Hershey Bears vs Norfolk Admirals Primer

2012.02.25-vs-Norfolk-058

Going to watch the game tonight and get your 1 game semi-professional hockey fix in before the holidays? Here are a couple of things to be aware of for tonight.

First and foremost eat/drink/be merry pre-game and post-game at your favorite local bars/restaurants. As we covered before, hockey is the life and blood of Chinatown. With no hockey, businesses are struggling to keep the lights on so as your gift for the holidays, buy beer and food and tip your waiter/waitress/bartender handsomely. Secondly, there will be a toy drive being held by the Salvation Army.

Toy drive details for today's game

The Washington Capitals, GEICO, Comcast SportsNet, Elliot in the Morning and The Salvation Army are teaming up to host a toy drive at the Washington AHL Showcase featuring the Capitals’ American Hockey League affiliate, the Hershey Bears, and the Norfolk Admirals on Thursday, Dec. 6. The Capitals will be accepting donations at the F Street Entrance to Verizon Center starting when doors open at 6 p.m.

The first 1,500 fans to donate will receive a commemorative Adam Oates Hall of Fame poster. The Capitals, GEICO, Comcast SportsNet and The Salvation Army urge all Caps fans to donate at least one new, unwrapped toy for a deserving child this holiday season. All of the toys collected will be distributed through The Salvation Army’s Angel Tree Program which ensures that underserved children receive gifts for the holidays. In 2011 more than 6,000 children in Washington, D.C., were served through The Salvation Army’s Angel Tree Program.

Now onto other details about tonight (and other info you can drop when having a conversation with someone that seems to know what they are talking about)

  • The game will start at 7 pm and will air on CSN (we are thinking no Joe B or Locker but we can only hope). Doors open at 6 pm if you want to sneak a peak at warm-ups.
  • The Hershey Bears will play the part as the away team (Did not want to lose a home game on the season schedule)
  • The Admirals are the current Calder Cup champions (Their first in team history. Established in 2000)
  • The Bears have won 11 Calder Cups as recent as back-to-back wins from 2008-2010 (Established in 1932)
  • Each team has virtually the same record on the season leading up to this game and sit in the basement of the East Division at 9-11-1 Hershey and 9-11-0 for Norfolk
  • Distance between Hershey and Norfolk is 318 miles, with it taking about 5 hours 10 mins
  • Slow-motion water squirts will happen in front of the net tonight with Holtby holding down the pipes as well as Orlov suiting up but no Galiev as he has been sent down to the ECHL
Notable players of each team
  • Zach Hamill (Hershey) currently has the most goals with 7
  • Jeff Taffe (Hershey) currently has the most points with 19 (6 G 13 A)
  • Dany Sabourin (Hershey goalie) is the tallest coming in at 6'4"
  • Barry Almeida (Hershey forward) is the shortest coming in at 5'8"
  • The scrappiest on Hershey is Steven Oleksy with 77 PIMs
  • Peter Holland (Norfolk center) currently has the most goals with 10 and most points with 21 (10 G 11 A)
  • Three way tie for tallest on the Admirals at 6'5" between John Mitchell (FW), Garrett Klotz (FW), and Matt Smaby (D)
  • Two-way tie for the shortest on the Admirals at 5'9" between Sami Vatanen (D) and Ryan Lasch (FW)
  • The scrappiest on Norfolk is Patrick Maroon with 46 PIMs

Stay tuned to our twitter handle for live tweeting during the game tonight as we will be in the PRESS BOX! OMG!

Creator of this lovely blog and also part of the creative side of things. Follow me on Twitter @md_dc for even more random musings.