-blank save with two minutes left in regulation.
Holtby stopped 16 of 19 shots en route to his 13th win in net this season. The Chocolate and White went 1-for-6 on the man advantage and 5-for-6 on the penalty kill Sunday night.
Bears Radio Network Three Stars of the Game:
1. Keith Aucoin (one goal, one assist)
2. Chris Bourque (one goal, one assist)
3. Alexandre Giroux (one goal)
Notes: John Carlson skated more than 15 minutes with the Capitals in Sunday afternoon’s contest with Philadelphia and registered a plus-two in the 5-3 victory. Giroux finished the weekend with nine points in three games (6-3-9). Nine members of the BEARS, including five players as well as the coaching and training staff, are headed to Portland for the 2010 AHL All-Star Game this week. HERSHEY will resume home action next weekend with a pair of games against Manitoba. The Moose will come to town for 7:00 p.m. match-ups Friday and Saturday night, closing out the season’s four-game series.
vs
