BEARS BLANK WOLF PACK 4-0
Shepard turns in 26-save shutout performance for Hershey
Four different goal-scorers found the net and a 26-save shutout performance from Hunter Shepard lifted the Hershey Bears (44-11-0-5) to a 4-0 win over the Hartford Wolf Pack (29-20-7-2) on Sunday evening in front of a crowd of 10,591 at GIANT Center.
The win enabled the Bears to match their win total from the 2022-23 regular season; Hershey has 12 games remaining in the 2023-24 campaign after tonight. Hershey improved to 2-1-0-0 against Hartford in the regular-season series. The shutout performance by Hunter Shepard was Hershey’s 10th overall shutout by the Bears this season (Clay Stevenson, 7; Shepard, 3), equalizing the franchise mark originally set in the 2014-15 season (Philipp Grubauer, 6; Pheonix Copley, 3; Justin Peters, 1).
Hershey struck early with the power play on just its second shot of the contest when Ethen Frank settled a loose puck at the left circle off a pass from Alex Limoges and buried his 22nd of the season at 1:19 of the first period. Matthew Phillips was credited with a secondary assist on the strike.
The Bears widened the lead to a pair of goals late in the second period when Henrik Rybinski led a breakout on a passing play with Hardy Häman Aktell and Limoges. As Rybinski made his way up the right side and put a shot on Garand, the rebound popped out to Limoges, who jammed in his 19th of the season – and third of the weekend – at 19:44.
Riley Sutter scored his fourth goal of the weekend and his ninth of the season at 11:18 of the third period when Garand attempted to play the puck on a dump-in behind the net and Sutter was able to stash it into an open cage. Lucas Johansen and Vincent Iorio earned assists on the goal.
Ryan Hofer capped the scoring with his fourth of the season at 14:13 when he slammed in a shot through the legs of Garand. Matt Strome and Sutter assisted.
Shepard preserved the clean sheet for the Bears late in regulation, denying Hartford’s Jake Leschyshyn on a shorthanded breakaway for the Wolf Pack’s final shot of the game.
Shots finished 27-26 in favor of the Bears. Shepard’s third shutout of the season was his 22nd win of the campaign season and his 50th career AHL win, all with the Chocolate and White; Garand took the loss for Hartford with a 23-for-27 effort. The Bears went 1-for-2 on the power play; the Wolf Pack went 0-for-3 with the man advantage.
The Bears continue the 2023-24 season, presented by Penn State Health, when they visit the Cleveland Monsters on Friday, March 22 at 7 p.m. at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Hershey is back home at GIANT Center against the Providence Bruins on Tuesday, March 26 at 7 p.m. forToyota Mike Vecchione Bobblehead Night and TRULY Takeover Tuesday. The first 4,000 fans in attendance for the game will receive a Mike Vecchione bobblehead. Purchase tickets for the game by CLICKING HERE.
