TOURNAMENT GAME 5 (Finals) –     HERSHEY 3    COLORADO 1 Sunday, February 22, 2009  @ 1:00 pm - Pepsi Colisee` Hershey Jr Bears Quebec Team captures the International Pee Wee World Championship of the Classe B Internationale division! Words to Lead By…..  “Looking for leadership? Look in the mirror.”    These are the words found in the beginning of the video the 2009 Hershey Jr. Bears Quebec Team watched before every game at the Pepsi Colisee Arena. And today’s game would be no different. As the Bears came on the ice to a chanting crowd of more than 10,000 spectators, the air was thick with excitement and anticipation.  Would the Bears be able to clinch the gold they had been working toward for 11 months? “We will either find a way or make one.”  Goal tenders Timmy Browne and Ben Churchfield skated in tandem towards the crease. The Bears Captain Ben Flocken lead the team in warm-ups and it was quite obvious that Hershey was on their game. Today would be their day.  Just before the drop of the puck, goaltender Tim Browne smacked his stick on the pipes to show he was up to the challenge. The puck dropped and the Hershey forwards pushed it across the blue line. John Yenchak worked the puck deep and kept it along the boards. Yenchak found Jake O’Donnell in front of the net who couldn’t quite get his stick on it, and the crowd went crazy! Everyone in the Colisee was anxious for a Hershey goal. The defensive pair of Adam Hrabovsky and Flocken controlled the blue line taking away speed through the neutral zone. At 4:13 of the first period, the O’Donnell line once again with a strong forecheck controlled the puck in the offensive zone. Troy Beinhauer, with assists from O’Donnell and Yenchak, was able to put the Bears on top. There would be no stopping the Bears now. Shots on goal for the first period were 5-3, Hershey.  During the second period, netminder Tim Browne would finally be put to the test. Making a number of key saves throughout the period, Browne was stellar throughout.  Coming out of the defensive zone, Andy Espinoza pushed the puck up the boards to a streaking Harmar Rappoport.  Rappoport skated through the neutral zone and wide into the offensive zone and timely passed the puck across the crease to Drew Bievenour who was able to shelf one for Hershey. Two minutes later in the period, Bievenour, with an assist from Rappoport, notched the third tally of the game to seal the deal for the team from Chocolatetown. Solid play from Zach Yingst and Darren Schlegel continued to frustrate the offensive attack of the Avalanche. Yingst made a diving poke check to keep the shooter from releasing the shot. Continued hard work from Shane Sellar and Donovan Ott nearly tallied a fourth for the Bears but the biscuit shot just wide of the net. Hershey was up 3-0 after the second. Shots on goal for the period were 5-10, Avalanche.  After the 2nd period intermission ice cut, and a pep talk in the locker room, the Bears came out firing on all cylinders in the 3rd period.  At the start of the third, Bears fans were on their feet. The line of Adam Linker, Richie McCartney and Alec Dellavecchia set up the give-and-go but couldn’t quite find the net. McCartney continued with the strong forecheck and Dellavecchia got off another great scoring opportunity. Amanda Drobot and CJ Yakimowicz were a defensive duo to be reckoned with. The Hershey team controlled the third period and clinched their fate. Although one Avalanche goal was scored, the Bears would not be deterred. Shots on goal for the period were 13-6, Hershey. Total shots for the game were 23-19, Hershey.  As the final horn sounded, backup goaltender Ben Churchfield, Chance Witmer, Skyler Pugh, Daniel Hertia and rookie goaltender Alex Flocken jumped the boards and joined their teammates in a celebration that will last a lifetime.  The team was presented the championship trophy and banner followed by a team picture.  In Stanley cup fashion, the team skated the trophy around the ice to a standing ovation of more than 10,000 fans chanting B-E-A-R-S!   In the locker room after the game, the players were presented their gold medals from the President of the Pee Wee tournament.  Coach Doug Yingst proudly placed the medals around the player’s necks.  WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS! “Think with your heart.” Heart is just what this team has. The boys and girl from Chocolatetown have shown that talent gets you only so far. Drive, desire, guts and determination can take you all the way.   