Game Preview: Hershey @ Syracuse

Hershey collected its franchise-record 52nd win of the season last night, besting Bruce Boudreau's 2006-07 squad to earn the honors.  With 12 games to go in the 2009-2010 season, the Bears are within striking distance of the AHL's all-time best win total of 57, held by the 1992-93 Binghamton Rangers.  Only three skaters were left off the score sheet in last night's 8-2 blowout (Sean Collins, Francois Bouchard and Greg Amadio).  Ashton Rome (1-0-0) and Grant Lewis (0-1-1) both made their home debuts with points.  

Syracuse shows a record of 1-4-0-0 in its last five outings, dropping a 3-2 decision to the Bridgeport Sound Tigers last night.  Defenseman Brendan Bell boasts points in his last eight games (5-6-11) and paces the Crunch in scoring (14-35-49).  Greg Moore has recorded four points since being dealt to Syracuse at the trade deadline (2-2-4).  

TEAM RECORDS

Hershey:  52-13-0-3, 107 points

(1st place in East Division, 1st place in Eastern Conference)

Syracuse:  30-33-3-3, 66 points
(5th place in East Division, 12th place in Eastern Conference)

HOW THE BEARS AND CRUNCH MATCH UP

2009-2010 HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORDS
Hershey:  2-0-0-0
Syracuse:  0-2-0-0

2008-2009 HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORDS  
Hershey:  2-0-0-0
Syracuse:  0-2-0-0

THE LAST FIVE YEARS  
Hershey:  6-1-0-1
Syracuse:  2-6-0-0

THE 2009-2010 SEASON SERIES   
Dec. 26:  Syracuse @ Hershey-- BEARS 4, Crunch 1
Jan. 17:  Syracuse @ Hershey-- BEARS 4, Crunch 3

Mathieu Perreault (2-2-4) and Chris Bourque (1-3-4) each show four points in two games against Syracuse this season.  Kyle Wilson (2-1-3) and Francois Bouchard (1-2-3) have both notched three points in two games.   

BEARS BY THE NUMBERS

ON THE OFFENSIVE
After being blanked in back-to-back contests, Keith Aucoin (34-54-88) found his way back onto the score sheet with a pair of goals last night.  He has not been held scoreless through three straight games all season.  Alexandre Giroux (37-52-89) maintains the AHL's scoring lead.   Aucoin continues to pace the league in game-winning goals with 10 on the season, including the deciding goal in last night's tilt.  Andrew Gordon ranks second in power play goals with 15 and ninth in overall scoring (32-32-64).  Hershey's top line of Giroux, Aucoin and Gordon have combined for 103 goals this season.  Giroux and Bourque have both found the score sheet in seven of the last eight games.  Michael Dubuc and Kyle Wilson are both riding three-game point streaks.  The Bears own six of the top 10 spots in plus/minus.  
  
GOALTENDING
Braden Holtby earned both wins against the Crunch this season, with a GAA of 2.0 and a 92.5% save percentage.  He ranks sixth overall in the league with a 2.33 GAA and 92% save percentage on the season.    

A STRONG CASE FOR THE DEFENSE
The defensive pairing of Grant Lewis and Patrick Wellar was wildly successful last night, each finishing at +5.  Lewis, Wellar, Karl Alzner and Bryan Helmer all recorded points in last night's win.  Helmer ranks fifth among defensemen and seventh overall in plus/minus at +30.  The Bears have allowed the second fewest goals against (169 in 68 games), trailing only the Hamilton Bulldogs in that category (156 in 69 games). 

SPECIAL TEAMS
The Chocolate and White have had a 21.7% conversion rate on the man advantage this season, the best power play in the AHL.  Hershey owns a league-leading 88.2% success rate and shows 16 shorthanded goals.  Steve Pinizzotto is tied for first in the league in that category with five on the season.  Boyd Kane sits in fourth with four shorties, while Andrew Joudrey boasts three. 

HERSHEY'S RECORD
In March:  6-1-0-1
On the road:  23-10-0-1
On Saturdays:  18-2-0-3

Opening faceoff between the Bears and Crunch is slated for 7:30 p.m.  John Walton's live broadcast begins at 7:10 p.m., available on WQIC 100.1 FM or at sportsjuice.com.