TORONTO, ON — The Toronto Marlies staged a remarkable comeback Wednesday night, overcoming a three-goal deficit to defeat the Hershey Bears 4-3 in overtime at Coca-Cola Coliseum.
Despite Hershey's early dominance, the home team rallied to hand the Bears their first road loss of the 2024-25 season.
The game marked a milestone for Bears head coach Todd Nelson, who coached his 1,000th professional game, adding historical significance to the dramatic contest. Hershey seemed in control after building a commanding 3-0 lead in the first period, including a power-play goal by Mike Sgarbossa and a penalty shot conversion by Brennan Saulnier.
Toronto's comeback was spearheaded by Alex Nylander, who scored twice—once late in the second period and again in the third period to tie the game at three. Nylander then set up Nick Abruzzese's game-winning goal just 47 seconds into overtime, completing the Marlies' improbable turnaround.
"We're up 3-0 in the game playing good hockey," Nelson said post-game. "Then, Toronto's first goal was the result of loose coverage and on the second goal, there's about a second left in the period. All we had to do [was] hang on to the puck and smother it. Instead, we tried to make a play, we turned the puck over, and they scored with about one second left."
The loss was particularly frustrating for Nelson, who emphasized the team's lack of detail and execution.
"If you look at the first two goals against and the overtime goal, it's a result of a lack of detail and execution," he noted. "The guys that made the mistakes out there are veteran guys, these guys know that they can get the job done, but we've got to be mentally stronger in those situations."
Despite the setback, the Bears maintained their impressive road record, remaining undefeated in regulation with a 6-0-1-0 road performance this season. Ethan Bear extended his road assist streak to six games and maintained his position among the top-scoring AHL defensemen.
Goaltender Hunter Shepard stopped 17 of 21 shots for Hershey, while Toronto's Dennis Hildeby saved 21 of 24 attempts. Both teams converted one of their power-play opportunities, with Sgarbossa's goal breaking Hershey's five-game power-play drought.
The Bears will look to bounce back in their next game, traveling to Rochester on Friday to face the Americans. Nelson expressed confidence in his team's ability to reset, stating, "I told them to take some time and sit with tonight's result, but then wipe the slate clean and understand we've got to be better in the upcoming games."
For Nelson, the milestone of 1,000 professional games was a moment of reflection. "I'm grateful [that] I'm still around to be coaching hockey," he said with a chuckle. "I really enjoy what I do and over the years I've made a lot of fond memories that I can look back on, but I simply love what I do, and I just want to keep things going here with Hershey and keep on coaching."