Three minutes into the deadlocked third period, it was Trevor Carrick who notched the first goal of the game - a cannon from the top of the circles on a two-man advantage - and triggered the tradition of fans littering the ice with stuffed animals that will be donated to local non-profits.
After a slight delay to pick up the bears, the Checkers’ power play picked right back up and tacked on another - this time courtesy of John Leonard roofing the puck from a low angle.
The Wild pushed for a breakthrough down the stretch and opted to pull their goalie while on a man advantage with under seven to play, but the Checkers made them pay as Patrick Giles delivered a dagger into the empty net.
Cooper Black stood tall between the pipes and threw water on any Wild comeback attempts, denying all 23 shots he saw to pick up his first professional shutout.
🧸 TEDDY TOSS GOAL 🧸 pic.twitter.com/LcolvkhPMI
— Charlotte Checkers (@CheckersHockey) November 30, 2024
QUOTES
Coach Geordie Kinnear on the gameI’m repeating myself about the depth. You have Cooper that has put a lot of work in with (goalie coach Sylvain Rodrigue) over the last two weeks while waiting for his next start. He went to (ECHL) Savannah for a little bit, came back and the guys played very well in front of him. It was a total team effort. A committed effort. It was a good hockey game, but it’s 0-0 going into the third period and our power play stepped up and it was special teams that was the difference in the end.
Kinnear on Trevor Carrick’s scoring ability
It's not necessarily his shot, it’s his poise with the puck and his composure. Obviously he’s a champion and you have to be able to make plays under pressure. Trevor is a great example of that, and we’re very, very fortunate to have him back in Charlotte, which is for me where he belongs.
Cooper Black on his shutout
Honestly I have to give credit to the guys. Obviously it shows up as a goalie stat but in reality it’s a team stat. Credit to them for playing an unbelievable game in front of me and they made my life pretty easy. I just try to backstop them and give them a chance, and obviously they went out and scored a couple and had a great night.
Black on playing well despite not playing many games this season
I think that’s an overrated thing and people look into that way too much. I’m at the rink practicing every day, so while you might not be in-game, you’re still working just as hard as all the other guys. Obviously (Appleby) and Driedger are unbelievable guys and they’ve been great for me to just watch and learn from. When I learned I was playing tonight, I just tried to take the opportunity and the guys played great in front of me so it made my life pretty easy. You’ve just got to try to jump on it when you get the chance.
Black on getting a big win at home
It was extremely special, especially for all those kids that are going to get all those teddy bears that they threw out there. Kudos to them for bringing all those teddy bears and really supporting a great cause.
Trevor Carrick on scoring the teddy bear toss goal
It was exciting. I feel like all those teddy bear games tend to go late, so the guys showed good composure and we just kind of stayed patient and waited for opportunities. Kyle made a great pass, and I just tried putting it on net. It’s nice seeing those teddy bears rain down.
Carrick on winning games like these
I feel like the last handful of games, we’ve played tight games. I think we’re learning and we’re gaining experience in those tight matches. I think what we’ve learned is just staying composed. We’re playing good hockey and we just have to stay patient and wait for opportunity. Keep hounding them and they’re eventually going to fold and they’re going to start going in. That was kind of our game plan tonight and it worked out.
Carrick on turnover in the lineup
I think early on in the season we’ve gone through some adversity with injuries and guys are getting their opportunity. Today was another example of that with Riley Hughes flying in today after playing last night, and he looked great. Dalps coming back after time off, he looked great too. Guys are taking their opportunity and taking advantage of it.
Carrick on Black
He looked steady there all night. We’ve got kind of the three-goalie rotation going on right now and obviously he’s sat out a handful of games. It’s never easy coming in after sitting out for a while, and I thought he looked steady all night and made some huge saves, especially later in the game. I’m happy for him.
Carrick on returning home
I think it was just what we missed. That long road trip, I thought we played some good hockey, but when you come home and have that extra energy, it makes a huge difference. The crowd the last couple nights have been great, and I think they really helped us out there.
