HERSHEY, Pennsylvania – The Springfield Thunderbirds (4-8-1-0) incredibly erased a two-goal deficit in the final minute of the third, but the Hershey Bears (9-3-1-0) survived to pick up a 3-2 overtime win at the Giant Center on Sunday.
Like the opening 20 minutes on Saturday, the homestanding Bears were ferocious in getting shots at the Springfield net, this time on Colten Ellis. However, like the night before, the T-Birds got a sensational first period from their goaltender, as Ellis had a response to all 20 shots the Hershey attack unleashed, including chances that came from two power plays. The 20 stops were the most in a single period this season by a Springfield netminder.
At the other end, Clay Stevenson was starting his first start in nearly a month after missing six games with an upper-body injury, and the Hershey goaltender had a distinctly quieter workload, turning aside seven Springfield offerings and helping the Bears’ penalty kill fend off one T-Birds power play.
Shots on goal did not come as easily for Hershey in the middle period. Still, the fourth line did get the Bears on the board first at the 10:14 mark when Matt Strome retrieved a loose puck below the goal line and fired a pass into the blue paint to a crashing Riley Sutter, who chipped it over Ellis on the glove side to make it 1-0.
The Bears’ defense proved to be an impenetrable force in the second, as Springfield managed just four shots on goal in the entire period, and the Hershey penalty kill dispatched two more Thunderbirds man-advantage opportunities.
Stevenson and the Hershey defense corps showed no signs of relenting anything to the T-Birds, and when Spencer Smallman tucked a puck into an empty net with 2:06 remaining, the Bears’ 2-0 lead seemed secure.
However, the never-say-die T-Birds refused to go down. Samuel Johannesson scored his first AHL goal with 40.5 seconds remaining, squeezing a wrist shot between Stevenson’s legs to end the shutout bid.
Just 27 seconds later, with Ellis at the bench for an extra skater, Nikita Alexandrov beared in on the right wing side and backhanded the puck into the paint. With Matthew Peca crashing the net, the shot attempt slipped under Stevenson’s legs, and the game was tied 2-2 heading into overtime.
With momentum on their side, the T-Birds could not quite complete the miraculous comeback attempt. Ellis denied his 40th shot of the night to stop Pierrick Dube in the opening minute of overtime. Unfortunately for the T-Birds netminder, the loose rebound went right on the stick of Mike Vecchione, who pushed it across the line to give Hershey the 3-2 victory.
