The Hershey Bears continue the 2025 Calder Cup Playoffs this week as they prepare to open the best-of-five Atlantic Division Finals against the Charlotte Checkers this weekend in North Carolina.
2025 PLAYOFF LEADERS:
Goals: Bogdan Trineyev (3)
Assists: Alex Limoges (5)
Points: Alex Limoges (6)
PIMs: Ivan Miroshnichenko, Aaron Ness (10)
Power-Play Goals: Pierrick Dube, Alex Limoges, Ivan Miroshnichenko, Chase Priskie (1)
Shorthanded Goals: N/A
Game-Winning Goals: Pierrick Dube, Chase Priskie, Riley Sutter (1)
Plus/Minus: Jon McDonald, Matt Strome, Riley Sutter, Bogdan Trineyev (+3)
Shots: Ivan Miroshnichenko (14)
Wins: Hunter Shepard (2)
Shutouts: Hunter Shepard (1)
GAA: Hunter Shepard (2.31)
SV%: Hunter Shepard (.898)
Only includes qualified players
LOCAL PRACTICE SCHEDULE:
Monday, May 12
Day Off
Tuesday, May 13
Practice, 10:30 a.m. at GIANT Center
Wednesday, May 14
Travel to Charlotte
Practice schedule is subject to change. Please check HersheyBears.com daily for updates.
UPCOMING GAME SCHEDULE:
Game 1 - Friday, May 16 at Charlotte, Bojangles Coliseum, 7 p.m.
Game 2 - Saturday, May 17 at Charlotte, Bojangles Coliseum, 7 p.m.
Game 3 - Wednesday, May 21 vs. Charlotte, GIANT Center, 7 p.m. - CLICK TO PURCHASE TICKETS
*Game 4 - Thursday, May 22 vs. Charlotte, GIANT Center, 7 p.m. - CLICK TO PURCHASE TICKETS
*Game 5 - Saturday, May 24 vs. Charlotte, GIANT Center, 7 p.m. - CLICK TO PURCHASE TICKETS
*If necessary. All times Eastern.
Television Coverage: FOX 43.2 Antenna TV (Games 1, 2, and 5), subject to change - additional TV broadcast information for the 2025 Calder Cup Playoffs will be announced as it becomes available at HersheyBears.com and FOX43.com; Video Coverage: AHLTV; Radio Coverage: Bears Radio Network, Capitals Radio Network
TEAM NEWS AND NOTES:
CHECKING IN ON THE CHECKERS:
The Bears and Checkers will meet in the playoffs for the second time in three springs, after Hershey bested Charlotte in four games during the 2023 Atlantic Division Semifinals. This upcoming series marks the fourth postseason meeting between the Bears and the Checkers. Hershey boasts a 1-2 series record and a 5-9 all-time playoff record against Charlotte. During the 2024-25 regular season, the Bears went 4-4-0-0 against the Checkers; Alex Limoges paced Hershey with five points (2g, 3a) in five games, while John Leonard appeared in all eight contests for Charlotte to lead the Checkers with six points (3g, 3a).
THE FIRST CUT IS THE DEEPEST:
Hershey has a lifetime record of 78-62 in Game 1s of a playoff series, and a 59-19 series record when winning the first game. In the previous three series between Hershey and Charlotte, the team that achieved victory in the first game went on to win the series. The Bears have posted a record of 3-0 when scoring first in the 2025 playoffs, while the Checkers have gone 3-2. Hershey has a +5 goal differential in the first period during the postseason; the Bears and Charlotte have both scored 16 goals through their first five games of the playoffs.
ON CLOUD NINE:
Hershey's series win over the Phantoms gave the club its ninth consecutive playoff series win dating back to the start of the 2023 Calder Cup Playoffs (2023, 4; 2024, 4; 2025, 1) to break the previous mark of eight that had also been held by the Bears (2009, 4; 2010, 4). Under the playoff series conditions faced by the Springfield Indians - the only team in league history to win three consecutive Calder Cup titles - the current Bears squad has been through enough series to equate to four championships.
