March 12, 2010

GLENS FALLS, NY – Bryan Helmer scored the game-winning goal at 1:33 of overtime as the Hershey Bears rallied for a 5-4 overtime win over the Adirondack Phantoms Friday night in front of 4,280 fans at the Glens Falls Civic Center.

Even though the Phantoms came out with great energy and created two quick scoring chances, it was Hershey who got on the scoreboard first. Jay Beagle scored his 11th goal of the season at 4:34 by knocking in a loose puck. Alexandre Giroux danced around Denis Bodov and then snapped the puck into the bottom right corner of the net for an unassisted goal to make it 2-0 at 6:11, his 34th tally of the year, and the Bears had all the momentum early on. But Adirondack responded as they scored on their first power play chance of the evening. Rookie defenseman Marc-Andre Bourdon cashed in with his second goal of the season at 11:32, firing a hard shot from the top of the right circle across the body of goaltender Michal Neuvirth and into the lower left side of the net. The Phantoms came close to tying the game moments later when captain Jared Ross slipped behind the Bears defense, but Neuvirth made a smart save to keep the visitors in the lead. Adirondack made a huge defensive stand to close out the period after Sean Curry was given two minor penalties for slashing and roughing. The Phantoms penalty killers came up big against the AHL’s top rated power play, not allowing Hershey to add to their lead, holding off the Bears’ full four-minute man-advantage.

The momentum built off the penalty was evident in the second period as Adirondack out-shot Hershey 12-4 and scored twice to take a 3-2 lead. Jonathon Kalinski tied the game at 5:04 when his shot from an impossible angle snuck between Neuvirth and the near post; assists went to Joey Mormina and Joonas Lehtivuori. The Phantoms then grabbed their first lead of the game at 17:40 just after their third power play expired. Stefan Legein’s shot from the right wing was blocked by Neuvirth, but Jon Matsumoto followed the play perfectly and jammed the rebound over the goal line for his 22nd goal of the year and a 3-2 Adirondack lead.

In the third period Hershey captain Bryan Helmer was tagged with 14 minutes in penalties on one play; he was called for cross-checking, then got two minutes tacked on for unsportsmanlike conduct and completed the deal with a ten-minute misconduct. However, 59 seconds into the power play, Steve Pinizzotto scored a shorthanded goal to tie the game at 3-3. Adirondack regained the lead 4-3 at 6:02 with their second power play goal of the night, this time coming from Legein, who blazed in his 24th goal of the year from the left face off circle. Hershey answered with a power play goal of their own from Giroux, his second goal of the night, tying the game at four at 11:58.

In overtime the Bears out-shot the Phantoms 3-0 and 93 seconds into the extra session Helmer made up for his long stay in the penalty box by collecting a long rebound and firing the puck into the upper part of the net, over a fallen Backlund, to win the game for Hershey 5-4.

Michal Neuvirth finished the game with 26 saves on 30 shots to lead Hershey to its 50th win of the season, improving to 50-12-0-2. Johan Backlund stopped 22-of-27 shots in goal for Adirondack, who earned a point, but dropped to 28-32-3-2. The Phantoms out-shot the Bears 30-27 and went 2-for-6 on the power play; Hershey was 1-for-5 with the man-advantage.

Hall of Fame Weekend continues with Induction Night on Saturday, March 13th as the Phantoms host the Providence Bruins for a 7:00 pm face off in Glens Falls. Prior to face off the team will honor the four members of the inaugural Class of 2010 of the Adirondack Hockey Hall of Fame, presented by Glens Falls National Bank.

There is no better way to watch Phantoms Hockey than by sharing it with a group of your family and friends. Bring a group of 15 or more people to the Glens Falls Civic Center and qualify for incredible discounted ticket prices off the regular box office rates. For more information about group tickets, contact the Phantoms at (518) 480-3355 or online at www.phantomshockey.com. Don’t miss a minute of the exciting action of the Adirondack Phantoms 2009-2010 Season presented by Bud Light.

FINAL BOX SCORE

Hershey Bears 5 (OT) At Adirondack Phantoms 4 - Status: Final OT
Mar 12, 2010 - Glens Falls Civic Center

Hershey 2 0 2 1 - 5
Adirondack 1 2 1 0 - 4

1st Period-1, Hershey, Beagle 11 (Helmer, Perreault), 4:34. 2, Hershey, Giroux 34 6:33. 3, Adirondack, Bourdon 2 (Matsumoto, Maroon), 11:32 (pp). Penalties-Lehtivuori Adk (tripping), 2:09; Amadio Her (cross-checking), 9:50; Giroux Her (hooking), 12:13; Curry Adk (slashing, roughing), 16:02.

2nd Period-4, Adirondack, Kalinski 8 (Lehtivuori, Mormina), 5:04. 5, Adirondack, Matsumoto 22 (Legein, Maroon), 17:40. Penalties-Helmer Her (hooking), 15:35.

3rd Period-6, Hershey, Pinizzotto 11 (Joudrey, Miskovic), 5:06 (sh). 7, Adirondack, Legein 24 (Mormina, Lehtivuori), 6:02 (pp). 8, Hershey, Giroux 35 (Aucoin, Miskovic), 11:58 (pp). Penalties-Helmer Her (cross-checking, unsportsmanlike conduct - disputing decision, misconduct - unsportsmanlike conduct), 4:07; Kane Her (tripping), 8:12; Mormina Adk (interference), 10:37; Marshall Adk (slashing), 16:54.

OT Period-9, Hershey, Helmer 6 (Pinizzotto, Bourque), 1:33. Penalties-No Penalties

Shots on Goal-Hershey 9-4-11-3-27. Adirondack 8-12-10-0-30.

Power Play Opportunities-Hershey 1 of 5; Adirondack 2 of 6.

Goalies-Hershey, Neuvirth 14-5-0 (30 shots-26 saves). Adirondack, Backlund 20-17-2 (27 shots-22 saves).

A-4,280

Referees-Jamie Koharski (84).
Linesmen-B.J. Ringrose (10), Steeve Lemay (64).