Bears Advance to Eastern Conference Finals with 3-1 Win Over Wolf Pack

May 17, 2023

Lucas Johansen broke a 1-1 tie in the third period with a go-ahead goal and the Hershey Bears (6-1) triumphed 3-1 over the Hartford Wolf Pack (5-4) in Game 3 of the Atlantic Division Finals on Wednesday night at the XL Center. With the win, the Bears move on to the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since 2016.

BOX SCORE

Hartford outshot Hershey 13-4 in the first period, and it was on the Wolf Pack’s final shot of the frame that the hosts beat Hunter Shepard, with Turner Elson scoring at 17:40 to put the Wolf Pack ahead 1-0.

The Bears tied the game late in the second period, as Vincent Iorio took a feed from Mike Vecchione and beat Louis Domingue to the glove side at 15:05 for his first career goal in the Calder Cup Playoffs. Henrik Borgstrom added an assist on the goal.

Hershey had a chance for its first lead of the night at 3:28 of the third period, when Sam Anas was awarded a penalty shot, but he was denied on his attempt by the glove of Domingue.

Johansen put the Bears ahead 2-1 at 4:22 when Mike Vecchione swung a pass out of the right corner to the defender in the slot, who beat Domingue for his first of the postseason.

Hershey made it 3-1 when Joe Snively entered the attacking zone and dropped the puck through his legs back to Connor McMichael, who veered to the left and placed a shot into the legs of Domingue that rebounded out to Garrett Pilon, who put home his second of the playoffs at 7:25 to cap the scoring and give the Bears the necessary cushion to preserve the victory.

Shots finished 34-16 in favor of the Wolf Pack. Shepard went 33-for-34 in the win for the Bears; Domingue went 13-for-16 in the loss for the Wolf Pack. Hershey was 0-for-1 on the power play while Hartford also went 0-for-4.

The Bears’ 2023 playoffs, presented by Penn State Health, continues when the Chocolate and White face the Rochester Americans in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference Finals; schedule information for the series will be made available later tonight. Continue to check HersheyBears.com for the latest updates on the 2023 Calder Cup Playoffs, including games, dates, times, and ticket information.