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Hershey Splits Back-to-Back with Manchester, Clinches Playoff Spot in Bridgeport

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HERSHEY, PA – Bears players celebrate Tim Kennedy’s first period goal Saturday night against the Manchester Monarchs. Hershey would win the game 6-3, a day before clinching a playoff spot (Kyle Mace / Chocolate Hockey)


It wasn’t a question of if, but when. After missing the post season last year, the Hershey Bears clinched a playoff spot on Sunday afternoon. The Bears battled back to beat Bridgeport 4-3, while Springfield lost, assuring the Bears of a postseason spot.

Jim O’Brien scored the game winner with two and a half minutes left to break a 3-3 tie. The win on Sunday and on Saturday were particularly significant after a sub-par performance on Friday, when the Bears lost to conference leading Manchester 6-3 at home.

Hershey bounced back with a big offense effort on Saturday, lead by Dustin Gazley’s two goals in beating the Monarchs 6-2. That was followed by the playoff clincher on Sunday in Bridgeport.

The Bears now find themselves in second place in the Eastern Conference, trailing Manchester by just three points. Manchester still has a game in hand on the Bears, so the final three weeks of the regular season will still have great meaning as Hershey looks to try and get home ice advantage for the playoffs, as well as win the East Division for the first time since the 2009-10 season.

Hershey will start the first of those final games on Wednesday night at home against Worcester. That will be followed by five straight on the road starting Friday April 3 and Saturday April 4 in Norfolk. Both games will be seen live on abc27.2 RTV.

Hershey then travels to St John’s for two games, one more back at Lehigh Valley before finishing up at Giant Center.

There are countless playoff scenarios, but if the season were to end today, the Bears would open with Worcester in a best of five series.

Photos from Friday and Saturday’s games. All photos by Kyle Mace


Friday, March 27th, 2015 (6-3 loss to Manchester)
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Liam O’Brien squares up with Josh Gratton for a fight


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Andre Burakovsky sends a pass cross ice


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Capitals GM Brian MacLellan was in attendance for the game


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Casual splits from Philipp Grubauer


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Steve Oleksy shares a laugh with Brian O’Neill


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Dmitry Orlov waits for the puck


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Nate Schmidt takes a shot on net


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Jim O’Brien tips in his first of two goals


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#SquadGoals


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Garrett Mitchell chirps with Monarchs tough guy Paul Bissonnette


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Monarchs put one on the board


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O’Brien scores his second


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Orlov is joined by Casey Wellman


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Schmidt watches Chandler Stephenson’s shorthanded goal


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Smiles all around


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Manchester scores their fifth and sixth goals on the night.


Saturday, March 28th, 2015 (6-2 win over Manchester)

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Chris Conner celebrates Tim Kennedy’s first period goal


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Dustin Gazley scores his first of the game


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And a scrum ensues


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Kris Newbury waves his arms in an effort to pump up the Hershey crowd even more


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Philipp Grubauer makes a save in the first


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Chris Brown extends the Bears lead


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Garrett Mitchell sends one past Jean-Francois Berube


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Mitchy celebrates…


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And so do Bears fans.


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Paul Bissonnette hits Mitchell after the whistle


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Then is given a ten minute misconduct


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“But he did it!”


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Gazley scores his second


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#PartyHard


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Chris Brown high fives Gazley so hard his glove comes off. Now that’s hard partying


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Steve Oleksy clears the puck


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Chandler Stephenson crashes the net


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Jim O’Brien scores and is joined by Kris Newbury


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Bissonnette starts a scrum and sends Casey Wellman to the ground


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Then a stare down between Bissonnette and Andre Burakovsky


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Patrik Bartosak skates out of his net to look down at Grubauer during the scrum


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Grubauer is all “lol k brah”.


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Connor Carrick tries to get directions to a good restaurant in Manchester from their bench.


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Carrick smiles as he heads back to the locker room


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Grubauer shoots the puck down ice at Bartosak after the horn sounds


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Grubi has to be “held back” by Nate Schmidt


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Your number two and one stars of the game: Philipp Grubauer and Dustin Gazley


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