The Hershey Bears have taken a lead in their series over the Bridgeport Sound Tigers, taking down Game Three by a score of 2-1. Ilya Samsonov came up with 26 saves on 27 shots, Liam O’Brien got the Bears on the board first, and defenseman Ryan Sproul scored the eventual game winning tally.
By Chris Cerullo 4 weeks ago
On Friday, the Washington Capitals reassigned goaltender Vitek Vanecek to their AHL affiliate, the Hershey Bears. The same move saw forward Devante Smith-Pelly come back the Capitals, after being placed on waivers in February.
In order to keep a third goaltender on hand, Ilya Samsonov — who played in Hershey’s first playoff game against the Sound Tigers Friday night — has been added back to the roster.
We expect Vanecek and Samsonov to continue to trade places on the Capitals’ roster for as long as both Hershey and the Caps remain in their respective playoffs. Vanecek and Samsonov played in tandem throughout the Bears’ regular season, which saw them team up to send Hershey on a 17-game franchise-record point streak.
By Donya Abramo 1 month ago
The Capitals announced on Sunday morning that they have recalled goaltender Vitek Vanecek from the AHL’s Hershey Bears and have re-assigned Ilya Samsonov to the Bears.
The move allows the Caps to keep three goaltenders available while also letting Samsonov return to the Bears to prepare for the AHL playoffs. The Bears will play the final game of their regular season on Sunday night before facing off against the Bridgeport Sound Tigers on Friday.
Vanecek will travel with the Capitals to Raleigh for Game Three on Monday evening. This is Vanecek’s first call-up to the Capitals.
By Elizabeth Kong 1 month ago
Hours before their first-round series against the Carolina Hurricanes begins, the Washington Capitals recalled Ilya Samsonov from the Hershey Bears. According to the team’s senior writer, Mike Vogel, the move was made so Samsonov can serve as the team’s number three goaltender purely for insurance reasons.
The Capitals made a similar move last season, calling Pheonix Copley up to serve as a backup to Braden Holtby and Philipp Grubauer.
By Cara Bahniuk 1 month ago
Vitek Vanecek posted his second shutout of the season on Tuesday night, in the Hershey Bears’ 1-0 win over their rival, the WBS Penguins. But the Hershey backup goaltender had to face one more shot in his postgame press conference: a question from New York Post reporter….Ilya Samsonov?
Samsonov trolled Vanecek by pretending to be a member of the media.
By Elizabeth Kong 2 months ago
Capitals 2015 first round pick Ilya Samsonov has hit his stride in Hershey. He’s got two shutouts and 15 wins, and has helped the Bears set a new franchise record point streak.
Earlier in the season, Samsonov debuted a Capitals-themed bucket during the NHPLA’s rookie showcase.
Dave Gunnarsson is back at it again with the airbrush, and designed a new Hershey Bears themed helmet for Samsonov.
By Julia Karron 2 months ago
During the first half of Ilya Samsonov’s inaugural season with the Hershey Bears, he struggled to make the adjustment to the North American game as his young team struggled. In 15 games played through December, Samsonov recorded just five wins, and saw several shakeups, including countryman Sergei Shumakov being placed on unconditional waivers.
Then, in the new year, Samsonov switched up his number and became a big contributor to a historic point streak for the Bears, alongside fellow goaltender Vitek Vanecek. With his newfound confidence, he gave two interviews in English without a translator.
On February 22, Samsonov spoke to Evgeny Belousov for Sport-Express about how he’s settled into life in Hershey and finally figured out his game.
“There is a great atmosphere in the locker room, many guys are helping me to adapt,” Samsonov said as translated by Igor Kleyner. “I interact with Vitek Vanecek and Nathan Walker more than anybody else.”
As for when he may play in the NHL, Samsonov added that “[the Capitals] told me if it weren’t for my poor first part of the season, I would have played for the big team by now.”
The interview follows below.
By Donya Abramo and Igor Kleyner 3 months ago
The Hershey Bears literally can’t stop winning.
The Capitals’ AHL affiliate came back from a 1-0 deficit to defeat the Rockford IceHogs 3-2 in the shootout, Saturday.
The victory was the Bears’ eleventh straight and extended the team’s franchise-record point streak to 17 games.
The game-winning shootout goal was scored by Nathan Walker.
By Ian Oland 3 months ago
After starting the season with seven consecutive losses in October and sitting near the bottom of the standings, the Hershey Bears have turned their season around dramatically.
The Bears have rattled off a 9-0-0-1 record in their last 10 games, and have tallied points in 15 straight games, tying a 76-year-old franchise record. Let me repeat: a SEVENTY SIX YEAR-OLD-RECORD.
The last time Hershey had points in 15 straight games was during the 1942-1943 season.
By Julia Karron and Donya Abramo 3 months ago
On Saturday night, Capitals prospect and 2015 first-round pick Ilya Samsonov backstopped the Hershey Bears to their eighth consecutive win and extended their point streak to 14 games.
Samsonov made 20 saves against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms and stopped all three shots in the shootout to secure the Bears the 3-2 win.
Following the game, Samsonov met with the media and utilized his newfound confidence in speaking English to conduct his second interview without the need of a translator.
Thanks to Chocolate Hockey, there is video of the exchange.
By Donya Abramo 3 months ago
