With a bye in the first round of the 2023 AHL Calder Cup Playoffs, the Hershey Bears had a couple of days off following their 6-4 victory over Lehigh Valey in their season finale on Saturday. The team returned to workouts on Tuesday, but still don’t know who they will face in their second-round playoff series opener.
The Bears are still awaiting results from the first round best-of-three series to find out who they will face in their second round best-of-five series, which is expected to begin around April 26-28.
Regardless of the extended hiatus, Thursday was media day for the Bears where Connor McMichael discussed the long layoff between games.
“There’s for sure some pros and cons. I think the way that our team is looking at it is, it’s a good thing for us. Rest up our legs a little bit and kinda refresh our minds before we head into the playoffs,” said McMichael. “I think our team’s got a pretty good mentality right now. We’re dealing with the cards we’ve been dealt, and I think we’re doing a really good job.”
With the Washington Capitals missing the playoffs this season, the Bears roster is stacked and could be considered one of the best in the AHL postseason, if not the best. McMichael believes the team’s confidence is riding high.
“I think we’re a really confident team right now. Obviously we had a really good regular season. It’s something that we’re looking to bring another championship back to Hershey. I think we got a really good group of guys and staff that can help us lead the way.”
McMichael, who finished his AHL regular season with 16 goals and 23 assists in 57 games and was 6th on the team points per game average is looking to add to his brief postseason resume. McMichael played in four playoff games with the Capitals last season and 11 postseason games with the London Knights in the OHL at the end of the 2018-19 season, but that’s it. Still, McMichael feels that the primetime is his time.
“I think it’s something that I excel in, honestly. When the games get bigger, I feel like I perform better. I’m really excited for the playoffs. I haven’t really had too many playoff games in the past four or five years or so. It’s really exciting times, especially when you have a group like this, it doesn’t come around too often. Just looking to prove myself.”
The Bears will face the higher seed of the first round winners between the (#3) Charlotte Checkers vs (#6) Lehigh Valley Phantoms and the (#4) Springfield Thunderbirds vs. (#5) Hartford Wolf Pack. Lehigh Valley and Hartford currently lead their best-of-three series, 1-0.
By Jon Sorensen