Hershey Bears vs Bridgeport Islanders: AHL Playoff Series Preview and Key Matchups

The Hershey Bears begin their quest for a fourteenth Calder Cup championship on Tuesday, April 21, 2026, facing the Bridgeport Islanders in Game 1 of their Atlantic Division First Round playoff series at Total Mortgage Arena in Bridgeport.

The series, a best-of-three matchup between the fifth-seeded Bears and fourth-seeded Islanders, marks Hershey’s first appearance in the AHL Opening Round in several years after previously earning byes in prior seasons. Game 1 is scheduled for 7 p.m. Eastern Time, with Game 2 set for Thursday, April 23 at Hershey’s Giant Center and a potential Game 3 on Saturday, April 25 back in Bridgeport at 3 p.m., if necessary.

Hershey earned home ice advantage for the playoff series after Ivan Miroshnichenko scored an overtime goal in Game 82 of the regular season, pushing the Bears out of the sixth spot where they would have played all playoff games in Charlotte. The goal secured a home playoff game for Hershey despite the Islanders holding home ice in the series due to their higher seed.

The Bears are led by 19-year-old rookie Ilya Protas, younger brother of Capitals’ forward Aliaksei Protas, who topped the team in regular-season scoring with 29 goals and 66 points. Fellow rookie Andrew Cristall finished second in team scoring with 60 points during the 2025-26 campaign.

This playoff meeting represents the third time Hershey and Bridgeport have faced each other in postseason play, with the Bears winning both previous series. Hershey defeated the Islanders 4-1 in the 2010 East Division Semifinals en route to their 11th Calder Cup championship and won a 3-2 series victory in the 2019 Atlantic Division Semifinals.

During the regular season, Hershey went 2-3-0-1 in head-to-head matchups against Bridgeport. The Bears announced the playoff schedule on April 19, 2026, with tickets for their home game at Giant Center going on sale Monday, April 20 at 10 a.m. Eastern Time via Ticketmaster.

Game 1 will be officiated by referees Liam Maaskant (45) and Hayden Verbeek (61), with linespersons Nick Briganti (58) and Kevin Briganti (39). The broadcast will be available on Antenna TV (WPMT FOX 43.2, Xfinity Ch. 247 and 1178, Verizon FiOS Ch. 463, Blue Ridge Ephrata Ch. 91 and Blue Ridge Newberry/Duncannon Ch. 88), with radio coverage on WFVY-100.1-FM and Fox Sports 1460-AM. Live streaming options include AHLTV on FloHockey and the Froggy Valley 100.1-FM stream.