Goalie Mack Guzda is returning to Charlotte after another brief backup stint with the Florida Panthers.
With Florida’s Sergei Bobrovsky and Spencer Knight not able to dress, Guzda backed up Alex Lyon in the Panthers’ last two games before the All-Star Break. The rookie netminder, who owns a 2.55 goals-against average and .911 save percentage and posted a shutout in his most recent appearance with the Checkers on Jan. 25, has yet to make his NHL debut over two short recalls this season.
In a corresponding move, the Checkers reassigned goalie Cam Johnson to the ECHL’s Florida Everblades. Johnson made 20 saves to pick up the 5-3 win at Rochester in his Checkers debut Saturday night.
The Checkers, who went a perfect 3-0-0 in last week’s road trip, will carry the tandem of Guzda and J-F Berube as they return to Charlotte to prepare for a two-game trip to Syracuse on Friday and Saturday. Lyon remains on recall duty with the Panthers, where he capped off a run of six consecutive starts over a 10-day period with 38 saves in an overtime victory over the league-leading Boston Bruins on Friday.
