Photo: Eric Lord
Of the 14 games the Hershey Bears played in March, 10 of them were away for the Giant Center. The month saw the team venture out on the longest road trip in franchise history. The Chocolate and White went 6-2-1-1 on the trip to earn 14 of a possible 20 points. The Bears split their four home games and ended the month with a record of 8-4-1-1.
Hershey clinched a Calder Cup playoff spot after beating Chicago on March 16. Heading into the last month of the regular season, Hershey remains atop the American Hockey League’s (AHL) Atlantic Division with 85 points and a record of 39-18-6-1. They hold a three-point lead over both the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and the Charlotte Checkers.
The Bears scored 54 times and gave up 41 goals in March. The Chocolate and White posted three shutouts in the month. The power play converted at a clip of 25.6%, scoring 10 times in 39 attempts. The penalty kill gave up seven power play goals to opponents in 37 attempts for a 81% kill rate.
On the offensive end of the ice, Hershey got big months out of Hendrix Lapierre, Pierrick Dube, Ivan Miroshnichenko, Ethan Bear and Chase Priskie. Lapierre led the way with 15 points and 13 assists. Dube netted a team high nine goals and finished with 14 points. Miroshnichenko added 12 points and Bear and Priskie each chipped in with 11.
Defensively, the Bears still give up too many odd-man rushes. This is problem that has plagued them for much of the season and is something that needs to be figured out before the playoffs. Also, there have been bad turnovers and coverage mistakes that need to be corrected. The imminent returns of Aaron Ness and Jake Massie from injury should help the defensive coverage. Hershey is also adding Washington Capitals prospects Ryan Chesley and David Gucciardi on the back end.
Forwards
Pierrick Dube (RW) – 24 – Undrafted
When a coach makes a player a healthy scratch, he wants to see a response from that player in his next outing. Hershey head coach Todd Nelson got just that from Dube. After being scratched for February’s last game, the Frenchman came out flying in March. He posted his first three-point game since December on March 1. Dube potted the game-tying goal against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins with 6:28 left in the third period after picking up the secondary assist on Mike Vecchione’s marker earlier in the frame. Then, the speedy winger intercepted a pass in his own zone and burst up the right wing. He ripped a shot high into the net to deliver the overtime winner in a 5-4 victory. It was the start of a strong March for Dube. The native of Lyon, France netted a team high nine goals in the month and added four helpers to finish March with 13 points. That was the second most on the team for the month. It was the winger’s most productive month of the season. Dube vaulted into third on the Hershey scoring list with 39 points. He also has 19 goals on the season, tied for the team lead.
Monthly Score: 4.6
Hendrix Lapierre (C) – 23 – Drafted 2020 (First Round, 22nd overall)
Lapierre was highly productive for the Bears in March. He amassed a team best 15 points. The pivot entered the month on a four-game point streak and extended that run to six games during the first two games of March. After picking up an assist in an overtime win against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on March 1, Lapierre posted his second three-point game of the season versus the Lehigh Valley Phantoms a night later. He assisted on Ivan Miroshnichenko’s opening goal in the first period and then gave the Chocolate and White a 2-0 advantage later in the frame when he took a pass from Nicky Leivermann and chipped a shot over Keith Petruzzelli. The third point was a helper on Vincent Iorio’s third period tally. The Gatineau, Quebec native was held off the scoresheet in his next appearance, but then ran off a three-game assist streak. He was held without a point in his next to contests. Lapierre finished the month on a five-game point streak. The center began the run with an assist in Springfield and followed up with the opening goal in Hartford. That was his last goal of the month. In his last three games of March, Lapierre compiled six assists, including three in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on March 22. The biggest of these came with the goalie pulled late in the third period when his feed hit the skate of Mike Vecchione and went in to allow Hershey to earn a point. In total, Lapierre had 13 assists in 13 games in March. He missed the last game of the month with an upper body injury.
