Breaking Down The 2023 Calder Cup Finals: Hershey vs. Coachella Valley

The stage is set for the 2023 Calder Cup Finals. The Hershey Bears and Coachella Valley Firebirds didn't meet during the regular season, but they'll get plenty familiar with each other beginning with Thursday night's Game 1.

Representing the East is one of the oldest and most storied franchises. The Hershey Bears, winners of 11 Calder Cups, advanced by winning the Atlantic Division from the #2 seed and then the Eastern Conference.

"It's kind of like cramming for a test trying to figure out how the other team plays," Bears' head coach Todd Nelson said of facing a relatively unknown opponent. "You know, we did our homework they're doing there's so it's kind of odd when you don't play a team. You don't know their tendencies."

From the west, the first year expansion franchise, Coachella Valley Firebirds, advanced by winning the Pacific Division after a grueling stretch in the opening two rounds before knocking off Milwaukee in six games in the Western Conference Final.

"It's something you work for all year. It's something you try to build all year for, and we've gotten the opportunity to do it. Open-toed shoes. Sun's out. It's June & it's the best time to play," Firebirds head coach Dan Bylsma told media at Acrisure Arena after his team's practice Wednesday.

Either way the puck bounces in the finals, there will be a terrific story told of another record-breaking win or first-year fairy tale story.

How they Got Here

Hershey Bears

The Bears defeated the Charlotte Checkers 3-1 in the Atlantic Division semis. Hershey exploded out of the gates with 5-2 and 5-1 victories in Charlotte to take a commanding lead in the best-of-5 series.

After dropping Game 3 at home, they eliminated the Checkers and moved on to the Atlantic Division Finals.

In the Atlantic Division Finals, Hershey swept a Hartford team that was making a Cinderella-style run through the playoffs, peaking at just the right time.

In Game 1 in Hershey, the Bears, coming back from an 0-2 deficit, earned a 3-2 victory in overtime, setting the tone for the best-of-5 series. The Bears were victorious in Hershey 4-2 and then clinched the series 3-1 in Hartford in Game 3 to claim the Atlantic Division Title.

In the Eastern Conference Finals, the Bears responded after going down 1-0 to the Rochester Americans, ultimately taking the series 4-2.

After losing 5-1 on home ice in Game 1, the Bears responded with a 2-0 victory in Game 2. It was Hunter Shepard’s first AHL postseason shutout, but he wouldn’t stop with just one.

Hershey then went on the road and won Game 3 by a score of 4-2 and earning a come-from-behind 4-2 victory in Game 4 in Rochester.

Needing just one more win to secure their spot, the Amerks forced Game 6 by defeating the Bears once again at Giant Center in Game 5 by a score of 4-1.

But it was Shepard and Shane Gersich who got the job done in Game 6. Gersich’s goal was the lone one scored as Shepard posted his second postseason shutout and the Bears emerged victorious 1-0.

Coachella Valley Firebirds

The Firebirds defeated Tuscon 2-1 in the opening round best-of-three series in the Pacific Division. In Game 1, Coachella Valley opened the way everyone expected with a 5-1 victory on home ice, but Tuscon forced a Game 3 with a 4-3 victory in Game 2.

In the decisive Game 3, the Firebirds advanced with a 5-1 victory.

In the Pacific Division Semifinals, the Colorado Eagles pushed the Firebirds to the breaking point once again, but Coachella Valley responded to earn a 3-2 victory in the series.

The two teams split the opening games in Colorado with the Firebirds taking Game 1 by a score of 6-2, but in Game 2, Colorado evened the series with a 3-2 victory. The series then shifted to Coachella where the Eagles took Game 3 in overtime 1-0. Coachella then rattled off back-to-back victories by scores of 4-3 and 5-0 to advance.

In the Pacific Division Finals, Coachella Valley once again found themselves facing elimination but defeated Calgary 3-2.

In Game 1, the Firebirds earned a 6-3 victory  in Calgary, but fell 3-2 in Game 2.

