When Derek King was hired in the offseason, he stated that he would try to remove some of the bad habits from the players and instill good habits. He jokingly added that he wanted the players to avoid the bad habits he had during his playing days. After the Oct. 25 shootout win over the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, King noted that “We’re trying to work on everything.”
The Bears have made progress since then. A slow start had them at the bottom of the Atlantic Division but they now boast a 14-12-1 record and are in the middle of the division. “The habit part is getting there,” King noted after the latest game. That said, they are still struggling in the big picture with their bad habits and playing a full 60-minute game.
The loss to the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins was a case in point. They were outplayed from the opening puck drop, and after trailing 5-1 in the first period, they were forced to chase a chippy game, ultimately losing 5-2 to the same team that had beaten them 3-1 the previous week. The Bears are a better team since their slow start but the standard in Hershey is a Calder Cup or bust, and they are not playing up to that standard.
“The big thing for us is to play three periods,” King mentioned after the Dec. 21 loss to the Penguins and then repeated nearly a week later. “If we want to be a team like Wilkes-Barre or Providence, you have to play three periods,” he added after the latest defeat.
Penalties Keep Hershey From Playing Their Game
In the game against the Penguins, the Bears took a mind-boggling eight penalties. In fairness, they were down 5-1 and chasing the game, and it forced them to play a risky game. However, in a game where they needed to catch up to the Penguins, the penalties disrupted the flow and ultimately cost them.
In the American Hockey League (AHL), good teams don’t take penalties; specifically, they don’t take the careless ones like high-sticking or slashing. In the playoffs last season, the Bears knew when to hold back, and it allowed them to defeat a Lehigh Valley Phantoms team that couldn’t get out of the box.
Dive Deeper: Bears Improvement Is Minimal, But Notable
It’s not just that series either. The Bears under Todd Nelson were one of the least penalized teams in the AHL. With King as their head coach and the team as a whole being a younger group, they are in the middle of the pack, and it’s reflective of where they are in the standings as well.
Defensive Breakdowns Remain a Problem For The Bears
The Penguins play a fast and quick puck-moving style that takes advantage of teams that aren’t sound defensively. That was the case in the past two games, where the Bears were caught napping in their own end and allowed a few early goals because of it. It’s easy to write off this issue to the Penguins but the Bears have played this way throughout the season.
The first meeting against the Phantoms, an Oct. 24 back-and-forth game, saw them allow five goals with multiple coming on the rush. Then there was the meeting against the Toronto Marlies, where they allowed five goals in a rough home loss. In all, the Bears have allowed five goals or more in six games this season, reflecting a style where, when they bend, they break. The Bears allow a lot of scoring chances and don’t have the goaltending to make up for it.
That leads to the other issue, which is goaltending. Garin Bjorklund is a promising young option but he’s hit a wall in the AHL. He’s allowed four goals or more in each of his last four starts, and his last start, where he allowed four on nine shots, saw him get replaced after the first period. “I’m sure the goalie would like to have a couple back,” King noted after the game, and the question is whether the Bears can turn to Stevenson to bail them out throughout the season.
The Bears Bright Spots
The Bears have struggled against the Penguins but a lot of teams are struggling against the best team in the Atlantic Division. The Bears have otherwise found their footing and are finding an identity, even if there are games that suggest otherwise. “It’s hard to read that because sometimes I don’t know what we are,” King said after the game but in the big picture, he’s noticed what they are good at.
“We’re doing a lot of good things offensively, they’re bound to go in,” King noted after the Dec. 21 loss to the Penguins, and the offense, while below league average, is what’s leading them. “When we’re playing quick with an aggressive forecheck, that’s when we create a lot of opportunities,” King added after the latest game.
That quick style also leans into the strengths of their prospects. Ivan Miroshichenko is a skilled forward who beats teams on the rush, and so is Bogdan Trineyev, who is a power forward with an NHL-caliber shot, something he displayed in the recent game. The two are playing on a line centered by Ilya Protas, who, with 12 goals and 12 assists, is making a case for the Rookie of the Year award.
The Bears can lean on this line to win games but overall, can rely on their youth to play fast and win with offense. It’s why the Bears are starting to turn themselves into a contender, or as King put it recently, “We’re coming together as a team.”
