Hershey Bears Defense Getting Key Contributions From Three Rookies

HERSHEY, Pennsylvania - The last time the Hershey Bears had three rookie blue liners on a nightly basis was the 2015-2016 season. Christian Djoos, Tyler Lewington, and Madison Bowey, due to some injuries, were thrust into action, which was not what then-head coach Troy Mann planned, but it worked out pretty well for Hershey as the Bears went all the way to the Calder Cup Finals where the Bears lost to a stacked Lake Erie (now Cleveland) Monsters team.

So when Hershey was without the services of Colby Williams, Christian Djoos, Tyler Lewington, Lucas Johansen, and Connor Hobbs due to injuries and recalls early in the current season, Spencer Carbery turned to rookies Alex Alexeyev, Martin Fehervary, and Bobby Nardella to fill holes, and the three have stepped up in a big way, but each took a different route to get to Hershey.

“We don’t really talk about it because our first year guys I feel like ‘Why not make an impact right away. Why ease your way into pro hockey and take two three four years?’ Carbery said after Hershey’s back-to-back wins over Bridgeport at the beginning of the month. “We want our guys to come in and try to hit the ground running and get off to productive starts in [their] careers...they’re getting a lot of valuable experience right now playing in some tight games and key situations.”

And that’s just what the three blueliners are doing. Between them, they have scored five goals and recorded 32 assists. Alexeyev’s 14 points (1G, 13A) is second among the team’s rookies only to Joe Snively and Fehervary’s +10 leads the entire team at the halfway point of the season. All three state that their learning experiences on their various paths contributed to their early success in professional hockey in North America.

Alexeyev, the youngest of the three, was selected by the Capitals in the first round of the 2018 draft. The Russian chose to forego the KHL and play in the WHL where he adapted to North American hockey as a member of the Red Deer Rebels of the WHL. In three seasons in the league, his offensive contributions increased to an impressive 43 points (10G, 33A +19) last season. His route to professional hockey was selected with the help of his parents and his agent.

“They both agreed it’s better for me to go play in North America because scouts could look at me and how I play hockey because in Russia I played in St. Petersburg and there’s a lot of young guys like me who are all sitting on the bench and I don’t think it would be good for me to play...it’s how the draft works right?” He continued, “It worked out really good because it’s a good league for defensemen and I learned a lot from it.”

The more outspoken of the draft picks said he doesn’t tease his roommate (Fehervary) about being selected higher in the draft. “No,” he said, “it doesn’t matter which round you’re picked in, you still have to work hard. We’re working hard here. Hopefully we’re going to get this cup.”

Fehervary was likewise selected by the Capitals in the 2018 draft, but in the second round. The Slovakian-born defenseman also left home to play in a foreign country, but unlike Alexeyev, selected Sweden where he played for Malmo, Oskarshamn, and HV71.

“We decided really early that I would move really far away from home. I was 14 when I moved to Sweden,” said Fehervary. “I went through the whole juniors categories there... and I think the Swedish League and the whole Swedish hockey is one of the best for young players. It was a good  choice for me to go there. I had good coaches and a lot of opportunities to play senior hockey. I already played senior hockey the last two years. I think it was a good choice to go there.”

His adaptation to the North American rink has been lightning fast this year. Fehervary appeared in three games for the Washington Capitals already this year and was impressive. Like Alexeyev, he does not feel he has bragging rights.

“I am really happy that I got a chance,” said Fehervary. “I’m working hard and he’s a great player, so I think it’s just a matter of time for all of us. I think we’re trying to work hard every day and we’re just get up as fast as we can.”

Perhaps the most astonishing part of the duo’s journey is that they’ve done it without having family members playing hockey. Alexeyev admitted that his father tried to fill in as his goaltender while Fehervary said, “My older brother played hockey, but he quit in juniors so nothing special.”

But for Nardella, there was someone to ask - his father. “Absolutely, my whole family played hockey, all my cousins, all my uncles, my Dad especially, so it was really cool to have all of those experiences growing up,” Nardella said. “It’s funny how things have set in stone here a little bit. We both played in the AHL, so yeah it’s been cool so far.”

Unlike Alexeyev and Fehervary, Nardella played collegiate hockey for Notre Dame and went undrafted. He came to the Bears at the end of the 2018-2019 season, his senior year where he recorded 34 points (8G, 26A) in 38 games for the Irish. His tenacity and intelligence on the ice earned him a two-year contract with the Washington Capitals last April.

“Absolutely, especially being a bit older, coming out of college, taking some time to develop I definitely wanted, whenever I got the opportunity to play I wanted to make an impact right away, no matter if it was defensively, offensively, so absolutely make an impact right away,” said Nardella who is shining on the Bears top powerplay unit. Meanwhile, Alexeyev and Fehervary are often on the ice on Hershey’s PK unit which trails only Charlotte in for tops in the league.

And while they had different paths, all three have stated that their time in Hershey so far has been terrific thanks in part to their fellow rookies.

“It’s nice to have a lot of rookies here,” Fehervary said. “There’s a couple more forwards with us...Kody Clark, Sutts, Leason, Snives and Axel too, we are kind of a good group of friends and spending a lot of time together. It’s fun to be together with all those young guys.”

“For sure, it for sure helps when there are any problems or teaching points that we have, Nardella added. “We’re kind of in it together. We’re kind of experiencing all of this for the first time together. It’s always nice when you have your buddies there to lean on.”

Additionally, it's nice to have some tough guys out there on the ice just in case things get a bit crazy. In fact, sometimes there are so many you don’t know which one is the toughest.

“Wow there’s a lot of them,” Nardella said when asked. “Lewie’s gotta be up there for sure. Liam O’Brien as well. There's a handful of other guys that are pretty tough and I wouldn’t want to mess with. Oh, I also forgot about Kessy. Sorry. To have those guys on your team to have your back no matter what, not even the tough guys, I think everyone in there has got each other’s back and it’s always nice to know that you have the help if you need it.”

And that comes in very handy if you come from a league that’s trying to curb fighting altogether.

“In Sweden I couldn’t fight,” Fehervary said in mentioning that Alexeyev was probably the toughest of the rookie D-men. “In Sweden you would get a suspension and fine, so there’s no fighting at all.”

“I fought a couple of times in the WHL. He’s pretty tough,” Alexeyev said of getting some fighting tips for his roommate from Lewington. “Look at his muscles.”

But for now the trio is content to let others fight and concentrate on doing what they need to do to improve and help the team.

“I think just making the plays that are there, not trying to force anything and not trying to do anything too crazy and stick to the process we’ve set up,” Nardella said.

It's a process that has worked out pretty well so far.