Gabriel Carlsson scored his first of the season, but it was not enough as the Hershey Bears (17-6-2-1) fell 3-1 to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (13-6-1-2) on Friday night at Mohegan Sun Arena.
The defeat brought an end to Hershey’s five-game road win streak. Despite the loss, the Bears maintained their hold on first place in the Atlantic Division and American Hockey League standings following a 5-4 overtime loss by the Providence Bruins to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.
Jonathan Gruden netted the game’s first goal at 4:57 of the first period when he tipped a shot from the point past the glove of Zach Fucale.
Tyler Sikura made it 2-0 in favor of the hosts at 8:37 when his shot from the left circle found its way through Fucale into the back of the cage.
Sam Houde extended the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton lead to 3-0 at 3:48 of the third period as he brought the puck around the net to the left post and stuffed it past a sprawled Fucale.
Hershey finally broke through when Carlsson’s wrister from the left point found its way through Dustin Tokarski at 19:10, which would be the final goal of the night. Mike Vecchione earned the lone assist on the tally.
Shots finished 30-26 favoring Hershey. Fucale went 29-for-34 for Hershey; Tokarski was 29-for-30 for the Penguins. The Bears were 0-for-4 on the power play, while the Penguins went 0-for-3 with the man advantage.
Hershey continues the 2022-23 season, presented by Penn State Health, when the Bears face the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in the second of two road games at Mohegan Sun Arena on Saturday, Dec. 17 at 6:05 p.m. The Chocolate and White return home to GIANT Center to face the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on Sunday, Dec. 18 at 5 p.m. Purchase tickets for the game by CLICKING HERE.
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