Game Preview: Bears vs. Checkers, 7 p.m.

March 3, 2026

The Hershey Bears continue the 2025-26 season, presented by Penn State Health, as they host the Charlotte Checkers for a second straight night and look to extend the club's win streak to five games. Tonight's game was rescheduled from its original March 10 date. Physical tickets for the March 10 date are valid for tonight's game.

Hershey Bears (26-20-6-2) vs. Charlotte Checkers (30-18-5-0)
March 3, 2026 | 7 p.m. | GIANT Center
Referees: Will Kelly (29), Mathieu Menniti (30)
Linespersons: Tommy George (61), Jud Ritter (34)

Tonight's Promotions:

Fairview Golf Course Logo Chip Giveaway  - The first 4,000 fans will receive a Logo Chip, courtesy of Fairview Golf Course.

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS VIA TICKETMASTER

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 extended the club's winning streak to four games with a 3-2 overtime victory versus the Charlotte Checkers last night at GIANT Center. Alex Suzdalev scored twice and Ivan Miroshnichenko netted the game-winner just 45 seconds into overtime to give Hershey the victory. Sonny Milano provided two assists for Hershey and goaltender Clay Stevenson made 27 saves in the win. Charlotte got goals from Wilmer Skoog and Nolan Foote in the loss. The game marked Hershey's first regular-season Monday home game since Jan. 25, 2016 vs. Lehigh Valley.

CHECKING OUT:
Tonight marks Charlotte's final visit to GIANT Center this season, and overall in the season series, the Bears own a 3-1-0-1 record versus the Checkers. The previous three head-to-head matchups have gone past regulation with the Bears winning a pair of overtime games, and the Checkers earning a victory via a shootout. Four of the five games versus the two clubs this year have been decided by just one goal, and Hershey has limited Charlotte to just 12 goals in the season series. Alex Suzdalev leads all skaters with six points (2g, 4a) in head-to-head action, and goaltender Clay Stevenson is 2-0-0 versus Charlotte this season, and he has gone 10-3-0 all-time versus the Checkers with a 2.15 goals-against average, a .925 save percentage, and one shutout. Hershey enters tonight five points behind Charlotte for third place in the Atlantic Division, with Charlotte having one game in-hand.

STRONG STRETCHS:
Hershey forward Brett Leason's assist last night extended his assist and point streaks to seven games (3g, 7a), with his assist streak matching Andrew Cristall's team season high (9a in seven games from Nov. 29 vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton - Dec. 13 vs. Charlotte). Leason has points in nine of his last 10 games and he has four assists in three games versus Charlotte this season. Fellow forward Ilya Protas registered an assist last night to extend his point streak to four games (3g, 2a) and he now has 45 points this season (22g, 23a), just one behind Bakersfield's Quinn Hutson for the top mark in the AHL among rookies. 

COMEBACK KINGS:
Last night marked the sixth time this season Hershey has won when trailing after two periods of play. Only the Cleveland Monsters (7) have more victories than the Bears when down after 40 minutes. Four of Hershey's comeback wins have occurred at GIANT Center, tying the Bears with Cleveland for the most victories on home ice when behind after the second period. Monday's win was just the third time this season the Checkers have lost when trailing after two periods, and they are now 24-0-3-0 in that scenario. 

MARCH MUSINGS:
Hershey started the month of March with a victory last night, and in total the Bears have 11 games in the penultimate month of the AHL's regular season. Following tonight, six of the remaining nine games in the month will be on the road, with Hershey visiting Hartford, Providence, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Bridgeport, Syracuse, and Lehigh Valley. Eight of the 11 games in March are divisional contests, and overall Hershey plays five games versus teams ahead of them in the AHL standing this month.  

BEARS BITES:
Hershey's Magic Number to clinch a berth in the 2026 Calder Cup Playoffs is 28...Hershey has not taken a penalty in each of its last two home games...With the win last night, goaltender Clay Stevenson earned his 15th win of the season and the 60th of his career, tying Dave Parro for 15th in franchise history...Graeme Clarke's next goal will mark the 100th of his AHL/pro career...Ivan Miroshnichenko is two points away from his 100th as a Bear...Corey Schueneman is slated to play in his 400th professional game tonight...Sonny Milano has five points (2g, 3a) in his first three games with Hershey this season...Justin Nachbaur is eligible to return to Hershey's lineup tonight after serving a one-game suspension for accruing 10 fighting majors...Hershey is 5-0-0-0 with defenseman D.J. King in the lineup this season...The Bears are 19-7-4-2 when scoring a goal in the first period this season. 

ON THIS DATE IN BEARS HISTORY:
March 3, 1971 - The Bears earned a 6-4 win over the Québec Aces at the Colisée de Québec, as rookie goaltender Dan Bouchard made 37 saves against the Aces and defenseman Darryl Edestrand scored an unassisted goal with under seven minutes remaining to collect the game-winner for Hershey. It marked the final time the Bears would visit Québec City until the 1999-00 season, as the parent Philadelphia Flyers relocated the Aces franchise to Richmond, Virginia to become the Robins the following season; AHL hockey would not return to the Colisée until the Fredericton Canadiens became the Québec Citadelles nearly 30 years later.