Game Preview: Bears at Penguins, 3:05 p.m.

December 21, 2025

The Hershey Bears continue the 2025-26 season, presented by Penn State Health, as they hit the road for the first time since Nov. 22 to battle the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in the team's final game before a holiday break.

Hershey Bears (14-10-1-0) vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (20-7-1-1)
Dec. 21, 2025 | 3:05 p.m. | Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza
Referees: Ben Betker (42), Koletrane Wilson (18) 
Linespersons: Dylan Blujus (57), J.P. Waleski (14)

Broadcast Information
Voice of the Bears, Zack Fisch, on the call
RADIO: WFVY-100.1-FM, Fox Sports 1460-AM
WATCH LIVE: AHLTV on FloHockey
LISTEN LIVE: Froggy Valley 100.1-FM Stream, Fox Sports 1460-AM Stream
Radio pre-game coverage starts at 2:35 p.m

LAST TIME OUT:
The Bears concluded a franchise-record nine-game homestand last night with a 4-1 victory over the Bridgeport Islanders. Grant Cruikshank, Graeme Clarke, Andrew Cristall, and Ilya Protas scored for the Bears, while netminder Mitch Gibson turned aside 22 shots in the victory. Hershey finished the homestand with two straight wins and a 4-5-0-0 record overall. The Penguins completed a home-and-home set with the Utica Comets last night, falling 3-2 in a shootout at Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza. Joona Koppanen and Avery Hayes had the goals for the Penguins who currently sit at the top of the Atlantic Division with 42 points. 

HITTING THE ROAD:
This afternoon the Bears play their first road game since Nov. 22 as they make the trek up I-81 for their first visit of the season to Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza. Hershey has gone 1-2-0-0 on home ice against the Penguins this season, and they went 3-1-1-1 in six road contests against the Penguins during the previous campaign. By virtue of spending their last nine games at home, the Bears have played the fewest road games in the AHL so far this season, owning a 6-2-0-0 record; Hershey's road power play unit has converted at a 34.8% clip, the top mark of any AHL squad. 

GIBBY MAKES HISTORY:
With his victory last night, Hershey goaltender Mitch Gibson became the first netminder in franchise history to start his tenure with the club with a 6-0-0 record. Gibson is a perfect 3-0-0 this season, adding to his previous three victories accumulated during the 2023-24 and 2024-25 campaigns. The Phoenixville, Pennsylvania native owns a 1.00 goals-against average and a .965 save percentage this season. 

KEEP COUNTING FOR CRISTALL: 
With his fourth goal of the season last night, forward Andrew Cristall extended his point streak to eight games, tallying 10 points in that stretch (1g, 9a). Cristall's marker was his first goal in a month, and it gave him 21 points (4g, 17a), moving him into a tie for seventh among AHL rookies in scoring. With fellow first-year player Ilya Protas ranking fourth in rookie scoring with 23 points (12g, 11a), the Bears and the San Jose Barracuda (Igor Chernyshov, 5th; Quentin Musty, 6th) are the only teams in the AHL with two rookies in the top-10 in scoring in the AHL. Cristall's 17 assists are tied for the most among rookies this season with Coachella Valley's Tyson Jugnauth.

HEADING INTO THE HOLIDAYS:
For the second straight year, Hershey will bookend the club's holiday break with a pair of games versus Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. Following today's game, Hershey will be off until Dec. 27 when they return to Mohegan Arena at Casey Plaza for another road clash versus the Penguins. Last year, Hershey went into the holiday break with a 1-0 loss to the Penguins at GIANT Center on Dec. 22 thanks to Filip Larsson's 33-save shutout. Hershey avenged the loss vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Dec. 28 in a 3-2 victory with Ethen Frank scoring the overtime tally in Chocolatetown. Following the games today and on the 27th, Hershey and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton will not meet again until Feb. 4. 

BEARS BITES:
Forward Spencer Smallman made his return to the lineup last night after missing the previous eight games with an upper-body injury...Zac Funk made his season debut for Hershey last night and played in his first AHL game since Jan. 25, 2025 after sustaining a lower-body injury while playing with the ECHL's South Carolina Stingrays on Feb. 21, 2025 vs. Greenville...The Bears have won at least three road games at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in the head-to-head matchup in each of the past six seasons...Overall, netminder Clay Stevenson went 3-1-1 last season in five games versus the Penguins...Forward Graeme Clarke scored his first game-winning goal as a Bear last night...Ilya Protas logged his eighth multi-point game last night with a goal and an assist, a mark that leads the team.

ON THIS DATE IN BEARS HISTORY:
Dec. 21, 2018 - Riley Barber tallied the game-winning goal as the Hershey Bears upended the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins by a 3-2 score in front of a sold-out crowd of 10,545 at GIANT Center. Barber finished the game with three points (1g, 2a), while current Hershey captain Aaron Ness dished out two assists. Future NHL goaltender Vitek Vanecek turned aside 26 shots to earn the win for Hershey, and the Bears finished the night 3-for-6 on the powerplay.