Hamilton, Ont.- The Hershey Bears, at the onset of one of toughest stretches of their schedule, which sees them playing seven out of their next eight games on the road, were thrashed last night by the Hamilton Bulldogs at Copps Coliiseum, 6-0.
While apparently leaving their scoring touch at the border as they crossed into the Great White North, the Bears could not find a way to beat goaltender Marc Denis, who stopped all stopped each of the 37 shots that he faced. Denis, a former Bear, was a member of the 1997 Calder Cup championship team, which coincidentally, clinched the title in Copps Coliseum.
Ben Maxwell (PPG), Max Pacioretty, Ryan Russell, and Chad Anderson each tallied once for the Bulldogs, who also received shorthanded strikes from David Desharnais and Matt D’Agostini.
D’Agostini, a member of the 2007 Bulldogs Calder Cup championship team that defeated the Bears in the finals, scored the game-winning goal in Game 1 at Giant Center.
Hershey, continues their road odyssey on Friday night in Albany, with the opening face-off scheduled for 7:00 pm. Albany, now under the guidance of former Pittsburgh Penguins forward Jeff Daniels, who took over behind the bench for former Bear Tom Rowe, currently resides in last place in the AHL’s East Division, with only one win in six outings.