Strome scores OT winner as Hershey Bears win second-straight Calder Cup title

A former OHL and OHL Cup champion, Matthew Strome added to his trophy case on Monday night, scoring the deciding goal in overtime of Game 6 of the Calder Cup Final to push the Hershey Bears past the Coachella Valley Firebirds 5-4. Strome’s goal secured Hershey’s second straight Calder Cup championship as they won the series 4-2.

A 25-year-old from Mississauga, Ont., Strome was the lone OHL graduate on Hershey’s championship roster. The younger brother of former OHL standouts Ryan (2009-13) and Dylan (2013-17), Matthew has carved out a legacy of his own, putting together a 20-point (7-13–20) regular season over 50 games before adding five points (2-3–5), including the biggest goal of all in Hershey’s run to the championship.

Strome was the first-ever draft pick of the Hamilton Bulldogs when the OHL returned to Steeltown in 2015. He went on to pile up 115 goals, 132 assists and 247 points over 260 OHL regular season matchups. He played an important role in Hamilton’s 2018 OHL championship, recording 18 points (4-14–18) in 20 playoff games. Strome was a fourth-round pick of the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2017 NHL Draft and just completed his second season with Hershey after signing an AHL deal with the Bears in September 2022. The Bears are the top affiliate of the NHL’s Washington Capitals.

The Coachella Valley Firebirds are AHL Finalists for a second-straight year. The top affiliate of the NHL’s Seattle Kraken featured a total of 10 OHL graduates on their roster.

Former @BulldogsOHL #OHL champion Matthew Strome scores the series-clinching goal in OT of Game 6 to crown @TheHersheyBears back-to-back #CalderCup champions! 🎥 pic.twitter.com/F5d4aNBfrB

— Ontario Hockey League (@OHLHockey) June 25, 2024