As the Hershey Bears prepare to drop the puck on the 2025-26 season, presented by Penn State Health, against the Syracuse Crunch on Saturday, Oct. 11 at 7 p.m. at GIANT Center (CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS), presented below are multiple storylines surrounding the club:
- Hershey enters the 2025-26 campaign - its 88th season of competition in the American Hockey League - by celebrating 20 seasons of affiliation with the National Hockey League's Washington Capitals. Since entering into an affiliation with Washington before the 2005-06 season, the Bears have made seven appearances in the Calder Cup Finals and captured five of their league-record 13 Calder Cups (2006, 2009, 2010, 2023, 2024), while the Capitals captured their first Stanley Cup championship in 2018. Hershey has developed 69 players who have gone on to make their NHL debuts with Washington after first suiting up for the Chocolate and White.
- Derek King enters his first season behind the Bears bench after being named the 29th head coach in team history on Aug. 4 this past summer. Since ending his playing career after two seasons as a player-assistant with the Grand Rapids Griffins in 2003-04, King has accrued 15 seasons of coaching experience at the professional level, serving as a head coach with the AHL's Rockford IceHogs and the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks. King's first victory with the Bears will mark his 100th professional head coaching win.
- The AHL will be celebrating its 90th season of play during the 2025-26 campaign. Hershey, the oldest continuously-operating franchise in its original city, joined what was then known as the International-American Hockey League in the circuit's third season in 1938-39. Since then, the Bears have qualified for the Calder Cup Playoffs in 72 seasons, and have won 13 Calder Cups in 25 Calder Cup Finals appearances, all of which are league records. The Bears will also look to defend their Atlantic Division title in 2025-26 after winning the division last season, while finishing with the second-best record in the Eastern Conference and AHL. Last season's first-place finish atop the Atlantic marked Hershey's 22nd division and eighth since 2005-06. In the 2025 Calder Cup Playoffs, the Bears rallied from a 2-1 series deficit against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms to win the best-of-five Atlantic Division Semifinals, becoming the first club in league history to win nine consecutive playoff series (2023, 4; 2024, 4; 2025, 1).
- The Bears announced its Season-Opening Roster on Friday, consisting of 32 players. Of those 32, 20 are returning players from last season's team (including 12 who played at least 20 games). Five of Hershey's top 10 goal scorers (Ivan Miroshnichenko, 23 - 1st; Ethen Frank, 20 - 2nd; Bogdan Trineyev, 14 - 6th; Henrik Rybinski, 10 - T10th; Spencer Smallman, 10 - T10th) from a season ago are all back in the fold.
- Aaron Ness, who celebrated his 35th birthday in May, returns for his eighth season with Hershey as the longest-tenured player on Hershey's active roster, appearing in 428 games over two stints with the club from 2015-19 and 2022-present. In his time with the Bears, the defenseman was named to the AHL's First All-Star Team in 2018-19 and helped Hershey make three appearances in the Calder Cup Finals (2016, 2023, 2024), winning back-to-back championships with the club in 2023 and 2024. Ness agreed to a one-year contract extension with Hershey for the 2025-26 season on Oct. 18, 2024 and was named team captain on Oct. 23. A veteran of 852 professional games in the AHL and NHL, Ness' 780 career AHL games ranks first among active players and ranks 17th in league history among defensemen, while his 276 career AHL assists rank 20th in league history among blueliners. Ness' 182 points as a Bear are the most of any American-born defenseman in club history, and rank sixth in club history among blueliners.
- Ethen Frank returns for his fourth season with Hershey after making his NHL debut with the Washington Capitals midway through last season and staying for the remainder of the 2024-25 campaign with Washington. At the time of his recall on Jan. 10, Frank's 20 goals led Hershey and ranked second in the AHL. Frank's 80 career goals leads active Hershey skaters. The 27-year-old previously was named to the AHL's All-Rookie Team in 2022-23 after leading all AHL rookies with 30 goals, and helped Hershey capture back-to-back championships in 2023 and 2024. An undrafted free agent out of Western Michigan University, Frank originally signed an AHL contract with the Bears on April 11, 2022, before earning his first NHL contract with Washington on March 2, 2023. In each of his first three seasons, Frank has been selected to the mid-season AHL All-Star Classic, participating in the 2023 and 2024 editions and winning Fastest Skater competition each year, including a record-setting 12.915-second lap.
- Ivan Miroshnichenko (2022 Draft: Washington, 1st round, 20th overall) is back for his third professional season in North America with the Bears. The Russian native split time last season between Hershey and Washington, ultimately leading the Bears with 23 goals in the regular season and finishing third in overall team scoring with 42 points. Miroshnichenko's seven power-play goals tied for the most among the team's forwards. In his rookie season, Miroshnichenko helped the club capture the 2024 Calder Cup.
