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trio of American-born players helped the Hershey Bears return to AHL dominance this spring. M i ke Ve c c h i o n e ( S a u g u s, Mass.) scored at 16:19 of overtime to lift Hershey to its first Calder Cup championship since 2010, and its league-leading 12th over- all, on June 21 in a 3-2 overtime victory over the Coachella Valley Firebirds. Hershey overcame an early 2-0 deficit with a pair of goals in the second period to force overtime before Vecchione's heroics inside Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert, California. It was only the second-ever Game 7 of the Calder Cup Finals to be settled in overtime, and first since 1953 when the Cleveland Barons defeated the Pittsburgh Hornets, 1-0. Goaltender Hunter Shepard was award- ed the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as the most valuable player of the 2023 Calder Cup Playoffs. The Coleraine, Minnesota, native started every game for the Bears during the postseason run, going 14-6 with a 2.27 goals- against average, .914 save percentage, and three shutouts. Shepard allowed two or fewer goals in 14 of his 20 games. Joe Snively (Herndon, Va.) led the Bears in postseason scoring with 15 points (2g, 13a) in 20 games. Hershey roared back to life in the sev- en-game series after opening the Calder Cup Finals with back-to-back losses against the Firebirds, who were amidst their inaugural season in the AHL. The Bears went 14-6 during the postseason, after going 44-19-5-4 ( W-L- OTL- SOL) in the regular season. Under head coach Todd Nelson, the Bears defeated the Charlotte Checkers (3-1), Hartford Wolf Pack (3-0), and Rochester Americans (4-2) before elim- inating Coachella Valley in seven games in the Finals. P O F F T HE D R AW 8 // JULY 2023 USAHOCKEYMAGAZINE.COM VIDEO: CALDER CUP FINAL HIGHLIGHTS Hershey Bears Win AHL-Record 12th Calder Cup With Game 7 Win Over Coachella Valley AHL How Sweet It Is! A p The Hershey Bears went 44-19-5-4 (W-L- OTL-SOL) in the regular season and finished second in the AHL in average attendance (8,861). The AHL surpassed 7 million fans in attendance (regular season + postseason) for the third time in history this year. PHOTOS BY Kate Fri/Hershey Bears; Tennessee State Athletics