The Hershey Bears, who have been very fortunate on more than one occasion during their recent string of 10 straight games in which they gained at least one point in the standings, had their points stolen by the invading Portland Pirates Sunday afternoon at Giant Center, falling 3-2 in regulation for the first time since January 14.
Bolstered by the return of high-scoring forward, Alexandre Giroux, and facing Portland goaltender, John DeCaro, who was making his 2008-09 AHL debut, things looked good for the home-standing Bears, and a goal by Graham Mink just 2:24 into the game did nothing to curtail those hopes.
Mink, finishing off a pretty tic-tac-toe passing sequence with Giroux and Keith Aucoin, deposited a power play goal behind DeCaro, giving Hershey a 1-0 lead.
Hershey net minder, Michal Neuvirth, who returned before the game from Washington, contributed heavily to Derek Whitmore’s goal at 6:50, which tied the game at one. Dylan Hunter, son of former Washington Capitals legend, Dale Hunter, intercepted Neuvirth’s clearing attempt along the left wing boards. Hunter, after gathering in the puck, launched a lazy wrist shot that Neuvirth gloved, but failed to hold, allowing Whitmore to corral the rebound and notch his 8th goal of the season.
The line of Kyle Wilson, Andrew Gordon, and Quintin Laing combined to allow the Bears to regain the lead at 11:39. Wilson, Hershey’s hero the night before in the shootout, began the play by winning the face off in the Portland zone. Gordon, pouncing upon then puck in the face off circle, kicked the biscuit to Laing who then proceeded to beat DeCaro stick side, jarring the water bottle in the process.
Freshly released from his sentence in the penalty box, Portland’s Aaron Slattengren tied the game at two just 16 seconds after gaining his freedom. Nathan Gerbe, on a semi-breakaway around Bears’ defenseman, Dean Arsene, had his effort squelched by Neuvirth. However, Slattengren seized the rebound and trickled a shot into Hershey’s net, tying the game at two.
Mika Kostka’s sizzler from the point, the eventual game-winning goal, sailed by a screened Neuvirth to give the Pirates their first lead. Marek Zagrapan sidestepped Bears’ defenseman, Tyler Sloan’s, attempt to hip check him into the boards to gain Portland entry into the Bears’ zone. Zagrapan’s evasive maneuver caused Hershey to take a penalty which was never officially called, due to Kostka finding the back of the net before the referee could identify the guilty party.
A bit of controversy ensued in the third period at 10:09 when Jay Beagle had seemingly tied the game on a goal-mouth scramble. Beagle’s goal was waived off when referee, Chris Cozzan, ruled that the whistle had blown the play dead before the puck entered the net. Beagle, a college teammate of DeCaro at the University of Alaska-Anchorage, who was denied on a quality second period chance, was foiled again by DeCaro at 14:17, securing the Portland victory.