Minor BEARings: Mike Sgarbossa, Henrik Rybinski Pace Struggling Hershey Bears’ Offense

Photo: Eric Lord

The final month of 2024 presented the Hershey Bears with some adversity. The roster was decimated by injuries, with eight different players missing at least one game due to injury. The offense struggled and the power play was nonexistent. The Bears went 5-5 in December with four of those losses coming at home.

However, Hershey closed-out 2024 atop the American Hockey League’s (AHL) Atlantic Division with 41 points and a record of 19-10-3-0. The Chocolate and White hold a two point lead over second place Charlotte, who has three games in hand on the Bears.

The power play has been a major issue for Hershey as of late. The Bears tallied just once on the man-advantage in December, going a dismal 1 for 32 on the power play for a measly conversion rate of 3%. The unit failed to convert on their final 26 attempts in the month and have not scored a power play goal since December 8. Injuries were a part of the struggles, but there are deeper problems with the power play. It was simply too predictable and easy to understand and defend. The Bears are too deliberate and pass the puck around the perimeter too much. This makes it easy on the penalty killers and there are no shooting lanes. There needs to be more seam passes and Hershey needs to probe the penalty kill with quicker passes that move the penalty killers around. Making these plays would open shooting lanes and create better scoring chances.

The penalty kill showed improvement in the season’s third month. After giving up 14 power play goals in November, the Bears surrendered three power play tallies in 28 attempts in December. That is good for an 89.3% kill percentage, which is up from 70.2% in November. Two of the three goals scored against the unit came in Hartford on December 11. The Chocolate and White killed off every power play faced after that game, going a 17 for 17 to close out the month.

Playing at home has not been a positive for the Chocolate and White. The Bears dropped four of their seven home games in December and are below .500 at the Giant Center for the season. They have posted an 8-9-1 record at home. Only the last place Bridgeport Islanders have amassed fewer points at home in the Atlantic Division than Hershey has.

The opposite is true of the Bears’ play away from the Giant Center. Hershey won two of their three road games in December and have earned at least a point in all put one road contest this season. They have a road record of 11-1-2-0. Only Rochester has earned more points on the road in the AHL this season and they’ve played three more times on the road.

The offense struggled as the month went on. After scoring 13 goals in the first three games of December, the Bears totaled nine goals in the month’s final seven games and were shut out three times. They suffered 1-0 defeats on consecutive Sundays. Injuries played a part in the difficulty scoring, but the Chocolate and White also had a hard time generating shots and opportunities. Mike Sgarbossa and Henrik Rybinski paced Hershey offensively with seven points. Sgarbossa dished out a team high six assists despite time due to injury. Rybinski had five helpers and that was with missing two games on recall to the Washington Capitals. Spencer Smallman also had five assists during December. Ethen Frank tallied a team best five goals in the month and Bogdan Trineyev added four markers.

Forwards

Pierrick Dube (RW) – 23 – Undrafted

A lower-body injury caused Dube to miss four games in December. The winger began the month by potting the game-winning goal in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton- his first game-winner of the season. The Frenchman recorded his first three-point game of the season against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on December 8. All three points were primary assists. The last of these set up Ethen Frank for the game winner. Dube threaded a pass through two defenders to find Frank. After being out injured, the native of Lyon, France returned on December 28 and gave the Bears a 2-1 lead over the Penguins by elevating a shot over the glove of Joel Blomqvist. He finished with five points in six games in the month. Dube is well below his goal-scoring pace of last season where he scored 28 times, but he is on his way to a career high in assists.

Monthly Score: 3.5

Ethen Frank (RW) – 26 – Undrafted

Frank leads the AHL with 20 goals, tallying five times in the month. The winger also had one assist in December. Two of the Western Michigan alum’s goals were game-winners. The first decider came on December 8 against Lehigh Valley. His second period wrist shot proved to be the difference in a 4-3 win. It was his second goal of the night. Frank then delivered in overtime versus the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on December 28. The Papillion, Nebraska native accelerated up the right wing and broke in on goal. He pulled the puck from his forehand to his backhand and lifted a shot over Joel Blomqvist’s right pad to give the Bears a 3-2 win. Frank has five game-winning tallies on the season, tied for the most in the AHL. He has six multi-point games on the campaign. The Nebraskan leads the team in scoring with 27 points.