Monthly Score: 4.7
Alex Limoges (LW) – 27 – Undrafted
When in the lineup, the Penn State product was productive. Unfortunately for Limoges, he missed five games with an upper body injury after taking a big hit from Riley Stillman in Chicago on March 15. He started the month with three points in his first four games, including a first period power play marker in Cleveland on March 7. Limoges netted the tying goal in the third period versus Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on March 12 by redirecting an Andrew Perrott shot home. He had an assist earlier in the matchup to finish with a multi-point game. The Northern Virginian suffered his injury in his next appearance and was unavailable for two weeks. Limoges returned for the final two games of March against Utica and dished out three helpers in those two contests. The Penn Stater concluded the month with eight points in nine games and is currently second on the team scoring list with 40 points.
Monthly Score: 4.0
Ivan Miroshnichenko (LW) – 21 – Drafted 2022 (First Round, 20th overall)
After a quiet February, the Russian winger picked up his offensive production in March. Miroshnichenko recorded a point in his first six games of the month, including three multi-point outings. He kicked off the month by scoring twice in a 5-4 overtime victory over Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on March 1. The first tally started a Hershey rally from a three goal deficit and the second tied the game at three. A night later, Miroshnichenko ripped a one-timer from above the left circle past Lehigh Valley’s Keith Pettruzelli to open the scoring. The marker proved to be the game-winner as the Bears prevailed 4-0. He also had an assist on Hendrix Lapierre’s first period goal. The second year forward registered a helper in each of his next two games and then posted another multi-point contest in Cleveland on March 8. Miroshinchenko’s first point came when he fired a low shot through the five-hole of Zach Sawchenko on the power to give Hershey a 3-2 advantage in the third period. Later in the stanza, he picked up the primary assist on Ethan Bear’s game-winning goal. The winger added two goals and two assists the rest of the month. Miroshnichenko has scored the first goal of the game four times this season, the most on the team. The Russian is tied for the team lead in goals with 19 and is tied for fourth on the team in scoring with 37 points. In March, he compiled 12 points. Only Hendrix Lapierre and Pierrick Dube had more in the month.
Monthly Score: 4.5
Luke Philp (C/RW) – 29 – Undrafted
It was another quiet month, offensively, for Philp. After totaling three points in February, the forward again posted just three points in March. He scored a power play goal in the third period in Cleveland on March 7. Philp recorded an assist in Hartford on March 21 and netted the first Hershey goal in a 4-2 loss in Utica on March 29. The Canmore, Alberta native was injured in the game in Utica and missed the final game of the month. Philp struggles in his own end and is a team worse -18. His turnover on a second period power play in Bridgeport on March 26 led to a shorthanded, breakaway goal for Cole Bardreau. If the Bears get healthy, he could find himself the odd man out come playoff time.
Monthly Score: 2.3
Henrik Rybinski (C) – 23 – Drafted 2019 (Fifth Round, 136th overall – Florida)
Rybinski started the month slowly and failed to record a point in the first six games of March. He snapped out of it with a big game in Chicago on March 15. The pivot opened the scoring with 3:22 left in the first period when he roofed a shot of Dustin Tokarski’s glove. It was his first goal since December 7. He also registered a secondary assist on Bogdan Trineyev’s second period tally. Finally, Rybinski tallied a highlight goal for Hershey’s fifth and final goal of the night. He took a feed from Trineyev at the inside edge of the right circle. The native of Vancouver, British Columbia moved in on goal. Rybinski then pulled the puck between his legs and elevated a shot over the glove of Ruslan Khazheyev. The big game propelled the forward to a strong end to the month. He followed it up with five points in his next seven games to finish March with seven points. The Vancouverite is a key contributor to the Bears’ penalty kill, usually paired with Bogdan Trineyev as the second set of forwards set out.
Monthly Score: 3.4
Mike Sgarbossa (C) – 32 – Undrafted
March was a lost month for Sgarbossa. The veteran pivot was injured in a game versus Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on March 1 and missed the remainder of the month. Sgarbossa has just three appearances in the past two months.