Congratulations to the 2009 Hershey Jr. Bears Quebec Team on being the International Pee Wee World Champions of the Classe B Internationale division. Alex Flocken, Timmy Browne, Zach Yingst, Ben Flocken, Darren Schlegel, Skyler Pugh, Jake O'Donnell, Ben Churchfield, Adam Hrabovsky, Drew Bievenour, Shane Sellar, Adam Linker, Chance Witmer, Daniel Hertia, Richie McCartney, Alec DellaVecchia, Donovan Ott, Troy Beinhauer, CJ Yakimowicz, Harmar Rappoport, Amanda Drobot, Andy Espinoza and John Yenchack.  A special thanks to Drew Lysakowski, Mario Benicky and Kace Winters who were this years coaches assistants. Other teams vying for the coveted world championship title in the 2009 Classe B Internationale division included the following: Acadie-Bathurst Titans Colorado Avalanche Carolina Jr. Hurricanes Quebec Frontenac Baden-Werttemberg Seacoast Spartans Lakeshore Panthers Anaheim Jr. Ducks Atlanta Fire Chaudiere/Etchemin Blainville Bastions Cape Breton Screaming Eagles Slovenie Beauport Harfangs Aylmer Mariners Autriche Boston Jr. Bruins Connecticut Wolves Moncton Wildcats Stouffville Clippers Trois-lacs Phoenix Point-Levy Commandeurs St. Hubert Jets PEI Rockets Angleterre Columbus Blue Jackets Suisse Romande Lynx   TOURNAMENT GAME 4 (Semi Finals) –      HERSHEY  2   CONNECTICUT 1 Saturday, February 21, 2009  @ 2:15 pm - Pepsi Colisee` HJB's Quebec Team advance to the Pee-Wee World Championship finals! Timmy Browne lead the Bears onto the frozen pond of the Colisee in front of a crowd stronger than 9,000. Chants of Hershey, Hershey, Hershey were heard resonating throughout the barn. The semi-final victory earns Hershey the right to face the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday February 22, 2009 @ 1:00PM. Browne took the net on behalf of Hershey as Troy Beinhauer, John Yenchak, and Jake O’Donnell  lined up around the center ice circle. A tremendous chorus of "Go Bears Go" shook the Colisee. The Bears immediately took the attack to the Wolves getting the puck deep and testing the Connecticut goalie early. The defensive pair of Amanda Drobot and CJ Yakimowicz held strong on the blue line and was able to contain the Wolves offensive movement. As the Wolves attempted to adjust to the speed of the Hershey skaters, the Bears John Yenchak found the back of the net after getting a feed from freshman Skyler Pugh. During this shift, Donovan Ott and Beinhauer forechecked strong in the neutral zone and O’Donnell controlled the boards. The first came to a close with Hershey leading 1-0. Shots on goal, Hershey 4 and Wolves 6. The second period began much as the first period had closed with the Bears taking the attack to their opposition. The eye of the referee would turn against the Bears in the second stanza. Continued aggressive penalty killing by Adam Hrabovsky and Ben Flocken kept the Wolves outside giving them very few chances. Defenseman Zach Yingst played tough in the corners all game long.  Now, short handed, the Bears pushed forward a Bievenour pass to a rushing Rappoport. The Bears just missed wide several times this period. Both Adam Linker and Alec DellaVecchia were able to put the puck on net. A wrister from McCartney hit the cross-bar and shot to the corner. As the horn sounded, closing the second frame, the Bears found themselves in the lead going into the break. Bears 1  Wolves 0. Shots on goal, Hershey 9 for a two period total of  13.  Wolves 5 for a two period total of 11. The Bears faithful, hardly knew what to do with themselves as the Zamboni made its final cuts of the ice. Bears fans sat forward in their seats, assisted in our cheers by our new found Canadian friends and billets - the team was met with "Let's Go Hershey, Let's Go" as they entered the ice. It was obvious that both teams had been playing their hearts out. Play was much more competitive in the third as the Wolves were desperate to create scoring opportunities. The Bears controlled the neutral zone and limited the Wolves’ ability to create any chances. With 3 minutes remaining, the Wolves scored an even strength goal to tie up the game. Finally, a power play was Hershey’s chance to seal the deal, but was unable to finish. Although Hershey created a number of shots on goal throughout this PP, couldn’t find the back of the net. It appeared as though the Bears would be going to overtime. With 7.6 seconds remaining in the game, Drew Beivenour fed Andy Espinoza on a breakaway. Espinoza was able to put the puck in the back of the net to put the Bears ahead 2-1.  Bears fans went wild! Horns blew and the Colisee crowd went crazy! Harmar Rappoport won the final face-off to push the puck in the offensive zone and the defensive pair of Amanda Drobot and CJ Yakimowicz kept the puck in. BEARS WIN!! Darren Schlegel played exceptional defense keeping the Wolves outside much of the night and poke checking pucks from opponent’s sticks and limiting chances on the Hershey net. As the horn blew, it was apparent that the finals await the boys and girl from Chocolatetown.  