The AHL has recognized Checkers goalie John Muse for his excellent play of late by awarding him its Player of the Week award for the period ending March 30.
Starting with a pair of road wins in Iowa and two more crucial games against Oklahoma City, Muse, who missed the team’s previous game due to injury, picked up all four victories as the Checkers matched their longest winning streak of the season and put themselves in playoff position for the first time since early November.
In doing so, Muse posted a 0.81 goals-against average, .972 save percentage and the third-longest shutout streak in team history at 144:23 seconds, including his fourth shutout of the season on Wednesday. He also stopped nine of 11 total attempts to pick up a pair of shootout wins against the Barons.
During the week, Muse set a new franchise record for most wins in a single season (26) and tied teammate Mike Murphy for the most wins in franchise history (43). He is tied for third in the league in victories despite ranking tied for 15th in games played.
This marks the second AHL Player of the Week honor Muse has earned this season, with the first following his first week in the league after the Checkers signed him to a professional tryout contract from ECHL Fort Wayne on Oct. 23. For the period ending Oct. 27, Muse, who later upgraded to an AHL deal in December, went 2-0-0 with a pair of shutouts en route to setting a club record shutout streak of 154:03.
Muse, a 25-year-old who has played parts of the last three seasons with the Checkers on a pair of AHL contracts, his PTO from earlier this season and NHL two-way contract last season, is now 44-23-3 with a 2.54 goals-against average, .918 save percentage and six shutouts in his AHL career. A two-time NCAA champion at Boston College, Muse also won a playoff MVP award to help the Florida Everblades capture an ECHL Kelly Cup in 2012.
Muse, one of a franchise record nine goaltenders to play for the Checkers this season, is now 26-12-0 with a 2.57 goals-against average, .919 save percentage and four shutouts over the course of the entire campaign.
This week’s award marks the fifth time a Checker has earned an in-season honor from the AHL. Zach Boychuk (2010-11) and Dan Ellis (2012-13) have also won Player of the Week awards, while Justin Peters took home a Goaltender of the Month award in 2011-12.