Monthly Score: Incomplete
Spencer Smallman (C/RW) – 28 – Drafted 2015 (Fifth Round, 138th overall – Carolina)
For the second time this season, Smallman posted eight points in a month. Six of those points came in the first five games of Hershey’s 10-game road trip. He had an assist at Cleveland on March 7, at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on March 12 and in Chicago on March 15. The Summerside, Prince Edward Island native then recorded his first three-point game as a Bear at Chicago on March 16. He registered a secondary helper on Nicky Leivermann’s first period tally and did the same on Grant Cruikshank’s second period marker. Later in the second, Smallman put home a rebound from a Pierrick Dube shot for the fourth Hershey goal. He would be named the game’s second star. For the season, the forward has 33 points. Smallman sees time on both the second power play unit and on the penalty kill. He is a player that head coach Todd Nelson trusts in any situation. The Washington Capitals re-signed Smallman to a two-year contract extension.
Monthly Score: 3.6
Riley Sutter (C) – 25 – Drafted 2018 (Third Round, 93rd overall)
Sutter finally snapped a 15-game scoreless drought on March 21. On a two-on-one rush in the second period, he one-timed a pass from Brennan Saulnier over Hartford’s Dylan Garand from in front. It was the first time the pivot found the scoresheet since scoring a goal against Toronto on December 21. He added a secondary assist on Bogdan Trineyev’s first period marker on March 30 for his second and last point of the month. Sutter missed a month earlier in the season due to a lower body injury and has not looked the same since returning. He is still a strong penalty killer and is usually the first forward sent out for the penalty kill. However, Sutter is not as physical as he usually is and he does not seem to have the same jump.
Monthly Score: 2.5
Bogdan Trineyev (LW) – 22 – Drafted 2020 (Fourth Round, 117th overall)
The month started slowly for Trineyev. He failed to record a point in his first six games of March to run his scoreless drought to nine games. The winger snapped out of it in a big way in Chicago on March 15. Trineyev started by setting up Henrik Rybinski’s opening goal with a backhanded feed in the first period. In the second period, the Russian took a feed from Chase Priskie in the corner of the left circle and whipped a shot under the arm of Dustin Tokarski for Hershey’s fourth goal of the contest. Trineyev ended his evening with the primary assist on Rybinski’s third period goal. He was named the game’s number two star. He netted two additional goals in the month and dished out another assist to conclude the month with six points. Trineyev has already surpassed his offensive totals from last season. His 11 goals, seven assists and 18 points are all career highs. He is a key cog on the penalty kill and is usually in the second set of forwards sent over to the boards on the kill, usually with Rybinski.
Monthly Score: 3.0
Defensemen
Ethan Bear (RD) – 27 – Drafted 2015 (Fifth Round, 124th overall – Edmonton)
Bear is in position to accomplish something that has only been done once in the long and storied history of the Hershey Bears. He currently leads the Chocolate and White in scoring with 44 points. If Bear stays atop the scoring list, he would join Rollie McLenahan as the only defensemen in franchise history to lead the team in scoring. The native of Ochapowace, Saskatchewan also paces Hershey with 34 assists. He has a plus 32 rating, far and away the best rating on the team. The rating is tied for the second best in the AHL. In March, the blue liner again was highly productive. Bear amassed 11 points in 12 games during the month. He commenced March with a three-game assist streak. After going without a point in the month’s fourth game, the veteran posted a multi-point night in Cleveland on March 15. He set up Ivan Miroshnichenko’s power play marker in the third period. Then, Bear put the Bears ahead to stay with 7:39 remaining in regulation. He charged up the middle and shot home a rebound from a Miroshnichenko shot. The defenseman was scoreless in his next three outings, but ended the month on a four-game point streak. The run began with Bear netting the game winning goal in the third period in Springfield on March 19.
Monthly Score: 4.7
Vincent Iorio (LD) – 22 – Drafted 2021 (Second round – 55th overall)
Suffering through a 14-game pointless streak, Iorio got the monkey off his back against Lehigh Valley on March 2. From the left point, he one-timed a Brad Hunt pass by Keith Petruzzelli for the fourth Hershey goal. Not only did the tally snap his scoreless streak, it was his first goal since November 30. Iorio scored again three games later, putting a shot into the empty net in Cleveland on March 8. The marker ended up as the game-winner after Cleveland potted a goal late to get within one. The Coquitlam, British Columbia native played arguably his best game of the season in Springfield on March 19. He recorded the primary assist on Matt Strome’s opening goal in the second period and had the secondary helper on Pierrick Dube’s empty netter. Iorio was on the ice for all four goals the Bears scored, earning him a plus four rating for the first time this season (second time in his career). He finished the month with four points, double what he had in January and February. The British Columbian’s defense was improved for most of the month with the main exception being the March’s last game against Utica in what was an all around poor effort by Hershey. Iorio was a minus three and his turnover behind his own goal led directly to Utica’s sixth goal.
