For each category, each member of the Checkers communications staff cast a vote and explained their choice, with the third vote coming from the fan vote over the last week. The player who received the most votes in each category won that award, with any tiebreakers going to the fans.
MVP
Unanimous Winner: Derek Ryan
MVP
Paul Branecky, Checkers VP of Communications: Leading the team in nearly every offensive category for most of the season might be enough to earn this award on its own, but the Checkers’ record without him in the lineup is what really demonstrated his worth. Charlotte did not win a game without their captain this season, going 0-6-0, including 0-4-0 in the last four games of the season. The AHL All-Star was easily the team’s most consistent scorer during a .500 start to the season, and his most productive stretches of the season were not coincidentally also the team’s most productive stretches of the season. The Checkers were 25-11-3 when Ryan recorded a point.
Nicholas Niedzielski, Checkers Manager of Communications: While there were several players who stepped up and helped the Checkers through the 2015-16 season, no one played as integral a role on the team as Derek Ryan. The captain was the catalyst for Charlotte’s entire offense, firmly establishing himself as the top-line center as well as the quarterback of the power-play unit and a top penalty killer. Ryan showed no pains in adjusting his scoring touch to a new continent and was consistently a force on the ice game in and game out. As was pointed out by Paul, looking at this team’s outcomes with their captain out of the lineup perfectly illustrates why Ryan was the most valuable player on the Checkers this season.
Best Forward
Winner: Brock McGinn
Best Forward
Niedzielski: While this could easily be awarded to Ryan as well, Brock McGinn showed more than enough in his second pro year to warrant Best Forward honors. Coming off of an impressive rookie campaign, McGinn flourished as a sophomore, shaking the “snakebit” stretches of last year and really capitalizing on his chances. He found the back of the net 19 times, good for second on the team, despite only appearing in 48 games with the Checkers, and notched six multi-goal games. On top of his offensive prowess, the 22-year-old also took a big step defensively, becoming a physical presence on both ends of the ice.
Also Receiving Votes
Branecky - Derek Ryan: A few more points about Ryan to support the aforementioned MVP vote: he did not go scoreless in consecutive games for the first time until late December, he had the team’s two longest point streaks (seven and six games), he tied a franchise record with a four-assist game and his plus-5 rating was the best of any forward who spent the entire season in Charlotte.Best Defenseman
Unanimous Winner: Trevor Carrick
Best Defenseman
Branecky: It originally looked as though Carrick would be part of an extremely deep defensive unit coming into the season. However, with opening-night blueliners Jaccob Slavin, Brett Pesce, Danny Biega and Rasmus Rissanen combining to play just 98 games this season, Carrick, for the second time in as many seasons, found himself shouldering more of the load than projected. Despite playing heavy minutes with a Spengler Cup and All-Star Classic mixed in, Carrick responded with a campaign that saw him lead the Checkers in assists and finish tied for 10th among AHL defensemen in scoring. Not too far behind Ryan in MVP voting.
Niedzielski: Perhaps lost among the stacked defensive corps of the Carolina organization was Trevor Carrick stepping up and turning in an extremely impressive sophomore season. With the way things panned out for Charlotte, Carrick was thrust into a big role on the Checkers’ blue line and ran with it. On top of carrying an exceptionally heavy load of minutes and taking the ice in all situations, he turned in one of the strongest offensive seasons by a defenseman in franchise history, racking up 42 points and landing himself in the top 10 among AHL blue liners. Carrick was one of the key cogs in the Checkers’ lethal power play early on in the season and was an anchor throughout the season as injuries took a toll on the back end.
Rookie of the Year
Winner: Sergey Tolchinsky
Rookie of the Year
Branecky: Both of our listed finalists, Tolchinsky and Daniel Altshuller, displayed some inconsistency that comes with the territory, and I want to call this a tie since their highs allowed them to completely take over games at times. Since that’s a total cop out, I’ll give the nod to Tolchinsky as he spent the entire season with the team, finishing third behind only Ryan and Carrick among Checkers who can say the same, and had a little more momentum at the end of the day. His six in five games from March 23-April 2 was the most explosive goal-scoring stretch the team saw all season.
Also Receiving Votes
Niedzielski - Daniel Altshuller: Sergey Tolchinsky has a good case for this, with the improvement he showed over an entire season really coming to a head with a strong push down the stretch, but I’m giving the nod to Daniel Altshuller simply because of the impact he had on the team as a whole. After a strong start in the ECHL, Altshuller seamlessly made the jump to the AHL and was dominant as the team hit their strongest stride of the year, going 9-1-1 with a .941 save percentage and a 1.70 goals-against average to start his career. He obviously hit some bumps, along with the team as a whole, and the reintroduction of John Muse and his hot hand essentially put an end to his run as the starter, but without Altshuller’s spark it’s hard to see the Checkers rattling off a streak like that and pushing themselves into a playoff race.Most Improved
Winner: Jake Chelios
Most Improved
Branecky: Given the defensive depth the Checkers had to start the season, it wasn’t clear what kind of role Chelios would have on the team, if he had one at all. Only one year removed from a rookie campaign split between the AHL’s Chicago Wolves and their ECHL affiliate in Kalamazoo, Chelios earned a spot early and his role only increased as the season progressed and the team’s projected depth at the position quickly faded. His 31 points, 24 of which came before February, ranked sixth among those who began the season with the club, something few could have predicted in October.
Also Receiving Votes
Niedzielski - Patrick Brown: Patrick Brown was a solid, bottom-six grinder last season and established himself as a key piece heading into this year, but I doubt anyone saw this coming. Brown more than doubled his point total from a year ago, including bumping his goal total from two during his rookie season to a staggering 13 this year. He continued to be propelled by his grit and hustle, anchoring the Checkers’ powerful third line alongside Brody Sutter and Brendan Woods, but his improved hands and shot allowed him to take advantage of those chances he was afforded, giving his team an extra boost of offense from outside their top weapons.Unsung Hero
Winner: Mike Cornell (Tiebreak)
Unsung Hero
Also Receiving Votes
Branecky - Kyle Hagel: Another tough choice with several good candidates available, but I’ll give this one to Kyle Hagel. People know about what he does on the ice and also about his work in the community, but as one of the team’s only returning veterans, he also took on more of a leadership role than some might realize. An integral part of helping his teammates develop as players and as people.Niedzielski - David Wohlberg: Everyone in this category is worthy of this award, but I had to go with David Wohlberg. Originally brought on as a PTO, Wohlberg quickly imbedded himself as an everyday player and earned an AHL contract thanks to his strong play. He fully took on his role as the fourth-line center and helped give the Checkers one of the most productive groups they’ve had in years. Wohlberg’s offensive talents shown through in his own numbers, as he set career highs in goals, assists and points, but in his linemates as well. Kyle Hagel, who spent almost the entire season playing alongside him and came away with his best offensive season in years, went as far as to call Wohlberg “the best fourth-line center I’ve ever played with in this league, by far.”
