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

February 20, 2026

The Hershey Bears continue the 2025-26 season, presented by Penn State Health, as they return home following a four-game road trip through Canada with the first of back-to-back home games this weekend against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.

Hershey Bears (22-18-6-2) vs. Lehigh Valley Phantoms (21-22-2-2)
Feb. 20, 2026 | 7 p.m. | GIANT Center
Referees: Mike Dietrich (15), Hayden Verbeek (61)
Linesperson: Bill Lyons (27), Josh Cleary (45)

Tonight's Promotions:

PA Lottery Night - The first 4,000 fans 18-and-over will receive a coupon offer, courtesy of the Pennsylvania Lottery.

Happy Hour - Fans 21-and-over can enjoy $5 Twisted Tea cans and sampling, available from doors to puck drop.

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS VIA TICKETMASTER

Broadcast Information
Voice of the Bears, Zack Fisch, former Bears captain Garrett Mitchell, and FOX43 sports director Todd Sadowski on the call
TELEVISION: Antenna TV (WPMT FOX 43.2, Xfinity Ch. 247 and 1178, Verizon FiOS Ch. 463, Blue Ridge Ephrata Ch. 91, and Blue Ridge Newberry/Duncannon Ch. 88)
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 6:30 p.m.; Television coverage starts at 7 p.m.

LAST TIME OUT:
The Bears earned a 3-2 win over the Toronto Marlies on Wednesday, after trailing 2-0 in the second period thanks to a three-point (2g, 1a) day from Ivan Miroshnichenko, who kickstarted the rally with a power-play goal at 18:52 of the frame for his 10th of the season. Miroshnichenko then assisted on Ilya Protas' game-tying goal at 10:42 of the third, before adding the tie-breaking marker at 12:31. The Phantoms have been idle since Sunday, a 3-1 loss at home to the Syracuse Crunch. Despite a shorthanded goal from Tucker Robertson midway through the third period, it was not enough to overcome the initial 2-0 deficit, and Mitchell Chaffee added an empty-net goal in the third to seal Lehigh Valley's fate, sending the Phantoms to their fifth consecutive loss.

MORE MIRO MAGIC:
Ivan Miroshnichenko's performance on Wednesday against the Marlies marked his second three-point game of the season and the fifth of his AHL career. The 2022 first-round draft pick of the Washington Capitals has 10 points (5g, 5a) in his last seven games, and has contributed two game-winning goals. Now in his third season in North America, Miroshnichenko is five points away from 100 in his AHL career.

GIBSON SUCCESSFULLY CLEARS:
Hershey goaltender Mitch Gibson signed a two-year NHL contract with the Washington Capitals on Tuesday. As a result of signing his contract after the start of the season, Gibson was required to successfully pass through NHL waivers on Wednesday before he could be loaned back to Hershey. In his lone appearance against Lehigh Valley this season - his first of the campaign with the Bears - Gibson earned a 3-2 win over the Phantoms with 25 saves. Gibson is a lifetime 2-0-0 versus Lehigh Valley with a 1.97 goals-against average and a .922 save percentage.

NACHO'S BACK ON THE MENU:
Justin Nachbaur is available for the Bears after serving a three-game suspension as a result of Hershey's Feb. 13 game at Laval. The forward is tied for third in the league and first among rookies with eight major penalties this season, and Nachbaur leads the Bears with 74 penalty minutes. The last rookie to lead the club in penalty minutes was defenseman Rick Berry (153) during the 1998-99 season.

PHANTOM FOLLIES:
Hershey enters tonight's game with a 4-2-1-0 record against Lehigh Valley in the season series, with a 3-0-0-0 record on home ice, and the Bears sit six points ahead of the Phantoms in the Atlantic Division standings with one more game played. When scoring first, the Phantoms have been one of the elite teams in holding on to secure the victory, sporting a 12-0-1-1 (.929) record, one of only two teams without a regulation loss. However, Lehigh Valley's 14 first goals rank last in the AHL, and the Phantoms have allowed the first goal in each of their last 14 matches. In that stretch, Lehigh Valley has posted a 3-11-0-0 record, which has plunged the Phantoms from third in the Atlantic Division and eight games above the .500 mark to sixth in the division and a game below .500.

BEARS BITES:
Andrew Cristall's 12 power-play assists lead all rookies and are tied for 10th in the league, and his 14 power-play points are tied for second among AHL freshmen...Ilya Protas' seven power-play goals are the most among Eastern Conference rookies...Louie Belpedio's five first goals are first among AHL defensemen and tied for fourth among all skaters...Clay Stevenson is two games away from appearing in his 100th AHL contest...Graeme Clarke is two goals away from his 100th pro goal...Hershey is 14-0-2-1 when leading after two periods, while Lehigh Valley is 15-0-1-1...Lehigh Valley defenseman Christian Kyrou is tied for 15th in scoring among blueliners with 25 points (7g, 18a).

ON THIS DATE IN BEARS HISTORY:
Feb. 20, 2021 - Connor McMichael recorded a natural hat trick to lead the Bears to a 3-1 win over Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in front of a pandemic-reduced crowd of 404 at GIANT Center. With Hershey trailing 1-0 in the first period, McMichael tallied a power-play goal at 8:39 to tie the game. The 2019 first-round draft pick of the Washington Capitals then added an unassisted goal at 1:19 of the second period and an unassisted empty-net goal at 18:50 of the third to cap the scoring, while Zach Fucale - making his first appearance as a Bear - made 34 saves to get the win.