The Hershey Bears have announced the club's 2025 Opening Night Roster. Hershey takes the ice to open its 88th season of American Hockey League competition on Saturday, October 11 at GIANT Center when it hosts the Syracuse Crunch at 7 pm.
Forwards (20):
Graeme Clarke, Andrew Cristall, Grant Cruikshank, Ethen Frank, Ryan Hofer, Jalen Luypen, Eriks Mateiko, Ivan Miroshnichenko, Justin Nachbaur, Ludwig Persson, Ilya Protas, Sheldon Rempal, Henrik Rybinski, Spencer Smallman, Dalton Smith, Matt Strome, Alex Suzdalev, Patrick Thomas, Luke Toporowski, Bogdan Trineyev
Defensemen (9):
Cam Allen, Louie Belpedio, Ryan Chesley, David Gucciardi, Nicky Leivermann, Jon McDonald, Leon Muggli, Aaron Ness, Calle Rosen
Goaltenders (3):
Garin Bjorklund, Antoine Keller, Clay Stevenson
Hershey's 2025 Opening Night Roster features 20 players who dressed for the Bears during the 2024-25 regular season and/or the 2025 Calder Cup Playoffs. Up front, returning players include Ivan Miroshnichenko, who led Hershey with 23 goals last season; Ethen Frank, whose 80 career goals as a Bear leads active players; Matt Strome, who scored the Calder Cup-clinching goal overtime of Game 6 of the 2024 Calder Cup Finals; Spencer Smallman, who enjoyed a career-high 34 points last season in his first year as a Bear; Bogdan Trineyev, who returns for his third season in North America and led Hershey in the 2025 Calder Cup Playoffs with five goals and seven points; and Henrik Rybinski, back for his fourth season after developing into one of the club's top two-way forwards.
On the blue line, captain Aaron Ness returns for his eighth season with the club, along with Nicky Leivermann and Jon McDonald, who played valuable minutes last season in their first full campaign with Hershey, and Ryan Chesley, David Gucciardi, and Leon Muggli, Washington Capitals defensive prospects who each made their pro debuts with the Bears late last season.
Between the pipes, goaltender Clay Stevenson is back for his third full season in net for the Chocolate and White, and will form a netminding duo with Garin Bjorklund.
13 players enter the 2025-26 season classified as AHL rookies, while five players (Belpedio, Ness, Rempal, Rosén, Smith) enter the campaign as veteran players (321 or more professional games in the AHL, NHL, or elite European leagues), and Spencer Smallman enters the season as a veteran exempt player (261-320 professional games in the AHL, NHL, or any elite European leagues).
The roster also features forward Jaylen Luypen, who has signed a professional try-out agreement (PTO) with Hershey after attending the club's 2025 Training Camp as a tryout invitee.
Additionally, forward Zac Funk remains in Hershey to continue his injury rehabilitation, but he cannot be officially added to Hershey's roster until he is healthy.
Bears Roster by Contract Status:
NHL contract: 22
AHL contract: 9
Professional try-out: 1
Bears Roster by NHL Draft Status:
1st Round: Miroshnichenko (1)
2nd Round: Chesley, Cristall, Muggli, Ness, Smith (5)
3rd Round: Belpedio, Clarke, Mateiko, Persson, Protas, Suzdalev (6)
4th Round: Strome, Thomas, Trineyev (3)
5th Round: Allen, Rybinski, Smallman (3)
6th Round: Bjorklund, Hofer (2)
7th Round: Gucciardi, Keller, Leivermann, Luypen (4)
Undrafted: Cruikshank, Frank, McDonald, Nachbaur, Rempal, Rosen, Stevenson, Toporowski (8)
Bears Roster by Country of Birth:
Canada: Allen, Bjorklund, Clarke, Cristall, Gucciardi, Hofer, Luypen, Nachbaur, Rempal, Rybinski, Smallman, Smith, Stevenson, Strome, Thomas (15)
United States: Belpedio, Chesley, Cruikshank, Frank, Leivermann, McDonald, Ness, Toporowski (8)
Russia: Miroshnichenko, Suzdalev, Trineyev (3)
Sweden: Persson, Rosen (2)
Belarus: Protas (1)
France: Keller (1)
Latvia: Mateiko (1)
Switzerland: Muggli (1)
Bears Roster Average Age:
24 years, 10 months, 29 days
Oldest Player on Bears Roster:
Aaron Ness, 35 years, 4 months, 23 days
Youngest Player on Bears Roster:
Ilya Protas, 19 years, 2 months, 23 days
Bears Roster Average Height:
6'1"
Tallest Player on Bears Roster:
6'6": Eriks Mateiko, Ilya Protas
Shortest Player on Bears Roster:
5'10": Andrew Cristall, Jaylen Luypen, Aaron Ness
Bears Roster Average Weight:
194.7 lbs.
Bears Roster Lightest Player:
Antoine Keller, 170 lbs.
Bears Roster Heaviest Player:
Ilya Protas, 225 lbs.
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 with players starting to arrive at 4 p.m. outside of GIANT Center. Purchase tickets to Saturday's Opening Night by CLICKING HERE.
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