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Ethen Frank breaks long playoff drought in Game Three of Calder Cup Finals

By Ian Oland

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June 13, 2023 8:38 pm

HERSHEY, PA — There’s no Hershey Bears player that has struggled more than Ethen Frank in the 2023 AHL Playoffs.

Frank, who led all Hershey skaters and all AHL rookies in goals during the regular season with 30, had gone the first 11 games of the postseason without scoring a goal. Not only that, Frank was not having much of an impact in games, forcing head coach Todd Nelson to healthy scratch him four different times in the playoffs.

On Tuesday though, Frank finally found the back of the net in front of Hershey’s home fans and ended a historic shutout streak in the process. The goal was Hershey’s first of the 2023 Calder Cup Finals, coming in the first period of Game Three.

Frank beat Firebirds’ goaltender Joey Daccord with a shot from the left circle on the Bears’ first power play. The shot squeaked through Daccord on the short side.

The goal unleashed a huge celebration from Frank and the fans in Hershey. Ethen could be seen mouthing “Let’s go!” to his teammates at the bench.

The goal ended Daccord’s shutout streak at 133 minutes and 24 seconds. Per Bears PR, Daccord is the first goaltender in 84 years to post consecutive shutouts in the Calder Cup Finals.

Coachella Valley goaltender Joey Daccord has turned in a performance in the Calder Cup Finals not seen since the inaugural season the Hershey Bears played in the AHL. With a 25-save clean sheet in Game 1, and a spotless 33-save performance in Game 2, Daccord became the first goaltender to begin a Calder Cup Finals series with consecutive shutouts since Moe Roberts of the Cleveland Barons in 1939. Daccord is the postseason leader in wins (14), minutes (1310:14), saves (627), and shutouts (3). Prior to the Calder Cup Finals, Daccord had faced Hershey four times, posting a 3-0 record. He beat Hershey in his AHL debut for Belleville on Nov. 30, 2019 at GIANT Center, making 26 saves to earn a 3-1 win, only allowing a goal to now teammate Eddie Wittchow. Hershey did get the best of Daccord once. On Apr. 1, 2022 while with Charlotte, Daccord surrendered three goals on 11 Hershey shots in 23:46 of play and was pulled at Bojangles’ Coliseum.

For Frank, the goal was his first career AHL playoff goal and his third point of the postseason after registering two assists earlier in the playoffs.

Headline photo: Tori Hartman/Hershey Bears

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