Riley Sutter scored twice and the Hershey Bears withstood a third-period comeback attempt to knock off Lehigh Valley, 4-2, in the decisive Game 5 of their Atlantic Division semifinal series in front of 10,421 fans at Giant Center on Sunday evening.
After winning their ninth consecutive playoff series – a new AHL record – the Bears will take on Charlotte in the division finals beginning Friday night.
Spencer Smallman gave Hershey a 1-0 lead at the 5:19 mark of the opening period, his second goal of the playoffs. The team scoring the first goal would wind up winning all five games in the series.
Sutter, who scored four goals in 55 games during the regular season, made it 2-0 with 3:37 to go before the first intermission, and upped the lead to 3-0 with 6:51 left in the second period. They were Sutter’s first postseason goals since his overtime winner in Game 3 of the Calder Cup Finals in 2023.
Lehigh Valley climbed back into the game in the third period thanks to goals by Anthony Richard and Hunter McDonald, but Bogdan Trineyev’s empty-net tally with 1:40 remaining completed Hershey’s comeback from a 2-1 series deficit.
Hunter Shepard returned to the Bears’ cage and made 19 saves in Game 5. In three winner-take-all games over the last three postseasons, Shepard has stopped 106 of 112 shots (3-0, 1.77, .946).
Cal Petersen turned aside 18 shots for the Phantoms.
(Hershey wins series, 3-2)
Game 1 – Wed., Apr. 30 – HERSHEY 3, Lehigh Valley 0
Game 2 – Fri., May 2 – Lehigh Valley 3, HERSHEY 1
Game 3 – Sun., May 4 – LEHIGH VALLEY 4, Hershey 2
Game 4 – Fri., May 9 – Hershey 6, LEHIGH VALLEY 4
Game 5 – Sun., May 11 – HERSHEY 4, Lehigh Valley 2
