After going 2-0-1 to begin a five-game home stand, the Checkers split a two-game series with Iowa, bringing an end to their six-game points streak at home and their four-game points streak overall. Over those five games, Charlotte earned seven of a possible 10 points in the standings, helping them make up some much needed ground in a tight Western Conference.
The team will now head out for a quick three-game road swing, where they will visit Norfolk once and Texas twice, before returning to Charlotte for four more home contests.
Week in Review
Team Statistics
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Overall record8-12-2
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Home record6-5-1
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Road record2-7-1
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Last week's record1-1-0
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Last 10 games4-5-1
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Division Standings4th
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Conference Standingst-13th
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League Standingst-27th
Checkers 2, Iowa 1
The Checkers extended their points streak by outlasting the Wild 2-1 on Teddy Bear Toss Night. Brendan Woods recorded his first career mulit-point game, lighting the lamp twice, including the game-winner in the middle frame. Drew MacIntyre turned in a solid performance, stopping 27 of the 28 shots he faced. The victory made six consecutive home games with a point in the standings, one shy of a franchise record. Full recapIowa 4, Checkers 3
After a day off, Charlotte and Iowa squared off once again, with the Wild coming away with the win. It was a back and forth contest, with Justin Shugg kicking off the scoring just 59 seconds into the opening frame. Iowa then rattled off two-straight goals to pull ahead, but the Checkers answered with strikes from Chad LaRose and Carter Sandlak to grab a one-goal lead late in the third period. The Wild would storm back, however, scoring twice in the final six minutes to clinch a 4-3 win.Full recapNotables
Putting Up Points
The Checkers' four-game point streak (3-0-1) that ended last night marked their longest of the season and longest since winning four in a row from March 25-30 of last season. The team has not earned points in five consecutive games since going 2-0-3 from April 7-16, 2013.The franchise record for longest overall point streak is seven games, set most recently from Jan. 3-16, 2013. h3>Home Sweet Home Heading into last night's game, the Checkers had earned points in six consecutive home games, one shy of the franchise's best mark, set in 2012-13.
This recent success at home is a stark contrast to the team's results on the road, where the Checkers have lost four straight and failed to record a point in six straight. Having wrapped up this current home stand, the team will now hit the road for a three-game trip to Norfolk and Texas.
Shorthanded Firepower
The Checkers' five shorthanded goals are tied for the third-most in the league and are two more than their league-low total from all of last season.Chad LaRose leads the league in shorthanded assists and is tied for second in shorthanded points (3). Greg Nemisz and Brendan Woods are part of a 12-way tie for the league lead with two shorthanded goals each. Ben Holmstrom recorded the team's other shorthanded tally with its first penalty-shot goal since Dec. 20, 2011.
The Checkers are one of just five AHL teams that has yet to allow a shorthanded goal.
Woods Breaks Out
With 10 points (5g, 5a) in 22 games, second-year-forward Brendan Woods has already surpassed his assist (3) and point (8) totals from his 41-game rookie season. The first two-goal game of his career on Dec. 6, including his second Teddy Bear Toss goal in as many campaigns, allowed him to tie last season's goal total.Woods, who has three goals in his last three games, is now tied for second on the Checkers in terms of points. His two shorthanded goals are tied for the AHL lead.
Worst Behavior
With 21.91 penalty minutes per game, the Checkers are the fourth-most penalized team in the AHL. They rank second in major penalties with 32, 10 of which are courtesy of Kyle Hagel, who is tied for the AHL lead in that category. Rasmus Rissanen has been assessed 15 minor penalties, tying him for third among AHL defensemen. In their four previous AHL seasons, the team never finished with an average higher than 16.5 penalty minutes per game.The Checkers have done a better job as of late with not letting those penalties hurt them, as they have held opponents to 0-11 with the man advantage in the last three games, after getting torched for six goals on 14 powerplay tries in the three games prior to that.
Ranks
- Forward Kyle Hagel leads the AHL in major penalties (10)
- Defenseman Rasmus Rissanen is tied for third among AHL defenseman in minor penalties (15)
- Forward Chad LaRose leads the AHL in shorthanded assists (3) and is tied for second in shorthanded points (3)
- Forward Justin Shugg is tied for fourth in the league in shooting percentage (28.6)
- Forward Carter Sandlak ranks fourth among AHL rookies in penalty minutes (46)
- Defenseman Trevor Carrick is tied for third among AHL rookies in major penalties (4)
Injuries
- Patrick Brown - missed 11 games from 11/10 to 12/6
- Brody Sutter - missed 10 game starting 11/15
- Jared Staal - missed seven games from 11/18 to 12/2
Milestones
- Drew MacIntyre is one shy of 200 AHL wins
- Ryan Murphy is three shy of 100 professional games
- Chad LaRose is three shy of 150 AHL games and five shy of 700 professional games
- Brendan Woods is five shy of 100 AHL/professional penalty minutes
Transactions
Incoming
- Dec. 4 - (G) Drew MacIntyre assigned to Charlotte (AHL) from Carolina (NHL)
Outgoing
- Dec. 7 - (LW) Chris Terry recalled to Carolina (NHL) from Charlotte (AHL) after conditioning stint
Coming Up
By the Numbers
Team Statistics | |||
CATEGORY | RECORD | AHL RANK | LAST WEEK |
Power play | 10.2% | 29th | 29th |
Penalty kill | 82.7% | t-17th | 19th |
Goals per game | 2.36 | 27th | 28th |
Shots per game | 27.32 | 27th | 26th |
Goals allowed per game | 3.09 | t-24th | t-23rd |
Shots allowed per game | 30.86 | 18th | 18th |
Penalty minutes per game | 21.91 | 27th | 26th |
Team Leaders | |
CATEGORY | LEADER(S) |
Points | Greg Nemisz (14), Justin Shugg, Brendan Woods, Phil Di Giuseppe, Chad LaRose, Ryan Murphy (10) |
Goals | Greg Nemisz, Justin Shugg (8), Brock McGinn, Brendan Woods (5) |
Assists | Ryan Murphy (10), Phil Di Giuseppe, Chad LaRose, Trevor Carrick (7) |
Power play goals | Justin Shugg (3) |
Shorthanded goals | Greg Nemisz, Brendan Woods (2) |
Game-winning goals | Greg Nemisz (2) |
Shots on goal | Brock McGinn (53), Chad LaRose (50), Phil Di Giuseppe (47) |
Penalty minutes | Kyle Hagel (68), Keegan Lowe (58), Brendan Woods (53) |
Plus/minus | Phil Di Giuseppe (+4), Beau Schmitz (+2), Five tied (+1) |
Wins | Drew MacIntyre (7) |
Goals-against average | John Muse, Drew MacIntyre (2.79) |
Save percentage | Drew MacIntyre (.909) |