LIMOGES LIFT-OFF:
Alex Limoges leads the Bears into the upcoming round with the team scoring lead, posting six points (1g, 5a) through Hershey's first five postseason matches. The forward has recorded at least a point each of Hershey's playoff games; dating back to the 2024 postseason he has a point streak of seven games (1g, 9a) and dating back to the final two games of the 2024-25 regular season he has recorded points in each of his last seven contests as well (2g, 7a).
NESS CONTINUES PLAYOFF GAMES PLAYED CLIMB:
Bears captain Aaron Ness dressed in his 67th career playoff game with Hershey in Game 5 of the Atlantic Division Semifinals, moving him into a three-way tie with Alexandre Giroux and Kyle Wilson for fifth in franchise history. The veteran defenseman's next contest will move him into a tie with Bears Hall of Famer Howie Yanosik for fourth in club history, and only six playoff games behind Ralph Keller's 74 for third, in addition to the most playoff games by any defenseman in team history.
GOALIE GLUT:
Both Hunter Shepard and Clay Stevenson earned starts and victories in the previous round for Hershey, marking the first time since the 2019 Atlantic Division Semifinals against the Bridgeport Sound Tigers that the Chocolate and White had multiple goaltenders earn wins in a series victory, with Vitek Vanecek and Ilya Samsonov doing so for the Bears then. Shepard got the lion's share of work in net for Hershey in the Atlantic Division Semifinals against Lehigh Valley, going 2-2 in four appearances with a 2.31 goals-against average, an. 898 save percentage, and one shutout. Both Shepard and Stevenson split playing time against Charlotte in the regular season, with Stevenson going 3-1 in four outings with a 1.49 goals-against average, a .939 save percentage, and one shutout.
SUPER SUTTER:
Riley Sutter's two goals in last Sunday's series win over Lehigh Valley included the second postseason game-winner of his career with Hershey (after previously netting the 5-4 overtime goal for the Bears in Game 3 of the 2023 Calder Cup Finals over Coachella Valley), tying him with Garrett Roe for third on the active Bears roster for career playoff game-winners. Mike Vecchione and Pierrick Dube are tied for first, while Alexandre Giroux is Hershey's all-time leader for playoff game-winners with 10. Over the last three playoff runs, Hershey is 8-1 when Sutter records at least a point; his Game 5 performance on Sunday against Lehigh Valley marked the first multi-point playoff contest of his career.
COACHING MATCHUP:
Todd Nelson has coached the Bears for the third straight spring to the Atlantic Division Finals, and enters the upcoming round with a 73-45 career record in the Calder Cup Playoffs as a head coach with Oklahoma City, Grand Rapids, and Hershey. His 73 playoff wins are two behind Frederick "Bun" Cook (75) for second in league history and nine victories behind John Paddock (82) for first. Nelson's Game 5 win over Lehigh Valley in the previous round gave him his 31st postseason win with Hershey to pass Paddock for sole possession of second in franchise history, behind only Frank Mathers (60). Geordie Kinnear is in his eighth season at the helm of a Florida Panthers AHL affiliate, and guided the Checkers to its best regular season under his four years as the head coach for Charlotte during the current campaign while earning the right to coach the Atlantic Division team at the 2025 AHL All-Star Classic in Palm Desert. Kinnear has a career playoff win-loss record of 10-11 as an AHL head coach.
BEARS BITES:
The Bears are the only team in the Calder Cup Playoffs that has not dressed a rookie skater...Chase Priskie (2g, 1a) and Jake Massie (0g, 3a) are tied with nine other players for ninth in league scoring among defensemen with three points. Priskie's two goals are also tied for third among defensemen while Massie's three assists are tied for fifth among blueliners...After finishing the regular season with the fewest penalty minutes per game (10.76) among 15 Eastern Conference teams, Hershey has the second-most penalty minutes per game (16.40) among the 11 Eastern Conference clubs participating in the postseason...Hershey has averaged the second-fewest shots against per game (24)...Both the Bears and Checkers are 3-0 when leading after two periods.
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
vs
