Hometown Weekly Report: December 11

Heading out for a quick weekend road trip, the red-hot Checkers kept their winning ways going with a pair of wins.

Week in Review

Checkers 2, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 1

The Checkers returned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton for the second time this season to face the powerhouse Penguins and once again emerged with a victory. After a scoreless first period that saw them outshoot the home team 14-4, the Checkers broke through in the second when Andrew Poturalski found Andrew Miller for his eighth goal of the year. The Andrews combined again just over two minutes later, this time with Poturalski lighting the lamp on the man advantage. Daniel Sprong cut into that lead immediately in the third period, but the Checkers cut off any rally attempt from the Pens, with Jeremy Smith making 22 stops to pick up the victory. Full recap

Checkers 7, Binghamton 1

The next night’s contest in Binghamton wouldn’t be as close, as the Checkers struck early and often in their first matchup against the new-look Devils. Rookies Julien Gauthier and Nick Schilkey each found the back of the net 12 seconds apart inside the first three minutes of regulation to give the visitors a lead, then a trio of Checkers struck across the first three minute of the second to blow things wide open. The Devils finally broke through late in the middle frame, but the third period again saw the Checkers pounce early via a tally from Sergey Tolchinsky, who would finish the night with a career-high four points. One last tally from Valentin Zykov finished Charlotte’s 7-1 romp, as Alex Nedeljkovic made 20 stops to pick up his league-best 12th win of the season. Full recap

Three Stars Of The Week

Notables

LIGHTING THE LAMP

The Checkers continue to possess one of the most prolific offensive attacks in the league. The team is averaging 3.72 goal per game, the second-highest rate in the AHL, while their 93 total goals – good for third in the AHL – are eight more than the team directly behind them.

Sunday’s outburst against Binghamton was the second time this season that the Checkers have scored at least seven goals, the fourth time they’ve scored at least six goals and the 10th time they’ve scored at least five. By comparison, the Checkers scored at least five goals 10 times through all 76 games of last season.

POSITIVE PHILIP

Philip Samuelsson has become a cornerstone of the Charlotte blue line, serving as a veteran presence and handling a strong load of ice time. Samuelsson has been making the most of his increased responsibility on the scoresheet, logging a plus-17 rating that not only leads the team but is the second-best mark in the entire league.

Samuelsson has also continued his offensive surge since leaving the Montreal system last season. After logging five points in 40 games with St. John’s to start the 2016-17, Samuelsson rallied for 14 (3g, 11a) in 25 games with the Checkers post-trade. Through the first 25 games of this season, the 26-year-old has kept that rolling, ranking second among team defensemen with 10 points and leading the blue liners with three goals.

THE GOAT GETS GOING

After registering just two points through his first 13 pro games and finding himself as a healthy extra on occasion, Julien Gauthier looks like he may have gotten on the right track as of late. Over the last six games, the rookie forward has four goals, five points and a plus-five rating. Included in that impressive stretch is his three-point effort Saturday against the Devils, a game in which he joined Warren Foegele and Janne Kuokkanen as the third Checkers rookie this season to notch three points in a single game.

MILLER TIME

After a brief lull, Andrew Miller has caught fire once again and now sits as the team scoring leader. The forward has notched nine points in his last seven games to give him 23 through the first 25 games of the season, as he is one of just three skaters to play in all of Charlotte’s game thus far.

After returning from an injury midway through last season Miller turned on the jets through the end of the year, and that push has carried over into this campaign. Since Feb. 3 of last season, Miller has recorded 60 points in 62 games, with only five players across the AHL beating him over that stretch.

NED RACKS UP THE WINS

By topping the Devils on Saturday night, Alex Nedeljkovic improved to a staggering 12-2-0 this season. That win total not only leads the AHL, but it far exceeds the netminder’s rookie total from a year ago of eight.

Since his last loss at Bridgeport on Nov. 18, Nedeljkovic is a perfect 5-0-0 with a goals-against average of just 1.80. The second-year netminder has also been aided by a strong defense in front of him, as Nedeljkovic has yet to have to make 30 saves in a game this season. Nedeljkovic’s 12 wins are already the most by a Charlotte netminder since Drew MacIntyre won 20 in 2014-15. The franchise single-season record is 27, set by John Muse in 2013-14.

Ranks

• Andrew Miller is tied for 11th in the AHL in scoring and tied for 13th in assists
• Valentin Zykov is tied for seventh in the AHL in goals and tied for fourth in power-play goals
• Warren Foegele leads the AHL in shorthanded goals and points, is tied for the rookie lead in goals, tied for ninth among rookies in scoring, ranks fourth among rookies in shooting percentage and is tied for third among rookies in game-winning goals
• Clark Bishop is tied for second in the AHL in shorthanded assists
• Philip Samuelsson ranks second in the AHL in plus-minus
• Nicolas Roy is tied for second among league rookies in shorthanded goals and points
• Trevor Carrick is tied for third among AHL defensemen in power-play assist
• Alex Nedeljkovic leads the AHL in wins and ranks 12th in goals-against average

INJURIES

• Lucas Wallmark missed two games starting Dec. 8

Transactions

Incoming

• Dec. 5: (F) Mike Ferrantino signed to AHL contract with Charlotte (AHL)

Outgoing

• Dec. 6: (D) Josh Wesley assigned to Florida (ECHL)

Coming Up

By the Numbers

CATEGORY	RECORD	AHL RANK	LAST WEEK
Power play	19.5%	6th	3rd
Penalty kill	85.7%	t-4th	7th
Goals per game	3.72	2nd	3rd
Shots per game	29.32	21st	21st
Goals allowed per game	2.88	8th	11th
Shots allowed per game	28.32	8th	9th
Penalty minutes per game	13.84/td>	16th	11th

CATEGORY	LEADER(S)
Points	Andrew Miller (23), Valentin Zykov, Warren Foegele (18)
Goals	Warren Foegele, Valentin Zykov (12), Aleksi Saarela, Andrew Miller (8)
Assists	Andrew Miller (15), Lucas Wallmark, Trevor Carrick (12)
Power play goals	Valentin Zykov (6), Patrick Brown, Aleksi Saarela, Andrew Poturalski (3)
Shorthanded goals	Warren Foegele (4), Nicolas Roy (2)
Game-winning goals	Warren Foegele, Andrew Poturalski (3)
Shots on goal	Warren Foegele (49), Valentin Zykov (45), Andrew Poturalski (44)
Penalty minutes	Zack Stortini (42), Patrick Brown, Trevor Carrick (36)
Plus/minus	Philip Samuelsson (+17), Roland McKeown (13), Three tied (+9)
Wins	Alex Nedeljkovic (12)
Goals-against average	Alex Nedeljkovic (2.37)
Save percentage	Alex Nedeljkovic (.909)