2023 AHL All-Stars: Ethen Frank (Hershey Bears)

HERSHEY, Pa. - Sometimes with four days away from hockey, things change, but one thing that didn't change over Christmas break and heading into 2023 for the Bears was Ethen Frank scoring goals and helping propel the team to victories.

"It was a short break. I think it [was] good, Frank told InsideAHLHockey.com after a 2-1 shootout victory in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton last month.

Coming off of a four-day break, with many players traveling home to share the holidays with family and not skating, Todd Nelson wasn't sure what he would get, but the Bears came out looking like they had been practicing the entire time.

"In [the team's] morning skate, our execution was really good, and I was quite surprised," Nelson said of the team's December 27 win on the road. "And then, you know, this first game back after having four days off, I was really surprised in the first period. That was one of our best periods of the year. It's a credit to the guys. The guys were ready to go, and it was a big two points for us."

In that game, Frank scored the game's opening goal, one of his four shots on the evening as the Bears peppered Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s goaltender with 40 shots. Nelson, who has been asking his team to be less selfish lately, quipped recently in a post-game press conference that he "expressed to the bench very loudly that the next two-on-one we're shooting no matter what."

That worked so well against Lehigh Valley that it has been relayed to all situations, especially with offensive weapons such as Frank.

"We've been working on that about the past week or so, some different plays and different routes to take and Coach working on me with positioning and stuff, which has helped a lot,” said Frank of his game-opening goal. "But you know, I just made a lane there. And they've been just telling me to shoot the puck, shoot the puck, shoot the puck, and, you know, my one-timer side, I was fortunate enough to get it into the net."

Of course, being paired with experienced players such as Mike Vecchione and Mike Sgarbossa is also pretty helpful to a rookie like Frank.

"They have a lot of experience, and they know the game a little better than I do, so it's nice to kind of pick their brains and see what they think in certain situations," Frank said. "They help me out. They know it's my first year, and so they've been really helpful and very patient with me."

But in all honesty, there is little patience needed with a guy who led the NCAA in scoring a year ago and who burst onto the scene after signing a PTO with the Bears until an injury sidetracked him. But that ability to show the Bears staff what he could bring to the team in a short period of time was all Bryan Helmer needed to see, so the team signed him to an AHL contract.

"Yeah, I think it was huge. I don't think that anything else could have prepared me as well as the last couple of games that I played last year. But it's good. You know, you get your feet wet a little bit, you kind of understand what they what they expect out of the team, what the systems are, you get to meet some faces. So, it just kind of helps. You're familiar with everything by the time you come back, and you kind of know some guys."

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In addition to knowing some of the guys, knowing the organization's system, special teams schemes, etc. has allowed Frank to have a level of confidence which in turn enables him to contribute to the scoring on a regular basis.

"I think that confidence is built, and I think we do a good job in practice of making everything extremely clean and crisp. And there's not very many times that we mess up a drill and practice, so it's nice to kind of realize what, what it takes to be clean and crisp. And then you kind of set yourself up as the standard every time you get out there."

It's not just team practices where Frank is attempting to hone and develop his skill either. Saying earlier in the season that he doesn't waste time thinking about what could have been, the rookie is tapping into all resources available to him to make himself even better.

"I'm trying to do lots of things. There's lots of stuff on the wall. I'm trying to download some extra drills or (get them from) some of the development people in Washington, which is nice; they kind of helped me out and gave me some good examples of drills that mimic real life and real game scenarios. I just think it's really helpful, you know; they're not just focused on the guys in Washington, they help out down here too, obviously, and they know what it takes to get there. So it's good to kind of hear from them."

And if that NHL contract comes, it comes, but for now Frank is entirely focused on Hershey and the current season, including some upcoming travel with his teammates as Hershey's second half schedule gets a little road heavy.

"With some road trips we have coming up, I think it's just important to get your rest. Food is fuel, so you have to eat well, and you get your rest. And I think really just a good mentality of staying with the game plan and what you're told to do. And you keep with it, and then results will come."

Those results, while unplanned due to a Garrett Pilon’s seven-week absence with a lower-body injury, are certainly making Nelson happy as well.

"We [had] Garrett Pilon playing with that line, and so [when] he was banged up, Frankie went on the line [amd] it really just kind of sparked up," Nelson said of his top line. "They seem to have some good chemistry. They play on the powerplay together, so yeah, your best players have to be the best players. That's the bottom line."

And the recipe for continuing that trajectory set by the top line and the team?

"I think we were just really focused from the start. We knew what we had the first half and what we kind of started getting going," Frank said.

Things have remained successful for both Frank and the Bears on the ice.

Entering Saturday's games, Frank's 18 goals are tied with San Jose's Thomas Bordeleau for the most among AHL rookies while the Bears forward's 31 points are second most among first year players, two behind Iowa's Sammy Walker.

As a team, the Bears remain in the top spot in the Atlantic Division with a record of 27-8-5. Their .738 points percentage is first in the Eastern Conference and second in the AHL behind only Coachella Valley (.789).

"We're just excited to keep that rolling and keep doing what we can to win games."