The series then shifted to Coachella Valley where the Firebirds went the distance in Game 3 earning a 3-2 victory in 3OT. Calgary blanked the Firebirds 1-0 in Game 4, but the Firebirds secured the title with a 6-5 OT victory in Game 5.

In the Western Conference Finals, the Firebirds advanced 4-2 over Milwaukee.

In Coachella Valley, the Firebirds took a 2-0 series lead thanks to 6-4 and 5-3 victories.

However, they dropped two of three games in Milwaukee as the Admirals evened the series with 3-1 and 5-2 victories in Games 3 and 4 respectively.

In Game 5, The Firebirds took the lead again thanks to a 2-1 victory before securing the Western Conference championship on home ice in Game 6 with a 4-3 victory.

The Tale of the Tape

Forwards

The Firebirds score often, with Kole Lind and Max McCormick both logging over a point per game average. Andrew Poturalski has won the Calder Cup in each of the last two seasons it was awarded (2019, 2022) and is in search of a third straight AHL title. Cameron Hughes and Alexander True also are near a point-per-game offensively.

Hershey is going to have to slow down the Firebirds' top-six forwards if they are to hoist their 12th Calder Cup.

That said, Hershey's scoring depth has been on display this postseason, so that could pose some difficulty for the Firebirds. In the regular season, Hershey's top line led the charge, but in the playoffs, the third and fourth line have been starring. That will need to continue for Hershey.

Edge: Coachella Valley

Defense

While there have been some mental breakdown on Hershey’s blueline and Coachella’s Ryker Evans has 3G and 13A, Hershey counters with Logan Day’s 3G and 9A and a very veteran-heavy blueline consisting of former NHLers Aaron Ness, Gabe Carlsson, and Dylan McIlrath. Rookie Vincent Iorio practiced without a non-contact jersey before the team departed for Coachella Valley. All of these are good signs for the Bears.

Conversely, former Bear turned Firebirds heavyweight, Eddie Wittchow, could pose a physical challenge for the Bears as he's amenable to dropping the gloves when needed.

Edge: Hershey

Goalies

Hunter Shepard has been having a terrific first postseason. He has a 10-3-0 record with a 1.85 GAA. His save percentage of .929 ranks third in the league this postseason behind Jean-Francois Berube of Charlotte and Dylan Garand of Hartford - both teams Hershey eliminated. He had two shutouts which ties him with Garand.

For the Firebirds, Joey Daccord leads the league in postseason wins with 12 (Shepard’s 10 rank him second), losses with 7, minutes with 1190:27 (Shepard is fourth with 744:59), and saves with 569. Daccord’s record is 12-7-0 with a GAA of 2.37.

Bottom line: A dialed in Shepard has the edge here, but Daccord has seen quite a bit of rubber and has more postseason experience.

Edge: Hershey

Special Teams

Hershey's Power Play ranks 10th (21.6%) while Coachella Valley is 15th (18.1%). It should be noted that Coachella has faced better PK units than Hershey, but Logan Day’s emergence in the playoffs has certainly given the Bears a boost.

Additionally, Hershey’s PK unit, which ranks 5th (85.7%) has had some incredible kills including a lengthy 5-on-3 against Rochester. Coachella Valley ranks 11th (81%). They’ve scored three shorthanded goals and allowed two, so Hershey will have to be solid on both sides of the special teams battle.

Edge: Hershey

Intangibles

The Firebirds, who statistically were the AHL’s second best team during the regular season, have had their backs to the wall in every series except against Milwaukee.

Hershey has only trailed once in a series.

Both teams boast head coaches who have played and coached in these kinds of high-pressure situations, with Hershey’s Todd Nelson winning a Calder Cup as a player, an assistant, and a head coach.

Dan Bylsma includes an impressive playing and coaching career capped off with leading the Pittsburgh Penguins to the 2009 Stanley Cup.

All things considered, this should be a terrific match-up of two very talented and well-structured teams.

**Edge: Coachella Valley