Monthly Score: 4.0

Zac Funk (RW/LW) – 21 – Undrafted

The rookie played in five games in the month and failed to get on the scoresheet. With all the injuries that Hershey had, Funk saw a bit of an elevated role when in the lineup. However, he struggled to generate much offensively. The native of Coldstream, British Columbia missed the final two games of December with an illness.

Monthly Score: 2.3

Alex Limoges (LW) – 27 – Undrafted

The Northern Virginian suffered an upper-body injury early in December and only played in two games during the month. Limoges posted a two-point game on December 4 in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. The Penn State product earned the primary assist on Pierrick Dube’s late first period marker. Limoges tallied his lone goal of the month in the second period when Nicky Leivermann’s shot deflected off his leg and in.

Monthly Score: Incomplete

Luke Philp (C) – 29 – Undrafted

With head coach Todd Nelson trying to find offense with his depleted lineup, Philp spent time at both center and wing in December. The pivot amassed four points during the month. He scored his lone goal of the month on December 8. Philp snapped a shot from the right circle that beat Lehigh Valley’s Parker Gahagen on the glove side to give the Bears a 3-2 lead in the second period. The Canmore, Alberta native posted his second two assist game of the season against Toronto on December 28. He earned two secondary apples in the first period. Philp’s final point of the month was the primary helper on Pierrick Dube’s third period marker versus Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on December 28. After being a minus nine in November, Philp improved his play in his own end. He was a plus four for the month and was more responsible in his own, cutting down on the turnovers and simply playing smarter.

Monthly Score: 3.1

Henrik Rybinski (C) – 23 – Drafted 2019 (Fifth Round, 136th overall – Florida)

Rybinski’s breakout season continued in December. The native of Vancouver, British Columbia kicked the month off with a three-game point streak. He recorded the first three-point game of his career at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on December 4. Rybinski started with a secondary assist on Pierrick Dube’s goal in the first period. He then threaded a pass to Bogdan Trineyev on the back door for Hershey’s third goal with six seconds left in the first. The center finished his night by snapping a wrist shot past Joel Blomqvist. In his next game, he tied the game in the dying seconds at Lehigh Valley to force overtime. Rybinski redirected Spencer Smallman’s pass by Cal Petersen with 2.3 seconds remaining in regulation. The Bears would win in overtime. One night later, he set up Bogdan Trineyev’s first period shorthanded tally. After being held without a point in Hartford on December 11, the Vancouverite had assists in back-to-back games including hitting the tape of Trineyev in overtime for the winning goal. Rybinski then earned his first recall to the NHL. Unfortunately for him, he did not get into a game before being sent back to Hershey. The pivot has already set career highs in goals with six, in assists with 14 and in points with 20. His seven points were tied for the most by a Bear in the month. Rybinski continues to be one of the top penalty killers on the team and helped the unit improve after a rough November.

Monthly Score: 4.2

Mike Sgarbossa (C) – 32 – Undrafted

Despite missing three games due to injury, Sgarbossa’s seven points were tied for the most on the team in November. The only two games he failed to record a point in were December 11 and December 29, games in which the Bears were shutout. Six of his seven points were assists and the veteran pivot leads Hershey with 20 assists this season. The Campbellville, Ontario native recorded two multi-assist games in December. He now has seven multi-assists games on the season. Sgarbossa dished out five helpers in his first three games of the month. This included the primary apple on Chase Priskie’s overtime winner. The six assists increased his career total with the organization to 171 and that is 28th in franchise history. On the season, the center ranks second on the team in scoring with 23 points and is averaging a little over a point per game as those 23 points have come in 22 games.