- Goaltender Clay Stevenson returns for his third full season with Hershey (fourth overall) and will anchor the Bears in net. Stevenson was part of Hershey's netminding duo with Hunter Shepard that won the AHL's 2023-24 Harry "Hap" Holmes Memorial Award, presented to the goaltender(s) on the team with the lowest goals-against average, and later won the Calder Cup that spring. Last season, Stevenson won 18 games in 33 appearances with Hershey and made his NHL debut with the Washington Capitals on April 17 at Pittsburgh. He won his first start in the Calder Cup Playoffs on the road against Lehigh Valley in Game 4 of the Atlantic Division Semifinals to tie the best-of-five series.
- Matt Strome returns for the second year of a two-year contract extension signed with Hershey on July 24, 2024, and his fourth season overall in the Chocolate and White. Strome was a part of Hershey's back-to-back championships in 2023 and 2024, and scored the Cup-clinching goal in overtime of Game 6 of the 2024 Calder Cup Finals vs. the Coachella Valley Firebirds. The 26-year-old has improved or equaled his games played, goals, assists, and points totals in each of his three preceding seasons with Hershey, and has set all of his AHL career highs while skating for the Bears.
- Forward Spencer Smallman is back for a second season with Hershey, and his first of a new two-year NHL contract extension signed with Washington on April 1, 2025. Smallman finished his first season in Hershey by finishing eighth in team scoring while setting career highs in assists (24) and points (34). For his efforts, Smallman was the recipient of Hershey's Dan Sernoffsky Coaches Award.
- Bogdan Trineyev (2020 Draft: Washington, 4th round, 117th overall) is back for his third season with Hershey, after the forward re-signed with the Capitals on April 20 to a one-year, two-way contract. Trineyev enjoyed a breakout season for Hershey in 2024-25, establishing new career highs for goals (14), assists (8), points (22), and plus-minus (+13), with his 14 goals ranking sixth on the club. For his efforts, Trineyev was the recipient of Hershey's Arlene Tighe Memorial Award, presented to the Bears' "unsung hero" during the regular season. In eight playoff games, Trineyev paced the club in goals (5), points (7), and plus-minus (+5).
- Henrik Rybinski is back for his fourth season with Hershey, after the Washington Capitals re-signed the forward a one-year, two-way contract on June 26. Rybinski also enjoyed a breakout season last year, tying for sixth in team scoring with a career-high 35 points in 60 games, while serving as a critical part of the team's penalty killing unit. Rybinski was a member of Hershey's back-to-back Calder Cup titles in 2023 and 2024.
- Grant Cruikshank makes the Season-Opening Roster for the Bears for the first time in his two seasons with the Chocolate and White after beginning last season in the ECHL with the South Carolina Stingrays. Cruikshank had put up 13 points through 12 games with South Carolina before he was recalled by Hershey on Nov. 18. The forward then made his Bears debut on Nov. 22 at Rochester and scored his first goal as a Bear the following night at Syracuse. Cruikshank, along with Bogdan Trineyev, scored one of Hershey's two shorthanded goals last season, collecting his on Jan. 7 vs. Lehigh Valley. Cruikshank is also the son of five-time Olympic gold medalist speed skater Bonnie Blair-Cruikshank, while father Dave Cruikshank is a member of the U.S. Speedskating Hall of Fame and a skating consultant for the NHL's Los Angeles Kings.
- Ilya Protas (2024 Draft: Washington, 3rd round, 75th overall) is poised to make his professional debut with the Bears this season after joining the team as a "Black Ace" during the 2025 postseason. Protas is the younger brother of former Bear and 2023 Calder Cup champion Aliaksei Protas. Protas finished second in scoring in the Ontario Hockey League last season - his first in the OHL - with 124 points (50g, 74a) in 61 games. Protas was the recipient of the William Hanley Trophy, presented annually to the OHL's most sportsmanlike player as voted by league general managers, and was named to the OHL Second All-Star Team. At 19 years, two months, and 23 days, Protas is the youngest player on the Bears roster, and at 6'6", is tied with fellow rookie prospect Eriks Mateiko as the tallest player on the roster.
- Forward Andrew Cristall (2023 Draft: Washington, 2nd round, 40th overall) won the Bobby Clarke Trophy as the Western Hockey League's top scorer in 2024-25 after recording 132 points (48g, 84a) in 57 games with the Kelowna Rockets and Spokane Chiefs. The 20-year-old also earned WHL Western Conference First All-Star Team honors and was a finalist for the league's Four Broncos Memorial Trophy as the WHL's player of the year. Cristall previously joined the Bears as a "Black Ace" in both 2024 and 2025, but has yet to make his professional debut; Cristall appeared in four preseason games with the Capitals this fall, scoring twice, including in Washington's Sept. 25 game vs. Philadelphia at GIANT Center.
- Rookie forward Eriks Mateiko (2023 Draft: Washington, 3rd round, 90th overall) is set to make his pro debut with the Bears this season. The 6'6", 223-pound 19-year-old began last season as captain of the Saint John Sea Dogs of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League before a mid-season trade to the Rimouski Oceanic, helping Rimouski reach the QMJHL Final, tying for third on the club in playoff goals with seven. The native of Jelgava, Latvia also represented his country at the IIHF World Junior Championships, serving as an alternate captain for Latvia and recording five goals in five games. Mateiko notably scored a power-play goal and the shootout-winning tally for Latvia in the eighth round of a 3-2 upset over Canada in preliminary round play.