Teammates Chance Witmer (IR), Daniel Hertia, Shane Sellar, back-up goaltender Ben Churchfield, and rookie goaltender Alex Flocken joined the Bears on the ice after the buzzer for the post game celebration. What a celebration it was! Wooooo! Final shots on net for Hershey - 21.   Wolves - 14. Hershey will face Colorado Avalanche in the Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey World Championship Game at 1:00pm in the world renowned Pepsi Colisee`. GO BEARS! WOOOOOOOOO!   TOURNAMENT GAME 3 –      HERSHEY  6   SEACOAST 2 Saturday, February 21, 2009  @ 8:00 am - Pepsi Colisee` The 2009 Quebec team had been lucky thus far, in terms of weather and temperatures; it had been “sunny and warm” for Quebec in February. This morning, however, it was a brisk 18 degrees, and with the wind chill factored in, the temp registered minus 1. We depended on our corrugated boots to help us trek through the snow! Parents anxiously waited for the Colisee gates to open at 7:30 am. Locals in line, coolers in hand, stormed the gate ready to capture the center ice seat. Many were seen running through the tunnels in the Colisee just to get that perfect seat. Hershey was in the house and all wanted to be there to catch chocolate from the sky! As we enter the main arena, we found our seats in Hershey’s section. Our bags of chocolate had been distributed with the hopes of going home empty handed – that would mean we scored many goals!!  Soon our opposite colored jerseys come up and player-mom’s eagerly donned the jerseys in support of our BEARS. Pom-poms and bells in hand, the Hershey faithful stood ready for the game to begin! The Bears came out on the ice, skating with all their might. It was evident that they were charged and ready to beat the Seacoast Spartans. The defensive crew consisting of Zach Yingst, Darren Schlegel, Amanda Drobot, CJ Yakimowicz, Adam Hrabovsky, and Ben Flocken had quickness in their feet and were ready to stop the offensive attack. The backup goaltender for this event, Timmy Browne, warmed up the shooters. Hershey’s starting forward line did their job right off the drop of the puck. The line of McCartney, Linker and DellaVecchia drove the puck deep and worked the offensive zone to get off two early scoring chances. The forwards continued to work the boards and created a number of opportunities until John Yenchak finally found the back of the net at 5:22 of the first period. Supporting Yenchak’s efforts were Jake O’Donnell and Troy Beinhauer on the forecheck. The Bears faithful went wild! At the end of the first, chocolate and white was leading 1-0. Shots on goal for the period were 6-1, Hershey. In the second period, the Bears outworked the Seacoast Spartans in the offensive zone and allowed very little room in the neutral zone for Seacoast to maneuver. The game was definitely being controlled by Hershey. Near the end of the second period, the Bears finally got one after several key saves by the Seacoast goalie. Harmar Rappoport battled in front after being slashed and put the puck where it matters to put Hershey in front, 2-0. Seacoast quickly answered back with a goal to make it 2-1 at the end of the second period. Shots on goal for the period were 8-2, Hershey.  To start the third period, the Bears fans began to chant… B-E-A-R-S BEARS BEARS BEARS. It wasn’t long after the period started that the Bears finally broke loose. Rappoport scored again to put Hershey ahead 3-1 with an assist from Andy Espinoza. The Bears were on a roll! Drew Bievenour worked the puck deep and moved it along the wall behind the net to Rappoport waiting at the top of crease who once again tickled the twine to put Hershey ahead 4-1. With 4:27 left in the third, Shane Seller was able to forecheck and keep the puck deep. Donovan Ott quickly found McCartney to notch another one for the Bears to put them further ahead, 5-1. Seacoast slipped one by the Hershey netminder Ben Churchfield to make it 5-2 and then the chocolate and white answered right back. Rappoport scored the final tally of the game to make it 6-2. Shots on goal for the period were, 8-4 Hershey. Hershey teammates Daniel Hertia, Skyler Pugh, Chance Witmer (IR), and rookie netminder Alex Flocken cheered their team on from the bench! Bears play in the semi-final game of the tournament championship at the Colisee this afternoon at 2:15pm. Hershey will face the Connecticut Wolves. LET’S GO BEARS! WOOOOOOOO!   