Monthly Score: 4.2

Spencer Smallman (C/RW) – 28 – Drafted 2018 (Fifth Round – 138th overall – Carolina)

Smallman has proved to be a versatile addition to the lineup. He has skated as both a center and winger. The native of Summerside, Prince Edward Island plays in all situations. Smallman registered his third multi-assist game of the season at Lehigh Valley on December 7. The second of those assists was critical. With time winding down in the third period, he threw a puck on net that Henrik Rybinski redirected home to tie the game. Smallman amassed five points in eight games in December, all assists. He has 13 assists on the season, the third most on the Bears. Smallman is on a 10 game goalless drought and has one tally in his last 15 games. He needs to shoot more as he often looks to pass first. Smallman has taken 29 shots in 28 games. The forward contributes on the penalty kill and helped the unit turn things around.

Monthly Score: 3.5

Riley Sutter (C) – 25 – Drafted 2018 (Third Round, 93rd overall)

After crashing into the boards late in a 1-0 loss to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on December 22, Sutter missed the month’s final two games with a lower body injury. The normal fourth line center saw his role elevated at times during the month due to a depleted roster. He centered the second line for a few games. Sutter netted one goal and had a single assist in the month to up his season total to five points. He is well off the pace of the 23 points he scored last season. The Calgary, Alberta native’s success over the previous two seasons was due to chemistry he developed with his linemates on the fourth line. Unfortunately, circumstances have prevented that from happening this season. Even though his offense is down, Sutter is still a major contributor to the team. He continues to be the best penalty killing forward on the roster and is a key reason why the unit was strong in December. The pivot also is Hershey’s most reliable faceoff taker and brings a physical presence to the roster.

Monthly Score: 3.0

Bogdan Trineyev (LW) – 22 – Drafted 2020 (Fourth Round – 117th overall)

The Russian winger found the back of the net four times in December and now has eight goals on the season. That total is second to Ethen Frank on the team’s goal scoring list. Trineyev tallied the first shorthanded goal of the season for the Bears against Lehigh Valley on December 8. He one-timed a Henrik Rybinski feed by Cal Peterson’s left pad to give Hershey a 1-0 advantage. His first goal of the month came with six seconds remaining in the first period at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on December 4. He put home a pass from Rybinski on the back door to extend the lead to 3-0. Trineyev delivered his first game winner of the season in Syracuse on December 13. In overtime, Rybinski put a pass on the tape of his stick. He then pulled to his backhand and elevated a shot over Matt Tompkins to provide Hershey with a 2-1 victory. Trineyev gets it done on the other end of the ice as well. He is an important part of the penalty kill, where he is usually paired with Rybinski.

Monthly Score: 3.7

Defensemen

Ethan Bear (RD) – 27 – Drafted 2015 (Fifth Round -124th overall)

Bear started December off strong. He opened the scoring in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton by beating Joel Blomqvist with a snap shot from the high slot. In his next game, the one-time Edmonton Oiler activated to the back door and finished off a pass from Brad Hunt to bring the Bears even with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in the third period. During those two games, Bear was a plus five. He struggled some defensively in the rematch with Lehigh Valley on December 8, being on the ice for two of the Phantoms’ four goals. The veteran steadied himself and was an even player for the rest of the month. Bear has settled in for the most part after making multiple poor decisions that cost his team in November. He leads the team in plus/minus with a plus 14 and his 15 points are the second most by a Hershey defenseman.

Monthly Score: 3.3

Hardy Haman Aktell (LD) – 26 – Drafted 2016 (Fourth Round, 108th overall – Nashville)

December was a rough month for Haman Aktell. He missed the first three games of the month while still recovering from an injury he sustained on November 22. The Swede played in six of the seven final games of December, but struggled after his return. He was a minus five during the month and his overall play was not up to par. Haman Aktell made poor decisions with the puck and tried to force passes in tight spaces. This has led to an increase in turnovers for the blue liner. Offensively, he was held without a point and is in the midst of an eight-game scoreless drought.

Monthly Score: 2.3

Vincent Iorio (LD) – 22 – Drafted 2021 (Second Round – 55th overall)

The Coquitlam, British Columbia native remains a consistent presence on the Hershey blue line. Paired with Aaron Ness on the team’s top defensive pairing, Iorio sees a lot of ice time. He has developed into a strong penalty killer and plays smarter than he did in his first few seasons. The former Brandon Wheat King had a rough third period against Toronto on December 21, but that could be said about the entire team as the Bears surrendered five goals in a third period meltdown. Iorio recorded a three-game assist streak from December 13-21. He had the secondary apple on Bogdan Trineyev’s overtime winner in Syracuse on the 13th and earned the primary helper on Brennan Saulnier’s opening goal against Charlotte on the 14th when his shot hit Saulnier’s leg and went in. The blue liner finished the streak off with the lone helper on Trineyev’s third period marker against Toronto. Iorio has 11 points offensively, three off his total from last season.

