Kaden Bohlsen Scores First AHL Goal for Hershey After Gear Mishap

Recalled from the South Carolina Stingrays on Friday, Kaden Bohlsen overcame an equipment mix-up, “his equipment missed his connecting flight but arrived just in time for the game”, and celebrated by scoring his first career AHL goal, with assists credited to Dylan Strome and Connor Webb, a highlight the Hershey Bears shared during the matchup. The moment landed quickly in Hershey’s social feed and it capped a rapid jump from ECHL to AHL action.

Bohlsen, a 24-year-old from Willmar, Minnesota, arrives in Hershey with a patchwork résumé that explains why the Bears moved on a short-notice recall and an AHL deal. RMNB noted Bohlsen’s best collegiate output as 21 points (11 goals, 10 assists) in 37 games in 2023-24, while Hershey’s team notes list 25 points (17 goals, 8 assists) in 42 games with the Stingrays in his first professional season. After his NCAA career he signed an amateur tryout with the Calgary Wranglers, appearing in four AHL games and recording his first professional point with an assist on April 18, 2025 against the San Jose Barracuda. On his AHL taste of pro hockey Bohlsen said, “I think it was great for me to get my feet wet in the AHL,” and “I think it helped me go into the summer knowing what I needed to work on and ultimately come into this year ready to go.”

Hershey formalized the organizational bet on Bohlsen this summer, announcing alongside an RMNB report and a Hershey tweet that “We’ve signed forward Kaden Bohlsen and defenseman Connor Mayer to AHL contracts for the 2025-26 season.” Mayer, 26, split last season between the Utah Grizzlies and the AHL’s Colorado Eagles, recording nine points (four goals, five assists) in 22 games for the Eagles, and he and Bohlsen share a pedigree going back to the 2018-19 Fargo Force in the USHL. Brennan Vogt’s Oct. 20, 2024 tweet captured Mayer’s first AHL goal with assists from Nikita Prishchepov and Jere Innala.

Game recaps around Hershey show Bohlsen’s direct playmaking potential beyond the highlight clip. Phantomshockey described a rush by Bohlsen that produced an initial shot leading to a rebound and Nicky Leiverman’s shorthanded goal after a strong save by goaltender Keith Petruzzelli. Separately, Hershey’s recap of a Lehigh Valley game at GIANT Center recorded a 4-1 loss with Alex Bump, Cooper Marody, Tucker Robertson and Phil Tomasino scoring for Lehigh Valley, Corey Schueneman with Hershey’s lone goal, and Aleksei Kolosov making 32 saves for the Phantoms.

From an organizational and business standpoint, Bohlsen’s quick conversion from ECHL production to an AHL goal validates Hershey’s low-risk, one-year contract strategy and the value of AHL recalls as real-time evaluation tools. Stingrays coach Dave Warsofsky’s scouting line, “he’s a big kid, he can skate, he can shoot the puck”, and the Bears’ willingness to flash Bohlsen into action reflect how depth signings and tryout players are feeding roster decisions ahead of the 2025-26 season. Bohlsen’s score after an equipment snafu is a tidy proof point: short-term opportunity met with immediate impact, and a player the Bears have now under AHL contract to watch as the organization sorts its lineup for the year ahead.