TOURNAMENT GAME 2 –      HERSHEY  2   CAROLINA 1 Thursday, February 19, 2009  @ 8:30 pm - Pepsi Colisee` HERSHEY advances to championship weekend! Hershey advanced to Championship Weekend with cheers of biblical proportion echoing through the Colisee.  Wow!   Where to start…  After enjoying a nice dinner with our host families last night and spending a snow-filled day at the hotel anxiously awaiting our next Colisee game, the time came for our Bears to take the ice and battle a very hungry Carolina Jr Hurricane team. Hershey fell behind with the Hurricanes scoring on a 4 on 4  goal to take an early 1-0 lead with 2 minutes to go in the first period.   After a scoreless second period filled with shots on goal traded back and forth between the teams, the team from Chocolatetown showed tremendous heart and effort while refusing to concede the win.  With only 32 seconds left in the game and the goalie pulled, Hershey found the back of the net to tie the game and the fans went wild!   This determined group played a four-on-four overtime controlling much of the offensive zone.  It was up to netminder Timmy Browne to seal the victory in the shootout.  The Bear’s shooters tallied one goal and Browne stoned all three Hurricane attempts.  Once again, chocolate fell from the sky in the Colisee (along with quite a few tears!) as this gritty team advanced to the Championship Weekend! Next game is scheduled for Saturday at 8:00am.  Let’s Go Bears!   EXHIBITION GAME 7  –      HERSHEY       P.E.I (Prince Edward Island)  Wednesday,  February 18, 2009  @ 9:00AM  -  MegaParc This morning, our Bears faced the Prince Edward Island Rockets at the MegaParc Mall.  Defensemen Amanda Drobot was feeling under the weather and was scratched for this morning’s exhibition game. Teammates Chance Witmer (IR) and rookie goalie Alex Flocken cheered for the Bears from the bench.    Hershey jumped out to an early 1-0 lead when Andy Espinoza chipped the puck over the goalie’s pads into the back of the net after some hard work in front.  The Bears controlled the neutral zone and dominated the first period with a strong forecheck and backcheck.  Hershey captain Ben Flocken was strong in the defensive zone coverage giving the Rockets few opportunities.  Midway through the first, Adam Hrabovsky intercepted a pass in the neutral zone and passed the puck up ice to a flying Jake O’Donnell who buried the puck for a 2-0 lead.  The Bears continued to keep the puck in the offensive end with Darren Schlegel firing the puck from the point that went just wide of the net.  With three minutes remaining in the first period, CJ Yakimowicz made a nice play at the blue line to maintain puck possession. After a shot from Drew Bievenour, Harmar Rappoport was able to knock in the rebound for the third tally of the game.  Goaltender Timmy Browne was stoudt.  At the end of the first period, our Bears were up 3-0.  Shots for the period were 11-3, Hershey.  To begin the second period, our Bears came out playing an effective trap and preventing the PEI Rockets from generating any offense.  When the Bears had a penalty called against them, the rookie forwards got the call for the penalty kill. Skyler Pugh and Donovan Ott went out to kill the penalty when Ott made a nice play to intercept the puck and clear the zone.  On the ensuing rush up ice, defensemen Daniel Hertia pushed the puck against the boards and iced it for the Bears once again.  The Rockets put one on the board during a powerplay to make the score 3-1.  At the end of the PK, Shane Sellar joined the freshman in the ensuing rush in the offensive zone and created a flurry of shots. On the subsequent shift, Alec Dellavecchia and Richie McCartney worked hard down low to control the puck finding an open Adam Linker in front of the net for the wrister to put the Bears up 4-1.  Relief netminder Ben Churchfield came in with 4 minutes left in the second.  With seconds left in the second period, the Rocket offense broke free and headed up ice.  Defensemen Zach Yingst made a diving play to block the shot as the buzzer went off.  The Bears were up 4-1 after two periods.  Shots for the period were 14-3, Hershey.  Our Bears continued to trap in the third period, however, the offense remained strong.  Troy Beinhauer scored on a shotgun pass from John Yenchak to give the Bears a 5-1 lead.  During back-to-back penalties, Hershey gave up two quick goals to make the score 5-3.  The pair of Beinhauer and Yenchak tallied the sixth and final goal of the game to clinch the win.    On the schedule for tomorrow – Bears versus Carolina Hurricanes in Game #2 of tournament play at the Colisee at 8:30pm. GO BEARS!   