HELLEBUYCK, ICECAPS SHUT DOWN BEARS

November 23, 2014

HERSHEY, Pa. – Connor Hellebuyck stopped all 33 shots he faced, while teammates Carl Klingberg and Chase Balisy each picked up a goal and an assist in a 2-0 St. John’s IceCaps victory over the Hershey Bears on Sunday evening at GIANT Center.

Late in a mostly defensive-driven first period, the IceCaps would draw first blood. Balisy and Klingberg led a two-on-two rush over the Hershey blue line.  The two criss-crossed down the middle, and Balisy made a pass inside the right circle.  Klingberg grabbed it and snapped a shot low to the stick side of Bears netminder Pheonix Copley at 17:46 for a 1-0 lead.

In the middle period, St. John’s added to their lead with another strong play from their top line.  This time, Balisy got himself open at the top of the crease, grabbed a pass from Klingberg and ripped a snap shot into the upper-left corner for a 2-0 advantage.

That would be all the offense Hellebuyck would need, as he made 11 of his 33 stops in the third period to get the win.  He improves to 8-4-2 with the victory.  Copley dropped his third straight decision in a strong performance of his own, making 26 saves, but fell to 3-3-0.

The Bears continue their six-game homestand on Wednesday, November 26 with a 7:00 PM faceoff against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.  The annual Canteen Vending & Sara Lee Turkey Shoot will take place after the game, with all fans invited down to the ice to shoot for Thanksgiving food items.

Tickets for this game and all home contests may be purchased at the GIANT Center box office, by calling (717) 508-BEAR or online at TicketMaster.com.  Information on group tickets and season tickets for the 2014-2015 Hershey Bears regular season is available by calling (717) 508-BEAR.  Many different flexible plans are offered and start as low as $170.
 
NOTES: The Bears scratches were D Michal Cajkovsky, RW Caleb Herbert, RW Garrett Mitchell, D Mike Moore, LW Tim Spencer and D Patrick Wey…The IceCaps scratched F Mike Cornell, D Keaton Ellerby, D Kris Fredheim, RW Patrick Holland, C Jason Jaffray, LW Brandon MacLean and RW Ben Walker…Three stars: 3-Klingberg, 2-Balisy, 1-Hellebuyck...The Bears finished the night 0-for-3 on the power play and 4-for-4 on the penalty kill.