October 22, 2010
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 22, 2010
CONTACT: John Walton â€" HERSHEY BEARS â€"
PENGUINS HANG ON FOR 3-2 WIN AT WILKES-BARRE FRIDAY
GORDON EXTENDS GOAL STREAK TO FOUR STRAIGHT GAMES IN ONE-GOAL SETBACK IN NORTHEAST PA, BEARS HOST ADIRONDACK SATURDAY AND SUNDAY
The BEARS dropped its second consecutive game Friday night, as they were edged by the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins 3-2 at Mohegan Sun Arena.
The Penguins managed just six shots on goal in the first period, but drew first blood short-handed when Joe Vitale scored short-side against HERSHEY goaltender Dany Sabourin at 16:08. The BEARS fired 10 shots at Penguins backstop Brad Thiessen, all of them denied. Vitale also got the scoring started in the second period, with his second of the game and fourth of the season, scoring at 5:17.
HERSHEY got on the board late in the second period when Boyd Kane tipped a Patrick Wellar shot from the left point for his first goal of the season at 16:23. But the Penguins would find an answer for Kane’s strike before the end of the period, as defenseman Robert Bortuzzo blasted a right point shot past Sabourin to give the Pens a 3-1 lead after 40 minutes. Even with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton managing just 10 shots in two periods, the home team took a two-goal lead to the final frame.
Neither team would score until less than two minutes to go, when Andrew Gordon extended his goal scoring streak to four straight games. Gordon scored in close against Thiessen at the 18:13 mark, but the BEARS would get no closer. The loss was the second in as many decisions for Sabourin in a HERSHEY uniform, and the Penguins won for the second time in as many games against the defending champions.
BEARS Radio Network Three Stars of the game:
1. Joe Vitale (Two goals, one short-handed)
2. Brad Thiessen (30 saves to pick up the win)
3. Andrew Gordon (Late third period goal)
Notes: HERSHEY returns home Saturday night to begin a two-game series against the Adirondack Phantoms at
Giant Center. Faceoff is at 7:00 p.m., with tickets for both games available at the
Giant Center box office. Forwards Jay Beagle and Mathieu Perreault were recalled to Washington prior to faceoff Friday night. The Capitals host the Atlanta Thrashers Saturday at Verizon Center. The start for Sabourin was his second consecutive, and it came against one of his former teams. Sabourin played for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton from 2004-06. The short-handed goal scored by Vitale in the first period was the first allowed by HERSHEY this season.