EXHIBITION GAME 6  –      HERSHEY 5      CHARLESBOURG  0 Tuesday,  February 17, 2009  @ 6:00PM  -  Aréna l`Arpidrome The second exhibition game of the day featured the Hershey Jr. Bears in their spiffy home white sweaters with chocolate numbers and letters. Their opponent for this evening was a local team, Charlesbourg.  At 8:57 of the first Harmar Rappoport tickled the twine with an assist from Drew Bievenour. The line of John Yenchak, Jake O’Donnell, and Troy Beinhauer created good pressure and had numerous scoring opportunities. C.J. Yakimowicz had a cannonading blast from the point that went just wide. Daniel Hertia stepped up and pinched at the blue line to keep the puck in the offensive zone. As a penalty was whistled on the Bears, defensive partners Darren Schlegel and Zach Yingst controlled the puck in the Bears zone and made a huge clearing play to relieve the pressure on the penalty killers.  Adam Linker, Richie McCartney and Alec DellaVecchia moved the puck well.  Just before the end of the first period the boys went up 2-0 after a Rappoport slapshot and a tape to tape pass from Andy Espinoza.  Shots 13 – 3 Hershey.  The second period began with the Bears on a penalty kill and the PK produced another quality kill yielding zero shots for Charlesbourg. Bears now on the power play the Freshman line of Skyler Pugh, Shane Sellar and Donovan Ott provided good pressure in the offensive zone. Amanda Drobot was on the backline providing solid support and sharp passes from the defensive zone. Adam Hrabovsky generated some offense from his defensive spot with a fine pass to create a give and go. The Bears made it 3-0 on a breakaway goal. After a slapshot from the point the Charlesbourgh goalie gave up a juicy rebound which the Bears pounced on, score 4-0.  Shots 16 – 7 Hershey.  Timmy Browne had another solid performance between the pipes seeing quality shots from the Charlesbourgh team and turning them all aside. Rookie goalie Alex Flocken came in and took over the net minding duties in the third period. He was quickly tested and made a beautiful pad save. The boys from Hershey were on the penalty kill when a loose puck was gathered in the neutral zone by Drew Bievenour and tucked into the back of the net and make it 5-0. Captain Ben Flocken provided a stellar defensive presence from the blueline. Rookie defenseman Chance Witmer remains on I.R. but is supporting the team at every game in the stands. Ben Churchfield was feeling under the weather and did not dress for the second game of the day.  Shots 19 – 4 Hershey.  Next up for Hershey is an exhibition game on Wednesday morning against the Prince Edward Island (PEI) Rockets at 9:00am back at the MegaParc Galleria Mall.     EXHIBITION GAME 5  –      HERSHEY 5      Austria 0 Tuesday,  February 17, 2009  @ 3:15PM -  Rejean Lemelin This afternoon our Jr. Bears faced a tenacious team from Austria. The Bears took advantage of an early Bears power play to tally the first goal of the game on a hard wrister from Ben Flocken at the point. Drew Bievenour slammed in the rebound as the puck ricocheted off the goalie’s pads, giving the Bears a 1-0 lead. Center Richie McCartney created a great scoring opportunity as he saucer-passed the puck to the front of the net. A battle ensued, sticks entwined, but the puck flew wide and back down the ice. Defenseman Amanda Drobot then hit winger Andy Espinoza as he streaked up the side firing a shot that just missed wide of the net. Zach Yingst played a solid first period racking up two steals and breaking up several odd man rushes. Darren Schlegel rifled the puck narrowly missing the pipe. At the end of the first, our Bears were up 1-0 and the Bear’s fans were on their feet!  Shots on goal were 7 – 4 Hershey.  The Bears started the second period on the power play with John Yenchak finding Adam Hrabovsky in front of the net for a point blank shot that the Austrian goalie got a pad on. CJ Yakimowicz held strong at the blue line making a diving save to keep the puck in the offensive zone to continue the strong forecheck.  Netminder Ben Churchfield denied all 3 of Austria’s key scoring opportunities this period.  Alec DellaVecchia worked hard on the sticks of the Austrian players and drew several penalties to allow our power play unit to go to work. During the power play, Troy Beinhauer lit the lamp after a centering pass from behind the net came his way. Winger Jake O’Donnell out-worked the Austrian players along the boards moving the puck toward the Bears zone. With the puck in the defensive zone, Daniel Hertia picked the pocket of the Austrian forward and then moved the biscuit to the Bears streaking center. Hershey scored their third tally of the game when Harmar Rappoport ripped a shot to the topshelf after a quick pass from Adam Linker. Just over a minute later, the Bears tickled the twine one more time with a score off the face off to race to a 4-0 lead. Troy Beinhauer scored with assists from Yenchak and O’Donnell. At the end of the second, the Austrian team was still scoreless and the Bears were up 4 goals to none. Shots on goal were 6 – 3 Hershey.  