March 18, 2010
With the East Division championship firmly tucked away, the BEARS now turn their sights on the AHL’s best record, with the conclusion of the regular season just over three weeks away. HERSHEY welcomes the Albany River Rats to down Friday night at 7:00 p.m.
Kyle Wilson and Andrew Joudrey each scored two goals, and Braden Holtby made 41 saves as the BEARS defeated the Binghamton Senators 5-3 at Broome County Veterans Memorial Arena Wednesday night. The victory officially clinched the 2010 East Division title for the Chocolate and White, the team’s third such title since 2006-07. Sean Collins also scored his first goal of the season for HERSHEY in the win Wednesday. Binghamton will conclude the eight-game season series with the BEARS with a game at
Giant Center on Sunday, March 28.
HERSHEY enters play Friday with a record of 51-13-0-3, good for 105 points with 13 regular season games remaining. The BEARS need just one more victory to establish a new franchise record for wins in a single season (Bruce Boudreau’s 2006-07 team also won 51) and they are six wins away from tying the American Hockey League single-season record for most wins in one year. The Binghamton Rangers own the AHL single-season record for wins (57) and points (124).
The BEARS became the first team in 2009-10 to clinch a 2010 Calder Cup playoff spot, and on Wednesday became the first team to clinch a division title this season. But one more task awaits completion by HERSHEY before the end of the regular season. The Chocolate and White hold a seven-point lead (with one game in hand) over the Western Conference leading Hamilton Bulldogs for the AHL’s best point total. The team that finishes with the best overall point total is assured of having home-ice advantage throughout the 2010 Calder Cup playoffs.
Albany enters Friday’s game having taken points in eight straight games (6-0-0-2).The River Rats are firmly entrenched in second place in the East Division standings with 84 points, ten better than the third place Norfolk Admirals as play begins Friday. Former BEARS winger Oskar Osala, acquired earlier this month by Carolina/Albany, has four goals in six games for the River Rats since being assigned to the Capital District. Jerome Samson leads the team in both goals scored (33) and points (66) as the Rats come to town. Goaltender Justin Peters is currently on recall to Carolina (NHL). Justin Pogge, also acquired by the Hurricanes at the NHL trade deadline, has appeared in four games for Albany since coming to New York from San Antonio (AHL).
Nine other games dot the American Hockey League schedule on Friday, including the Providence Bruins traveling to Lowell to dance with the Devils at Tsongas Center. Rochester is in Binghamton Friday to play the Senators, while Springfield travels to Wilkes-Barre/Scranto to play the Penguins at Mohegan Sun Arena. Adirondack, coming off a shootout loss to Hamilton Wednesday, is in Norfolk for a critical East Division matchup with the Admirals at 7:15 p.m. Hamilton is at Lake Erie at 7:30 p.m., while Portland is at Manchester, Bridgeport is at Syracuse, Peoria visits Rockford in an in-state matchup in Illinois, and Grand Rapids visits Winnipeg, taking on the Manitoba Moose at 8:30 p.m.
Friday’s game can be heard via the BEARS Radio Network (100.1 FM and www.Sportsjuice.com) beginning at 6:40 p.m. John Walton, Ed Coffey and Jim Jones have the call from
Giant Center.
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