The Hershey Bears continue the 2025-26 season, presented by Penn State Health, as the Bears will host their first of two games against the Providence Bruins this week.
Hershey Bears (12-8-1-0) vs. Providence Bruins (17-5-0-0)
Dec. 10, 2025 | 7 p.m. | GIANT Center
Referees: Rob Hennessey (87), Andrew Bell (6)
Linespersons: Tommy George (61), Richard Jondo (55)
Tonight's Promotions:
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Broadcast Information
Voice of the Bears, Zack Fisch, AHL Hall-of-Famer Mitch Lamoureux, and in-arena host Jim Jones on the call
RADIO: WFVY-100.1-FM, Fox Sports 1460-AM, SportsRadio 98.9-FM & WOYK 1350-AM, In-arena on 88.9-FM
WATCH LIVE: AHLTV on FloHockey
LISTEN LIVE: Froggy Valley 100.1-FM Stream, Fox Sports 1460-AM Stream
Radio pre-game coverage starts at 6:30 p.m.
LAST TIME OUT:
The Bears faced the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on Sunday, coming away with a 3-2 win, as the line of Andrew Cristall (2a), Henrik Rybinski (2a), and Brett Leason (2g) carried the offense, with Leason breaking a 2-2 tie at 16:30 of the third period to lift Hershey to the win, while Mitch Gibson made 25 saves in his season debut. The Bruins are coming off of a 3-1 home loss to Springfield on Sunday, as Georgii Merkulov netted a power-play goal to tie the game before the Thunderbirds pulled away for the win.
PEERING INTO THE CRISTALL BALL:
Forward Andrew Cristall has 11 points (2g, 9a) in his last 10 games, and enters the week riding a four-game assist streak (6a). The rookie is tied for eighth in scoring among AHL rookies with 17 points (3g, 14a), and second on the Bears behind fellow freshman forward Ilya Protas. Cristall's five power-play points (1g, 4a) lead the club, and Hershey has earned nine wins in games in which he collects at least a point, the largest figure generated by any player on the team so far this season.
NEW 'LEASE' IS LOOSE:
In his first stint with the Bears from 2019-22, Brett Leason's best statistical season came in the 2020-21 campaign, when the 56th overall pick in the 2019 NHL Draft collected 20 points (9g, 11a) in 33 games while posting a +9. After visa issues delayed Leason's season debut for several games after being loaned to the club on Oct. 28, the forward has produced nine points (4g, 5a) through 10 games, including just the third multi-goal game of his AHL career after he was retroactively credited with the second goal scored by Hershey in this past Sunday's 3-2 win over Lehigh Valley, after already scoring the game-winning goal in the third period. Five of Leason's 22 career goals with the Bears have been game-winners.
BIG, BAD (BUT WELL-BEHAVED) BRUINS:
The Bruins have been one of the league's dominant teams through the first quarter of the 2025-26 campaign. The club is tied with Grand Rapids for a league-leading 14-0-0-0 when scoring first, while surrendering only 2.23 goals per game, the best mark in the Eastern Conference. Providence also leads the Eastern Conference with the fewest average penalty minutes per game, at just 9.00. Up front, Patrick Brown is tied for seventh in league scoring with 23 points (10g, 13a), while in goal the Bruins possess arguably the top netminding duo in the league in Michael DiPietro (2.08 GAA, T-3rd) and Simon Zajicek (2.09 GAA, T-5th), both of whom are tied for third in the league with a .926 save percentage.
BEARS BITES:
Hershey recalled Nicky Leivermann from the ECHL's South Carolina Stingrays on Tuesday morning after loaning the defenseman to South Carolina last week. Leivermann recorded an assist in each of his two appearances with the Stingrays...Graeme Clarke is four points away from his 200th pro point and five points away from his 200th AHL point...Both the Bears and Bruins are tied for second in the league in first goals (14), only trailing Laval (15). Hershey is 9-4-1-0 when scoring first.
ON THIS DATE IN BEARS HISTORY:
Dec. 10, 1955 - Arnie Kullman completed a hat trick performance by tying the game with 26 seconds remaining in regulation with goaltender "Long" John Henderson pulled for an extra attacker, and captain Ellard "Obie" O'Brien netted the game-winner at 8:09 of the 10-minute overtime period to lift the Bears to a 5-4 win over the visiting Providence Reds in front of 3,748 at Hershey Sports Arena.
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