Hershey Bears
Jonsson-Fjallby, Fucale And Hershey Bears Have Blast With Teddy Bear Toss
In record-setting fashion, the Hershey Bears brought the annual Teddy Bear Toss back to Giant Center for the first time since before the COVID-19 pandemic — and did so in style.
Axel Jonsson-Fjallby scored the goal to ignite the toss, which saw fans throw teddy bears and stuffed animals onto the ice for the Bears’ first goal. The stuffed animals are then donated to local charities in the Hershey, P.A. area. It was AJF’s first goal since returning from his one-game stint up with the Capitals.
We’re in the memory making AND the teddy bear collecting industry #TeddyBearTossHershey #HersheyBearsCares pic.twitter.com/O0IrJVURtQ
— Hershey Bears (@TheHersheyBears) January 23, 2022
The first-period strike led to an absolute party on the ice as a whopping 52,341 stuffed animals were tossed onto the surface, a new world record.
Play stopped as the Bears celebrated the toss in the best fashion possible. Alex Alexeyev dove head-first into the pile of teddy bears, appearing to have the time of his life.
POV: You’re jumping into a pile of teddy bears with Alex Alexeyev #TeddyBearTossHershey #HersheyBearsCares pic.twitter.com/mQuYWvUsu1
— Hershey Bears (@TheHersheyBears) January 23, 2022
Shane Gersich also got in on the fun, joining Alexeyev in the sea of stuffed animals. Gersich’s belly flop gets a rating of 11/10 from Washington Hockey Now.
BELLLYYYY FLOOPPPPPPP pic.twitter.com/Jwhjix93LH
— Hershey Bears (@TheHersheyBears) January 23, 2022
Garrett Pilon, Beck Malenstyn, Jake Massie, Drake Rhymsa, Eddie Wittchow and practically every Hershey fan and player joined in the fun.
Me getting out of bed every morning https://t.co/QPkHcDIKR8
— Garrett Pilon (@gpilon41) January 23, 2022
Goaltender Zach Fucale then had a bit of trouble navigating through the chaos, as he dove into the teddy bear pile and, between the continued flood of stuffed animals and his goalie gear, had a little trouble returning to his feet.
HELP I’VE FALLEN AND I CAN’T GET UP #TeddyBearTossHershey pic.twitter.com/7IkOsGA8Ng
— Hershey Bears (@TheHersheyBears) January 23, 2022
“There are going to be a lot of happy kids, and that to me [is] a little bit bigger than a hockey game,” Bears head coach Scott Allen told AHL.com.
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The night wasn’t done there, though. After the Toss and clean-up, play continued, and Jonsson-Fjallby went on to score a hat trick en route to a 5-0 victory. Pheonix Copley notched the shutout, and Hershey took over first place in the Atlantic Division (19-11-3-2, 43 points).
FIRST THEY THREW THE BEARS
NOW THEY THROW THE HATS #TeddyBearTossHershey pic.twitter.com/dGhF7tLpNV
— Hershey Bears (@TheHersheyBears) January 23, 2022
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