CRUNCH FINISH TOUGH BACK-TO-BACK 

The Crunch wrap up a long distance back-to-back tonight as they visit the Hershey Bears at the Giant Center.
 
Syracuse came out of the All-Star Break and lost last night on home ice to the Utica Comets, 4-2. The Bears did not play last night and will skate in their first contest following the break tonight.
 
Hershey has captured the first two matches of the season series against Syracuse.
 
BROADCAST COVERAGE

Countdown to Crunch Time at 6:45 p.m.
Streaming: Pay-to-watch video via AHLTV on FloHockey | www.syracusecrunch.com/watch
Radio: ESPN Radio Syracuse | www.espncny.com
 
LAST TIME OUT

For the second straight game the Crunch saw multiple leads disappear in a 4-2 loss to the Utica Comets last night at Upstate Medical University Arena.
 
Jack Finley and Conor Sheary scored the Crunch's goals, which staked the Crunch to leads of 1-0 and 2-1. Finley's third of the season came on a rebound at 5:54 of the first period. Sheary's was a power-play goal at 15:43 of the second frame. 
 
Utica scored a power-play goal to tie the game at one. A giveaway led to an unassisted goal to tie the score in the final minute of the second period and then Xavier Parent scored his second game-winner against the Crunch in barely two weeks with less than six minutes to play in regulation.
 
The Comets have won three straight head-to-head versus the Crunch and pulled within nine points for the final playoff position.
 
SCOUTING THE CRUNCH

The Crunch's slump extended through the All-Star Break as they dropped their first game following the layoff. They lost five of their final six games (1-4-1-0) before the break and they now have only one win in their last seven games (1-5-1-0).
 
Syracuse continues to hold the final playoff spot in the North Division with 46 points (18-16-6-4), but that position is tenuis at best. The two teams on the Crunch's heels have multiple games in hand on the Crunch.
 
Conor Sheary scored a power-play goal for the Crunch last night a day removed from helping the Tampa Bay Lightning earn a crucial win against Ottawa. The veteran's tally was his 10th of the season for the Crunch, making him the second player on the squad to reach double figures (Dylan Duke).
 
CLIMBING THE RECORD BOOK

Crunch captain Gabriel Dumont continues to climb the Crunch record book. His assist last night was his 206th point as a member of the Crunch, breaking a tie with Cory Conacher for sole possession of fifth place all-time in Crunch history. Dumont — who has served as captain longer than any player in Crunch history — has 87 goals (5th) and 119 assists (T-6th) in 281 Crunch games (8th).
 
Dumont has been limited to seven games this season due to injury. He has added three assists but is still searching for his first goal. With 738 career AHL games under his belt, Dumont has 199 AHL goals. 
 
DUKE EARNS THE CALL

Forward Dylan Duke was recalled to the Tampa Bay Lightning yesterday for his first career NHL recall. The rookie earned his opportunity with the NHL club after scoring goals in both Crunch games last week prior to the All-Star Break.
 
The two goals extended the rookie's team lead with 13 tallies on the season. He has collected 22 points in 36 Crunch games this season.
 
The University of Michigan product was selected in the fourth round, 126th overall, by the Lightning in the 2021 NHL Draft.
 
If he skates for the Lightning this afternoon in Detroit, Duke will become the 96th player to skate for both the Crunch and Lightning during their affiliation. Conor Geekie became the 95th when he debuted with the Crunch last night.
 
ON THE ROAD AGAIN

The Crunch begin a stretch of four straight road games over eight days that brings the Crunch to four different cities. They begin the stretch tonight in Hershey. It continues next Wednesday with a morning contest in Toronto. They then play back-to-back games starting Friday in Rochester and finishing Saturday in Allentown against Lehigh Valley.
 
Syracuse has lost three of its last four road games, but the Crunch have still been a better road team (10-9-2-0) than a home team (8-7-4-4) this season.
 
SCOUTING THE BEARS

The well-rested Bears come out of their All-Star hibernation tonight. The Bears were heating up prior to the layoff, earning points in nine of their previous 10 games (7-1-2-0).
 
The two-time defending Calder Cup champions entered the break atop the AHL standings with 61 points (28-12-5-0), but the day off yesterday means they now have some company; Laval is now level on points.
 
The good news for the Crunch is the Bears' leading goal scorer, Ethan Frank, is on recall with Washington. He has 20 goals on the season, including two goals and three points against the Crunch. The bad news is there is still plenty of firepower in the Bears lineup, led by Alex Limoges (12g, 19a) and Mike Sgarbossa (7g, 24a) who are tied for the team lead with 31 points.
 
HEAD-TO-HEAD

The Bears have won the first two games of the four-game season series against the Crunch this season. The first two matches took place in Syracuse and both required overtime. The Bears won a shootout, 5-4, in November and then rallied late for an overtime win, 2-1, in December.
 
Ethan Frank — currently on recall with Washington — led the Bears with three points (2g, 1a) and the shootout game winner. Four skaters are tied for the Crunch lead with two points apiece.