Monthly Score: 2.8
Chase Priskie (RD) – 28 – Drafted 2016 (Sixth Round, 177th overall)
The Pembroke Pines, Florida native had a strong March. In 12 games, Priskie potted two goals and dished out nine assists for 11 points. After going without a point in the first game of the month and being a healthy scratch for the second, he rattled off a six-game point streak, including four multi-point games. The stretch started with a pair of secondary assists in Cleveland versus the Monsters on March 7 and then another helper a night later against the Monsters. Against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on March 12, Priskie assisted on Dalton Smith’s first period tally and then netted his first goal of the month by firing a slap shot through traffic and past Sergei Murashov. The blue liner followed that effort up with back-to-back two-assist games. Priskie scored his team-leading 10th power play goal in Utica on March 29. Defensively, the Floridian was better positionally and got caught up ice less than in previous months.
Monthly Score: 3.5
Goalies
Garin Bjorklund – 22 – Drafted 2020 (Sixth Round, 179th overall)
With Clay Stevenson out with an injury late in the month, Bjorklund was recalled from South Carolina and got the start in Bridgeport on March 26. The Grand Prairie, Alberta native was stellar in his AHL debut. He was not busy in the first period, but did deny Brian Pinho’s shorthanded attempt from in close at the 7:40 mark with a glove save. The former Medicine Hat Tiger stopped 12 of the 13 Bridgeport shots in the second stanza. One of these was a left pad save on a Pinho shorthanded breakaway with six minutes and 35 seconds remaining in frame. A minute and 43 seconds later, the netminder robbed Cam Thiesing on a shorthanded two-on-one. Cole Bardreau finally beat Bjorklund with a forehand past the blocker 24 seconds later. In the third period, He turned aside all 12 shots he saw and earned his first AHL win. The Albertan played with poise and looked comfortable in the net.
Monthly Score: 4.5
Hunter Shepard – 29 – Undrafted
Shepard had an up and down March. The month began with the Minnesota-Duluth alum blanking the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on March 2. He stopped all 21 shots he faced in a 4-0 Hershey win. Shepard was pulled from his next start on March 5 after surrendering four goals on 14 shots through two periods. The Minnesotan rebounded to win his next three starts. The best of these came in Chicago on March 15. He made 21 saves, including 10 in the third period, to record his second shutout of the month. The clean sheet was the 11th of his Hershey career and moved Shepard into a tie for seventh place in the category in franchise history. The reigning AHL goalie of the year lost his last three appearances, one of which was in a shootout. His poorest outing in that stretch came in Utica on March 29 when he left in a couple of soft goals. The netminder won four games in the March to give him 77 as a member of the Bears. He now ranks eighth in franchise history in wins. Shepard is fourth in the league with 22 wins this season.
Monthly Score: 3.0
Clay Stevenson – 26 – Undrafted
The Drayton Valley, Alberta native went 3-1 in seven appearances in March. However, Stevenson had his share of struggles during the month. He won his first start of the month against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on March 1 despite giving up four goals on 16 shots in the contest. His best outing of the month came in Cleveland on March 7. Stevenson made 24 saves and gave up nothing to whitewash the Monsters 3-0. It was his second shutout of the season. He was victorious in one of his final four appearances, a 25-save effort in a 5-2 win in Chicago on March 16. The Dartmouth College missed two games with an injury late in the month, but returned to start on March 30. The appearance did not go well as the Bears were awful in the matchup with Utica. Stevenson four goals on shots in the first period and was pulled after the opening frame. The goals were not all on the netminder. Hershey turnovers led to a pair of the goals and a breakdown in coverage left a Utica player wide open in front.
Monthly Score: 2.8
By Eric Lord