Hershey did not let up in the third with registering 14 shots this period. The freshman line of Shane Sellar, Donovan Ott, and Skyler Pugh tallied the fifth goal of the game at the half-way point of the third period.  Austria, with their backs to the wall, called a time out   in an attempt to slow the game down.  The Austrians were unsuccessful to spoil the well earned shutout for the Hershey Jr. Bears.  The defense stood the test of time only allowing 3 shots on goal in the 3rd for a game total of 10 shots.  Goaltender Ben Churchfield made two back-to-back saves that were lovely to wrap-up the shutout.   EXHIBITION GAME 4  –      HERSHEY 2      COLUMBUS 1 Monday, February 16, 2009  @ 11:20AM  -  Rejean Lemelin Today, our Bears faced a tough Columbus Blue Jackets team in an exhibition game at the Rejean Lemelin Ice Rink.  Goaltender Timmy Browne lead our Bears onto the ice and came out ready to play with today's reserve goalie Ben Churchfield right behind. In a scoreless first period, the line of Richie McCartney, Alec Dellavecchia and Adam Linker showed some strong forechecking to control the puck and keep the Blue Jackets off balance.  Defensemen Ben Flocken made an excellent play to steal the puck away on a Blue Jacket breakaway and prevent the shot.  Daniel Hertia made a nice play in front of the net to block an incoming shot and clear our zone.  Troy Beinhauer showed his blazing speed as he zipped across the ice, backchecking and forechecking at both ends of the ice.  At the end of the first period, the Bears found themselves locked in a scoreless tie. The score remained tied at the beginning of the second period until the Blue Jackets found the back of the net on a rebound.  For the second game, our Bears quickly answered back within 30 seconds with a beauty of a slapshot from Harmar Rappoport that lit the lamp and tied the game.   Netminder Timmy Browne made a sweet glove-save on a BlueJacket zinger from just inside the blueline.  Jake O’Donnell  worked hard pushing the puck deep in the zone while Shane Sellar fed the puck to Skyler Pugh who made a beautiful drop pass to Donovan Ott firing just wide of the net.  With Andy Espinoza, Drew Bievenour and Rappoport playing strong down low, Adam Hrabovsky made a nice play from his knees to keep the puck in our offensive zone.  With just over a minute left in the second period, our Bears put the biscuit in the basket for a power play goal to take a 2-1 lead. In the third period, our Bears kept the pressure on the Blue Jackets.  Our defense stepped up and made several key plays.  Darren Schlegel rifled a shot from the point that was deflected just wide of the net.  Zach Yingst made a great defensive play driving the winger wide while Amanda Drobot showed great patience in accurately passing the puck up the boards and hitting her wingers in stride.   Our Bears were forced to fight off a penalty in the final minutes of the game with John Yenchak and CJ Yakimowicz battling down low to clear the puck out of our zone.  The final seconds were filled with shots on goal, but  Browne was up to the task and refused to let the puck in his net, wrapping up a 2-1 win for our Bears. Injured reserve player, Chance Witmer, and rookie goaltender Alex Flocken cheered on their teammates from the bench. Next up for the Bears are two exhibition games. Game 1 versus Austria and game 2 versus Charlesbourg. Games will be played at the Rejean Lemelin Ice Rink and Aréna l`Arpidrome respectively.     TOURNAMENT GAME 1 –      HERSHEY  3     ACADIE BATHURST  1 Sunday, February 15, 2009  @ 4:10 pm - Pepsi Colisee` Wow….  What a sight.  The moment we’ve all been waiting for.  After 10 months of hard work, the time is now…  The boys walked into the Colisee` for their first tournament game against Acadia Bathurst to a rowdy crowd of 8000+ paid spectators.  The atmosphere in the rink was electric as our Bears fans made their presence known. The boys and girl from chocolate town , wearing maroon, stormed the ice in customary fashion tossing Hershey bars into a  packed house at the world famous Pepsi Colisee`.  At the drop of the puck, the Bears controlled and drove into the offensive zone with Adam Linker firing the first shot on goal.  