The Checkers' offense has gotten a big boost as the Hurricanes assigned forward Phil Di Giuseppe and Brock McGinn to Charlotte today.
Di Giuseppe was originally called up to fill in some holes in the Carolina lineup, and the second-year-pro did not dissapoint in his first NHL stint. Di Giuseppe chipped in eight points (3g, 5a) in 14 games for the Hurricanes before getting sidelined with a concussion. After skating with the team over the last week, today's move would seem to indicate that the forward is ready for game action. Di Giuseppe enjoyed a great start to his sophomore season in Charlotte, putting up 14 points (6g, 8a) in 20 games, establishing himself as a premier weapon for the Checkers and showing huge growth from his rookie season.
For McGinn, this ends his third stint with the NHL club, where he has recorded four points (3g, 1a) in 19 games, including a snipe in last night's win over St. Louis. The second-year pro has been an offensive force during his time with the Checkers this season, racking up 19 points in 19 AHL games. McGinn still ranks second on the team with 10 goals and will pick back up on a five-game point streak heading into the weekend.
Getting back two of their most electric forwards is a huge boost for an already surging Checkers team, but it does bring up some lineup decisions that will need to be made. The addition of Di Giuseppe and McGinn would force the team to pull two players from the lineup, but this lineup has won four of the five games since McGinn was most recently called up. There is a PTO in the lineup in Ethan Werek, but he is on fire with four points in his last two games, making it hard to take him out. Head coach Mark Morris will have his work cut out for him deciding how to best shuffle his lineup, but the Checkers will undoubtedly enjoy the spark that McGinn and Di Giuseppe will bring to the table as they head into a weekend matchup with the Manitoba Moose.
