Game 21: Syracuse Crunch (10-7-3-0) at Hershey Bears (10-7-1-1)
7 p.m., Giant Center, Hershey, Pa.

Syracuse travels to Hershey, Pennsylvania, Saturday for its second meeting with the Bears. The Crunch blew past the Bears, 5-1, Nov. 14 in the first of four matchups this season. The win came during a run of seven wins in 10 games for Syracuse. Losing the last two games by a combined score of 11-7, the Crunch face a Bears team which in its last four games has scored only five and allowed only five. 

Syracuse is fifth in the conference, one point better than eighth-place Hershey; seven Eastern Conference teams have either 22 or 23 points. Springfield, winning eight of the last ten, leads the pack with 29 points.

Broadcast Coverage
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Streaming: Pay-to-watch video on AHL LIve.com and on your mobile device with the AHL Live App

Last time out
Philippe Paradis recorded a natural hat trick to lift Syracuse to a 3-2 first-period lead, but the Binghamton Senators scored four times in the third to defeat the Crunch, 6-3, Friday at the War Memorial. 

Kristers Gudlevskis allowed five of the goals and made 27 saves in his second consecutive loss. 

Tanner Richard had two assists and Yanni Gourde had one, giving the Richard-Paradis-Gourde line six points on the night and 35 in the last 10 games. Jake Dotchin added his eighth assist, and now trails only Jonathan Marchessault (11) and Tanner Richard (9) for the team lead.

Matt Corrente fought David Dziurzynski one second into the game, and was ejected for an elbow pad infraction leaving Syracuse with five defensemen. Eric Neilson, playing in his third game of the year, fought Darren Kramer six seconds into the game. 

Cole Schneider and Shane Prince each potted two goals for Binghamton in support of winning goalie Chris Driedger who made 25 saves in his first AHL start.

Scoring breakdown
The Crunch have lost three of the last four games, allowing 16 goals in that span while scoring 10. Friday's six goals against (including an empty net goal) is the most allowed by Syracuse this year. The four allowed in the third is also a season worst and drops the team's third-period scoring advantage from plus-10 to plus-6 (23-17).

While eight of 30 teams have scored more than Syracuse's 60 goals, only three teams in the AHL have allowed more goals than Syracuse's 64.

Scouting the Bears
Hershey defeated W-B/Scranton in a shootout Friday, 2-1, improving to 10-7-1-1, one point behind Syracuse in the Eastern Conference standings. Stanislav Galiev scored the Bears lone goal, a power-play marker, with Dustin Gazley and Chris Brown converting in the four-round shootout. Philipp Grubauer, who's allowed only one goal in his last two games and five goals in the last four, earned his seventh win with 25 saves. Grubauer's 2.13 goals-against average is tied for 12th in the AHL.

The Bears' leading scorer Kris Newbury had been atop the AHL leaderboard until Binghamton's Chris Wideman surged by him. Newbury, who scored the lone Hershey goal against Syracuse Nov. 14, has 21 points (10g, 11a) including two game-winning goals and six power-play assists. Three other Bears have double-digit points: Casey Wellman (13), Tim Kennedy and Thomas Kundratek (12).

Defenseman Steve Oleksy (3-3—6) was recalled by the Washington Capitals today.

Special Teams
The Crunch had only two chances on the power play Friday and were scoreless, sinking to 10.6%, 29th in the AHL at 9-for-85. The penalty kill also tumbled after allowing a Sens power-play goal Friday, the 17th allowed by Syracuse in 85 times shorthanded, 80.0%, 24th in the league.

Hershey enjoyed the opposite special teams experience Friday, scoring once on three man-up chances while stifling each of the Penguins' three. Hershey's penalty kill is the class of the AHL at 90.9%, allowing only seven goals in 77 times shorthanded. The Bears power play ranks 10th at 17.7% with 14 goals on 79 power plays.