Monthly Score: 3.5

Chase Priskie (RD) – 28 – Drafted 2016 (Sixth Round – 177th overall)

The month began with Priskie posting a point in his first three contests to run his point streak to four games. After picking up a secondary helper in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on December 4, the Floridian came up clutch in Allentown versus the Phantoms on December 7. Priskie tallied the overtime winner when he elevated a Mike Sgarbossa pass up and over Cal Petersen give the Bears a 3-2 triumph. He ran his streak to four games the next night with the secondary assist on Bogdan Trineyev’s first period shorthanded goal. The Pembroke Pines, Florida native then went on a four-game scoring drought. Priskie had a tough game defensively against Toronto on December 21, as the Marlies put seven up on the Chocolate and White. He snapped his drought with a pair of helpers against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on December 28, including the primary apple on Sgarbossa’s opening goal. The Quinnipiac University product is the top scoring defenseman on the team with 16 points. Defensively, Priskie sometimes gets caught up ice and turns the puck over trying to make plays. His mistakes sometimes lead to odd-man rushes. That is what happens with offensive-minded defenseman. The key is for Priskie to limit his errors. It is okay to try to make a play when one presents itself, but he needs to make sure he does not force it and leave his team vulnerable. He did a better job of this after the rough Toronto outing.

Monthly Score: 3.0

Goalies

Hunter Shepard – 29 – Undrafted

The reigning AHL goaltender of the year started six of Hershey’s 10 matchups in December. Shepard surrendered two goals or fewer in four of those starts, but Hershey’s offensive struggles limited his record to 2-2 in those four games. He turned aside 29 shots, including 21 over the final two periods in a 6-1 win in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on December 4. The first of his hard luck losses came against the Charlotte Checkers on December 14. The first goal against him hit a teammate on its way to goal and the change of direction beat Shepard. The second and deciding goal happened after the referee picked off Ethan Bear behind the net allowing Oliver Okuliar to come in uncontested to score. Eight days later, the Minnesota Duluth alum was excellent, but the Bears failed to score in a 1-0 loss to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. He stopped 15 shots in the second period to keep the team in the game. Head Coach Todd Nelson said that Shepard was “outstanding” in his postgame comments. “He was awesome for us to keep the game tight,” Nelson said. Shepard ended with 24 saves, including a breakaway and several bids from in close. The netminder got some revenge against the Penguins on December 28, making 23 saves in a 3-2 overtime win. Shepard is 14-6-1 on the season and is tied for second in the AHL in wins.

Monthly Score: 3.5

Clay Stevenson – 25 – Undrafted

Stevenson was solid in three of his four starts in December. His first appearance came on December 7 at Lehigh Valley. The Dartmouth College product denied 21 Lehigh Valley shots in a 3-2 overtime victory. His biggest save came in the extra session. Stevenson stopped Olle Lycksell on a breakaway with a blocker save with 1:41 elapsed in overtime. The Bears would prevail on a Chase Priskie marker. The netminder earned another road overtime win on December 13 in Syracuse. Again, he came up with a huge save in the extra session. He stoned Conor Sheary’s breakaway with a glove save. After winning the ensuing faceoff, the Bears would move up the ice and win the game on Bogdan Trineyev’s goal. Stevenson gave up four goals on eight shots in the third period against Toronto on December 21, but the goals were not all on him as Hershey collapsed as a team during the frame. The Drayton Valley, Alberta native rebounded strong in his next start, but was the hard luck loser in a 1-0 defeat to Charlotte. He saved 21 of the Charlotte shots he faced. However, the Bears mustered only 16 shots and failed to find the back of the net.

Monthly Score: 3.4

By Eric Lord

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