Winning three championships in a row is a tough task. It last happened in the NHL in the 1980s with the New York Islanders. It last happened at the American Hockey League (AHL) in the 1960s, when the league was smaller and had a different structure. If there was ever a team that would win three titles in a row, it was the Hershey Bears.
They won the Calder Cup title in 2023 and won it again in 2024. Even with the team looking like a lesser group in the 2024-25 season, they still had the experience and the group that could win it all. Their series against the Lehigh Valley Phantoms proved it as they trailed 2-1 in the series but battled back to win two games in a row and the series.
The Bears hit a wall in the Charlotte Checkers. They played close games on the road, dropping Game 1 and Game 2 by one score but Game 3 was a comprehensive romp where they lost 6-3 on their home ice. The Checkers are playing their best hockey at the right time and like the Florida Panthers, they look like a team that can win it all, while the Bears fell flat at the wrong time.
The Bears Ran Out of Gas
Deep playoff runs take a toll on the players. They have a shortened offseason, and with the marathon that is the season and the sprint that is the playoffs, it leaves champions at a disadvantage the second time around. The Bears were a good team but not the same this season. They lost a handful of skaters to the NHL, and the veterans on the roster started showing wear and tear. To win the Atlantic Division with an injury-plagued group when the rest of the division closed the gap on them speaks volumes to the job head coach Todd Nelson did.
The Bears played a Checkers team that got better as the season went along. The Checkers were great all season, yet they saved their best hockey for the second half and kicked it into another gear for the playoffs. They set the tone early on in the series, and by the time Game 3 rolled around, it was clear they were the better team and more equipped for a playoff run.
The Bears were expected to play at another level once the playoffs rolled around, something they’ve done in the past. They just didn’t have enough in the tank to do that. The Bears found a way against the Phantoms, reminding everyone that experience can beat talent in the playoffs, even at the AHL level. The Checkers overwhelmed them, and it showed by Game 3, where they lost 6-3 and were outshot 20-2 in the second period.
Hershey Got a Reality Check: A Team That Played Their Way, But Better
To beat the Bears, teams had to play a physical brand of hockey. Teams had to forecheck and defend while winning the puck battles. The Bears under Nelson play the right way, where they don’t make mistakes, pressure teams into making them, and then take advantage. The Checkers did that all season, and in the playoffs, they did it plus something extra.
The Checkers won with speed as well. They push the puck up the ice and win on the rush. On any given shift, they’ll look like a throwback to the 1980s, where forwards are flying up the ice and taking advantage of an exhausted team. The Checkers gashed the Bears multiple times in space and found the back of the net with rush goals to make the difference in the series. Game 3 was the explanation point and a changing of the guard, as there’s a new team to beat in the AHL.
“You’re going to see more teams like Charlotte, they wear you down with speed,” Mike Vecchione noted during the Bears’ clean-out day. In a league that is constantly evolving, the Checkers are setting the tone. They play a physical game, but they also win with speed, and the Bears had no answers. “I can see the league watching that and saying Wow, they generated almost 40 shots a game,” he continued. There’s always the catch-22 about shot volume or possession, and in recent years, teams have valued quality shots over quantity. The Checkers are proving that getting pucks to the net and applying pressure go a long way.
What’s Next For The Bears?
The NHL-sized Elephant in the room is whether Nelson will leave for the NHL. If there was ever a time for him to do it, it’s now. He’s just about won it all at the AHL level with three Calder Cup titles, and he gets the most out of his rosters. Moreover, Nelson coaches the way NHL teams that win the Stanley Cup do. With four openings at the next level, this would be the time for him to make the jump.
Replacing Nelson will be tough for the Bears. He’s one of those great coaches in the AHL, and his teams played above their weight every season. Kris Knoblauch is one of the best coaches in the NHL, leading the Edmonton Oilers. Jon Cooper, Jared Bednar, and Barry Trotz, who Nelson played under and looked up to when he was with the Portland Pirates, all won Calder Cup titles and Stanley Cup titles. Hershey’s head coach is the next in line to do that.
That said, the Bears have a head start. It’s a credit to an ownership group that spends big on the team and values winning. In the AHL, there are three tiers. The teams that want to win the Calder Cup, the teams that don’t prioritize it but if they are playing well, they’ll make a push, and the teams that only care about their prospects. The Bears are at the top of that first tier, where every season is a Cup or bust.
The catch is that this team must pivot next season. The Bears must build a team that can win the fast game as well as the slow one. They must go toe-to-toe with teams willing to take 40 shots and make it a high-flying contest. Now, the Bears are the team playing catch-up, and they are chasing the Checkers.
