The Comets controlled the front half of Saturday night’s rematch with a two-goal lead, but the Checkers would battle back to force overtime, where Mike Benning would score in the final minute to bring Charlotte the 3-2 win.
The Comets got on the board first, scoring just minutes into the first period and serving as the lone point for the first frame. Utica would strike again early in the second period to extend a two-goal lead over the Checkers.
In the latter half of the second frame, Ben Steeves got Charlotte on the board when a two-on-one opportunity beat the Utica goaltender and fuel the beginnings of a Checkers comeback.
The Checkers’ power-play squad made their mark when the puck tipped off Oliver Okuliars’ stick to find the back of the net, tying the game as the third period began. An incredible highlight reel performance by Cooper Black would keep the matchup tied at the end of regulation.
As overtime began, both teams would have multiple scoring opportunities, but neither netminder would allow a puck through. It wasn’t until the final minute where Benning was fed a one-timer by Justin Sourdif that would find the back of the net and send the Checkers home with one last win on the road.
NOTES
The Checkers finished this road trip with a 4-2-0-0 record … The Checkers are now 1-1-0-0 against the Comets this season … This was Benning’s third game-winning goal of the season and second in overtime … The Checkers are now 5-3 in games that have ended in overtime this season … Okuliar recorded his sixth multi-point game of the season … John Leonard has points in each of his last two games … This was Leonard’s 10th multi-point game of the season … Cooper Black set a career high with 33 saves … Brett Chorske made his pro debut … Riley Bezeau, Nicholas Zabaneh, MacKenzie Entwistle, Zac Dalpe, Ryan McAllister, Aidan McDonough, Riley Hughes, Riese Gaber, Mitch Vande Sompel, Colton Huard, Mikulas Hovorka and Kaapo Kahkonen were the scratches for Charlotte