On the next shift, some nifty passing from Drew Bievenour produced a shot by Andy Espinoza that found the back of the net for the 1-0 lead.  After some strong forechecking by Donovan Ott and Richie McCartney to keep the puck in our zone, Harmar Rappoport stole the puck at the blue line and buried the biscuit to put the Bears up 2-0.  After giving up a penalty, defensemen Ben Flocken stood strong in front of the net blocking several shots to kill the shorty.  In the final shift of the period, Alec Dellavecchia showed great effort on the forecheck in the offensive zone to keep the puck deep.  At the end of the first period, the Bears lead 2-0 with shots on goals in favor of our Bears, 5-2. In the second period, our Bears spent some time shorthanded, but rose to the occasion with Adam Hrabovsky making some great plays to ice the puck.  Troy Beinhauer worked the puck behind the net and found Donovan Ott sneaking in for a great shot on goal that barely missed.  Defensemen Zach Yingst and Darren Schlegel worked hard to hold the blue line and help to generate offensive opportunities.  At the end of the second period, our Bears continued to hold a 2-0 lead.  Shots on goal in the second were 4-2 in favor of our Bears. At the start of the third period, the Acadia team came out on fire showing that there was no quit in them.   Amanda Drobot made an awesome defensive play driving the winger wide of the goal to prevent a shot.  CJ Yakimowicz rifled a shot on goal that just missed after a nice pass to the point from Shane Sellar.  After working the puck deep in our zone with John Yenchak taking the puck through traffic, Jake O’Donnell showed amazing effort in keeping the puck in the zone while on his knees.  With 31 seconds in the game and our Bears already shorthanded, the Acadia team pulled their goalie and found the net to make the score 2-1.  Our Bears answered back off the next faceoff to score our 3rd goal and seal the win.  Shots on goal in the third were 8-6 in favor of Acadia.  Netminder Ben Churchfield played a stellar game facing 12 shots total and making key saves when necessary.  Great game from our boys (and girl!).  So proud!!!  Teammates Timmy Browne,  Daniel Hertia, Skyler Pugh, Chance Witmer and Alex Flocken cheered from bench. Next up for our Bears is an exhibition game against Columbus at 11:30.  Let’s Go Bears!   EXHIBITION GAME 3  –      HERSHEY 8      VANIER 2 Saturday, February 14, 2009  @ 6:40 PM -  Vanier Ice Arena This evening, the Hershey Jr. Bears team faced a local Bantam AA team in an exhibition game at Vanier Ice Rink.   The Bears wasted no time jumping out to a quick lead with Troy Beinhauer scoring 7 seconds into the first period on a beautiful slapshot.  Shortly thereafter, Andy Espinoza found the back of the net on a perfectly executed ‘homerun’ play with the pass coming from CJ Yakimowicz.  Throughout the first period, defensemen Ben Flocken and Adam Hrabovsky were a strong presence in the neutral zone.  Goaltender Timmy Browne stood strong in the face of several tough shots from this gritty team.  Defensemen Amanda Drobot had a super nice shot that went just wide of the net as she worked the puck through traffic.  At the end of the first period, our Bears held a 2-1 lead. At the start of the second period, the opposing team seemed to have an extra jump in their step.  Daniel Hertia stepped up and made a nice defensive play creating a turnover just inside the zone.  The line of Donovan Ott, Shane Sellar and Skyler Pugh worked a fantastic shift, cycling the puck several times, until Ott saw an opening and fired a blazing slapshot past the goaltender for the score.  On the next shift, the line of Harmar Rappoport, Drew Bievenour and Andy Espinoza worked with the defensive pairing of Zach Yingst and Darren Schlegel to record the 4th goal with Rappoport hitting the target.   Hershey gave up a goal late in the second period on a backdoor shot.  While on the penalty kill, John Yenchak jumped the puck and took it down the ice making a sweet behind-the-back pass to Beinhauer who fired just high of the net.  At the end of the second period, the Bears were up 4-2. To start the third period, Ben Churchfield came in as the new Bears netminder and didn’t allow any goals.   The Bears recorded four more goals in the third period.  Jake O’Donnell worked hard to keep the puck deep in the zone and tapping in for one of the goals.  Richie McCartney, Alec DellaVecchia and Adam Linker showed great teamwork and solid play in working the puck deep in the zone and showed tenacity on the forecheck. Final score: 8-2 Hershey.      