March 31, 2019

Vitek Vanecek made 21 stops on 22 shots, and two more in the shootout to help the Hershey Bears to a 2-1 victory over the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Sunday evening at Webster Bank Arena. Steve Whitney scored the lone goal for the Chocolate and White in regulation in the battle between goaltenders.For the second consecutive night, the opposition drew first blood in the game's opening minutes. At the 1:33 mark, Whitney served a bench minor for too many men on the ice, and Garrett Pilon was boxed for hooking to provide Bridgeport a full 5-on-3 advantage. At 2:50, Sebastian Aho finished a tic-tac-toe passing play and blasted a shot past Vanecek to open the score.In the second period, Hershey drew even on a lengthy power play chance. Kieffer Bellows accumulated 27 penalty minutes on one play for instigating and fighting in addition to both a 10 minute and game misconduct at 10:18. On the ensuing man-advantage, Hershey hit pay-dirt after Whitney buried a rebound chance past Bridgeport goaltender Christopher Gibson at the 13:12 mark. Riley Barber and Nathan Walker both earned assists on the play after working the puck into the low-slot.Both teams entered the third period with shots in the Bears favor, 18-12. Hershey and Bridgeport traded chances in the final frame, and both Vanecek and Gibson were up to the task. The game progressed into overtime, and Vanecek kept the Bears alive with a miraculous stop on former teammate Chris Bourque in the 3-on-3 sudden death. The Bears special teams finished the night 1-for-6 on the power play and 3-for-4 on the kill.In the shootout, both Riley Barber and Matt Lorito scored in round one, but Devante Smith-Pelly tallied in round three followed by a Vanecek save on Travis St. Denis to secure the Hershey win. The Bears record on the season improved to 38-24-3-4 with the victory, in addition to trimming their respective magic number to clinch a playoff spot down to eight points. Hershey's record in one-goal games this season improved to a remarkable 20-3-3-4.The Hershey Bears are back in action on Apr. 4, 2019 to kickoff a three game Canadian road trip. Hershey will battle the Toronto Marlies, American Hockey League affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs for an 11 a.m. puck drop. Voice of the Bears Zack Fisch will have the call on the Bears Radio Network.