HERSHEY, Pa. — The Capitals brought an NHL preseason crowd to Chocolate Town on Monday, skating away with a 5-2 win over the Philadelphia Flyers before a packed, sharply divided house at GIANT Center.
The 10,500-seat home of the AHL’s Hershey Bears traded its usual minor-league look for a mix of Washington red, Philadelphia orange and Bears brown. Fans from both clubs filled the building from the opening draw, and the response to goals, checks and near misses was split almost evenly throughout the night.
An NHL night in a Bears building
Local Bears supporter Gwen Wilson said the building retained the family-friendly feel that regularly defines hockey in Hershey, even with two NHL organizations sharing the ice.
“The Bears always have that family atmosphere,” Wilson said. “It was great seeing fans from both teams here. It felt fairly even between the Bears crowd and the Phantoms fans, with both colors all over the arena.”
Her husband Gary said the full building and noise level were familiar to anyone who attends Bears games, though he had one complaint about the visiting support.
“There’s too much orange,” he joked. “But it’s packed, like a lot of Bears games are, and it’s loud. It feels pretty much the same.”
Washington fan Jacob Martin made the two-hour trip to Hershey and found the setting comparable to the Capitals’ regular NHL home in downtown Washington.
“It has been incredible,” Martin said. “The atmosphere is great and the arena is amazing. It feels like Capital One Arena, especially with so many Flyers fans making it competitive.”
Playoff-style noise before the season
For Flyers fan Ronnie, who has also become a Bears supporter, the crowd had a familiar NHL edge. Wearing a Philadelphia jersey with a Hershey hat, he said the rink carried some of the energy he knows from games in Philadelphia.
“This building gets close to an NHL feeling,” Ronnie said. “You can feel that same kind of atmosphere here.”
Ronnie and his partner Sydney hold Hershey Park season passes and were exploring Bears season-ticket options during the game. Sydney said they attend as many Bears dates as possible, including Calder Cup Final contests in both 2023 and 2024.
Monday’s preseason date did not have a championship on the line, but Sydney said the edge in the stands resembled one of Hershey’s biggest nights.
“It was close to a Bears playoff game,” she said. “The intensity and the crowd, anyway.”
Logan Kelly, a Bears and Capitals follower, especially enjoyed seeing former Hershey players Dylan McIlrath and Clay Stevenson back on the GIANT Center ice.
“It’s cool to watch them here again,” Kelly said. “I kind of miss them with the Bears.”
With Washington taking the 5-2 result, the exhibition stop gave Hershey a taste of NHL hockey before the regular schedule arrives. For Kelly, though, the preseason only sharpened the familiar impatience.
“I just want opening day to get here,” he said.