EXHIBITION GAME 2  –      HERSHEY 7      ANGLETERRE (England) 1 Saturday, February 14, 2009  @ 1:40 PM - Mega Parc Welcome back, Bears fans!!  The site of today’s first exhibition game was the Mega Parc Mall against Angleterre (England).  While the temperatures were cold outside, our Bears were heating up the ice inside! In the first period, the line of Harmar Rappoport, Andy Espinoza and Drew Bievenour combined to put two goals on the board with defensemen Amanda Drobot providing a great assist on the second goal while linemate CJ Yakimowicz held the blueline.  The powerplay unit worked hard with captain, Ben Flocken, sneaking in on a nice give-and-go play to get off a shot.   Winger Jake O’Donnell played tough in the corners and made some great passes up ice to hit his line-mates in stride.  With seconds left in the first period, defensemen Daniel Hertia stole the puck at the blue line and fired a nice shot that nearly went in for a score.  In the second period, with the rollercoaster whizzing overhead, the Bears added three more goals.  John Yenchak, Troy Beinhauer and Shane Sellar worked the puck deep in the zone with Beinhauer finding the back of the net for a sweet goal.  With a persistent Angleterre team trying to generate some offense, Adam Hrabovsky made a nice defensive play to prevent a breakaway opportunity.  The Bears gave up a goal in the second period, but quickly recovered.   Netminder Ben Churchfield played a very solid two periods making several key saves for our Bears. In the third period, goaltender Timmy Browne came in and refused to allow any goals.  Donovan Ott and Skyler Pugh showed some great teamwork in passing the puck back and forth up the ice to generate a great scoring opportunity.  The defensive pairing of Zach Yingst and Darren Schlegel played strong holding the blue line.  The line of Alec DellaVecchia, Adam Linker and Richie McCartney created a flurry of activity in front of the net with Linker scoring the final goal to put the Bears up 7-1. Today’s scratches were the rookie goalie Alex Flocken and IR Chance Witmer. Next up for the Bears is a game at 6:40pm at Vanier Ice Rink.  Let’s Go Bears!   EXHIBITION GAME 1  –      HERSHEY 9      ARBY'S 1 Friday, February 13, 2009  @ 11:30 AM - Rejean Lemelin The Hershey Junior Bears Quebec team played their first exhibition game today against Arby’s at the Rejean Lemelin Ice Rink.   Chance Witmer will remain on injured reserve throughout the tournament due to an arm injury suffered prior to our departure.  Our Bears came out of the gate a little nervous and seemed cautious in the 1stperiod.  Healthy scratch Alex Flocken was rinkside cheering on his teammates.  The score was 0-0 at the end of the first thanks to some great saves by goaltender Timmy Browne.  The defense played strong with Zach Yingst and Darren Schlegel working hard to clear the zone. In the second period, the Arby team jumped out to a one goal lead and that was where their scoring streak ended.  This was just what the Bears needed to come alive.  We answered right back 30 seconds later with a goal by Harmar Rappoport after a flurry of shots in front of the net.  The Bears scored again at the 2:54 mark after an assist from Drew Bievenour and Andy Espinoza.  Behind the strong defensive pair of Amanda Drobot and CJ Yakimowicz, the Bears were able to hold the Arby’s team to just 3 shots on goal in the 2nd period. The Bears put the 3rd goal on the board with a power play goal from defensemen Ben Flocken.  Just before the end of the 2nd period, the Bears kept the puck in the zone with a strong forecheck from Jake O’Donnell leading to a Troy Beinhauer score on a wrist shot from the top of the circle.  At the end of the second, the Bears were finding their confidence and had built a 4-1 lead. In the 3rd period, the Bears showed no signs of letting up.  The fifth goal was tallied two minutes into the period.  Daniel Hertia cleared the zone with a pass up the boards to the forwards.  The line of Richie McCartney, Adam Linker and Alec DellaVecchia worked the puck deep into the zone with McCartney finding the net to make the score 6-1.  After a Bears penalty, net-minder Ben Churchfield made a huge glove save on a Arby breakaway.  The Bears capitalized on the next powerplay to build a 7-1 lead.  With just under a minute left in the game and the Bears on yet another powerplay, the Bears found the back of the net with assists from John Yenchak and Adam Hrabovsky.  Not ready to end the game just yet, the line of Shane Sellar, Donovan Ott and Skyler Pugh tallied the final goal of the game to make the score 9-1. Great start for our 2008-09 Bears.  We have two exhibition games scheduled for tomorrow at 1:40pm and 6:40pm.