It wasn’t easy, but the Hershey Bears took an essential win in Game Four of the Calder Cup Finals against the Coachella Valley Firebirds. The Bears were always going to have to win a game on the road, if not for the series but for momentum itself. Such is the way of life in a 2-3-2 series format, even holding the advantage. Now, with the series set to shift to Giant Center, the Bears have the opportunity to bring a series lead on the plane back to the Sweetest Place on Earth in Game Five.
The series becomes a best-of-three courtesy of Hershey’s win. The Bears turned in an effort much more in-line with their body of work all season long. Much of that credit is due to head coach Todd Nelson’s savvy adjustments and the players rising to the challenge. It all added up to a gritty 3-2 win on enemy ice with a vastly improved defensive effort. Winning this game opens the door to the Bears to keep improving in Game Five. The win guarantees the Calder Cup will be awarded on Giant Center ice for the first time since 2010.
Hershey got an outstanding performance from defenseman Nicky Leivermann, who was inserted into the lineup for just his fourth AHL game. Leivermann has been honing his craft as a black ace since the end of the South Carolina Stingrays’ season back in April. Despite his Calder Cup Playoff appearance in an essential Game Four for Hershey, he handled the moment as brilliantly as a player who spent all year in a Bears jersey. Leivermann finished with a plus/minus mark of even at zero and was not on the ice for any goals against.
The top line for Hershey had an outstanding performance, with Joe Snively, Ethen Frank, and Hendrix Lapierre all tallying goals. Their speed and skill has been evident throughout the series and has been essential to their success. Among their successes, an important power play goal in the third period was the only tally on the power play for either team. The goal happened after Lapierre vowed his team would be better in the third period. Success on special teams only snowballs into overall success, something the Bears will need to continue in Game Five.
One area that burned the Bears was the play at four-on-four, where the Firebirds tallied twice. Coachella Valley has a ton of skill in their lineup, and both goals were a result of Hershey losing skilled players like Shane Wright and Ryker Evans with more open ice. Bears captain Dylan McIlrath called the Firebirds a very skilled team, and players like those will make the most of their opportunities if they’re given them.
It’s good, then, that the Bears proceeded to not give them those opportunities in the third period. Hunter Shepard did have moments where he needed to make a big save, like a diving save along the goal line to preserve the lead. Riley Sutter won the last faceoff forward to push the game out of reach in an exemplary defensive performance by the Bears.
It all comes down to the last game played at Acrisure Arena this season in Game Five. The Bears have a chance to put the Firebirds on the brink with a win or come back to Giant Center facing elimination. Getting back to home ice is the objective, but now the Bears have the opportunity to be greedy and perhaps shorten the series. It’ll take more efforts like Thursday in order to secure the series and hoist the Calder Cup. Hershey has some momentum, but it’s going to be a fight to the very last moment to make this happen.
Hershey Bears Hockey Nation 