- Forward Patrick Thomas (2023 Draft: Washington, 4th round, 104th overall) finished sixth in scoring in the Ontario Hockey League while leading the OHL in assists with 104 points (27g, 77a) in 66 games with the Brantford Bulldogs, where he served as captain. The Capitals signed Thomas to a three-year entry-level contract on April 9; Thomas had previously joined the Bears on amateur tryout agreements in each of the past two seasons, but has yet to make his professional debut.
- Hershey adds a pair of veteran defensemen to its blue line with the loans of Louie Belpedio and Calle Rosen to the Bears via Washington. Belpedio signed a two-year, two-way deal with the Capitals and crosses over to the other end of the I-78 rivalry after suiting up with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms the past three seasons, where he led the Phantoms blue line in assists (23), points (28), and plus-minus (+15) last season, while Rosen is on a one-year, two-way contract with Washington and scored a career-high 10 goals last season while patrolling the point for the Colorado Eagles after previously winning the Calder Cup as a member of the Toronto Marlies in 2018.
- Hershey's roster also includes a trio of rookie defensemen who made their professional debuts with the Bears late last season and are set to embark on their first full professional campaigns. Ryan Chesley (2022 Draft: Washington, 2nd round, 37th overall) and David Gucciardi (2022 Draft: Washington, 7th round, 213th overall) both notably scored in their AHL debuts with Hershey, while Leon Muggli (2024 Draft: 2nd round, 52nd overall) suited up in two games.
- Goaltender Garin Bjorklund (2020 Draft: Washington, 6th round, 179th overall) will look to seize a regular spot this season as part of Hershey's netminding corps after making his AHL debut in a pair of games with the Bears last season. Bjorklund primarily spent last season in the ECHL with the South Carolina Stingrays, posting a 21-4-3 record in 29 appearances while tying for sixth in the ECHL in wins (21), 10th in goals-against average (2.02), and tying for 11th in save percentage (.927).
- Goaltender Antoine Keller was signed by the Bears to an AHL contract on June 4, after previously being selected by the Capitals with their seventh-round pick (206th overall) in the 2023 NHL Draft. The native of Dijon, France, is expected to contend for a roster spot with the French Olympic hockey team for the 2026 Winter Olympics, which will be held in February in Italy, after previously backstopping his country at the 2025 IIHF World Championship, and the 2024 IIHF World Junior Div. 1-A championship, in which he led the French to a silver medal finish.
- The Bears also gained some offensive skill up front in the form of Sheldon Rempal and Graeme Clarke, two additional Capitals signees loaned to Hershey. Last season, Rempal finished second in scoring for Salavat Yulaev Ufa of the Kontinental Hockey League before leading the entire Gagarin Cup Playoffs with 13 assists and 21 points while helping Ufa reach the Western Conference Finals. Before joining Ufa, Rempal had posted three consecutive seasons of 25+ goals in the AHL with Abbotsford and Henderson. Clarke, a 2019 third-round draft pick of the New Jersey Devils, has been a productive offensive performer in the AHL with Binghamton, Utica, and Iowa, and had scored two lacrosse-style goals in his junior hockey days with the Ottawa 67's.
- While several mainstays of the Bears roster have since departed overseas to continue their professional careers in Europe, a handful of ex-Hershey players have remained in North America and could make a return to Chocolatetown this season after signing with other NHL/AHL organizations. AHL Second Team All-Star defenseman Ethan Bear signed with the New York Islanders and could make his return to Hershey as a member of the Bridgeport Islanders on Dec. 20. Defender Andrew Perrott, a mid-season signing by Hershey last season, opted to rejoin the Rockford IceHogs this summer, and could make his return to Hershey when Rockford visits for a rare inter-conference game on Jan. 3. Former Calder Cup champion and 2023 Aldege "Baz" Bastien Memorial Award-winning goaltender Hunter Shepard could make his return to GIANT Center as a member of the Belleville Senators on March 14 after signing an NHL contract with the Ottawa Senators.
- Hershey's and Washington's ECHL affiliate, the South Carolina Stingrays, will be stocked with several players loaned from Hershey during the upcoming season. The Stingrays begin their 33rd ECHL season in 2025-26 after winning the Brabham Cup last year as the top team of the regular season with a 109-point campaign. David Warsofsky takes over behind the bench as head coach after Jared Nightingale accepted the head coach position with the AHL's Rockford IceHogs over the summer.
Saturday's Opening Night starts the 2025-26 season, presented by Penn State Health. Fans are invited to join the club's pre-game Red Carpet Arrival Event starting at 3 p.m. outside of GIANT Center. Purchase tickets to Saturday's Opening Night by CLICKING HERE.
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