The Hershey Bears suffered their fourth loss in their last five games after falling to the Utica Comets on the road, Friday.
The Bears were led by forward Alex Limoges who scored twice in 24 seconds to give the Bears a 3-2 lead in the second period, but the team would fritter the one-goal advantage away and ultimately lose in the shootout — their fifth consecutive loss in the skills competition.
Limoges’ first goal came at 8:04 in the second to tie the game at 2.
After forcing a turnover at the blue line, Lucas Johansen sprung Limoges on a semi-breakaway down the left wing. The former Little Caps and Penn State player fired the puck past Comets’ netminder Isaac Poulter short-side.
On the same shift, Limoges found the net again after some nifty passing by the third line allowed the Bears to gain the offensive zone. Eventually defenseman Aaron Ness ended up with the puck and found Limoges in front of the net with a centering pass.
The goals were Limoges’ 17th and 18th goals of the season — five behind his career high of 23 he set with the San Diego Gulls two seasons ago. Limoges is now third on the team in goals and points (40).
The Bears’ matchup against Utica was the first of a three-in-three this weekend. The Bears return home to face Syracuse Crunch on Saturday and the Hartford Wolf Pack on Sunday.
Here are the lines:
Tonight's projected lineup against the Comets📝
Riley Sutter scored the last goal for Hershey against Utica on Oct. 15, 2022!
Catch today's broadcast:
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📻@FroggyValley, @foxsports1460am, @WOYK1350, @CapitalsRadio pic.twitter.com/Bn7cdHf4Ot— Hershey Bears (@TheHersheyBears) March 15, 2024
Below is the full Bears’ press release:
BEARS PICK UP POINT IN 4-3 SHOOTOUT LOSS TO COMETS
Limoges scores twice in 24-second span as Hershey closes out road trip
(Utica, NY – March 15, 2024) – Alex Limoges scored a pair of second-period goals for the Hershey Bears (42-11-0-5) but the visitors saw the host Utica Comets (25-24-4-4) take the final game of Hershey’s road trip by a 4-3 score in the shootout on Friday night at Adirondack Bank Center.
The Comets built an early 2-0 lead with goals by Filip Engaras at 2:43 and Xavier Parent at 6:15, as both Utica put eight total shots on Hunter Shepard in the opening frame.
The Bears got on the board in the final minute of the stanza when Riley Sutter deflected Matt Strome’s shot past Isaac Poulter at 19:13. Lucas Johansen earned a secondary assist on the tally.
Limoges tied the game at 8:04 of the second period when he skated in on a breakaway and beat Poulter for his 17th of the season.
Limoges potted his second 24 seconds later at 8:28 when he slammed in a backdoor feed from Aaron Ness. Garrett Roe earned a secondary assist.
The Comets equalized at 3:31 of the third period with a Kyle Criscuolo goal. The score remained tied at 3-3 at the end of regulation and a five-minute sudden-death overtime.
In the shootout, the Comets elected to shoot second. Hershey was unable to solve Poulter after sending out Pierrick Dubé, Matthew Phillips, and Chase Priskie in the top of the first three rounds, and it was Timur Ibragimov in the bottom of the third who beat Shepard to lift Utica to the win.
Shots finished 28-25 in favor of the Comets. Shepard went 24-for-27 in the shootout loss for Hershey; Poulter took the victory for Utica with a 22-for-25 effort. The Bears went 0-for-5 on the power play; the Comets went 0-for-3 with the man advantage.
