This season didn’t begin the way that Zac Dalpe had envisioned. The Checkers captain had ramped up to kick off his 15th pro campaign, took the ice on Oct. 12 for the team’s season opener, then suffered an injury that relegated him to the sidelines.
“You work hard all summer and you get your touches and then boom, you’re back to square one,” said Dalpe.
Dalpe turned that frustration into drive as he immediately began working his way back.
“A lot of bike rides,” he said of how he kept in shape during his recovery. “Rehab stuff with the athletic therapist, a lot of workouts with the strength coach. It’s a pretty monotonous process but you hope you work hard so that in a game you feel up to speed.”
The veteran was champing at the bit to return to the ice, but an underreported aspect of being on the injured list is missing out on everything that happens off the ice.
“When you’re injured you feel like you’re not in on the inside jokes or the team winning,” said Dalpe. “You’re part of the team but you’re not on the bench and in the grind with them. I was fortunate enough to attend the rookie party on the road - they were nice enough to bring me there for that. As an old guy I can appreciate that. I’m a guy that likes to get involved in the mix. If you ask my wife I’m constantly looking for that next chirp in the group chat, but when you’re not in the group it’s hard to be active.”
Dalpe’s road to recovery finally reached its end this past weekend, when he returned to the lineup for Saturday’s win over Iowa.
“I felt better than I thought I was going to feel cardio-wise,” he said. “It felt good to get back into the rhythm of a game. Hopefully everything you did in the summer comes back a little quicker now.”
The captain’s return comes just as the Checkers are navigating a storm of injuries that have removed some key contributors from the lineup - making Dalpe’s comeback all the more impactful.
“If you look at our group, it’s pretty young,” said head coach Geordie Kinnear. “It’s been young since the road trip when you lose Willy Lockwood. So [Dalpe] brings leadership and a certain level of competitiveness to our group. And you have to score goals to win - Zac can score goals.”
Dalpe may have been forced back to square one, but the work he’s put in just to return to the ice has set him up to keep his upward trajectory going.
“You just have to use that as a small building block there to hopefully keep putting something on top of it,” he said.
It was a frustrating road, but the captain is finally back with his group where he belongs.
“It’s just nice to be playing again and feel part of it,” said Dalpe.
AT THE QUARTER MARK
Charlotte’s next contest will officially put it at the quarter mark of the season.The Checkers are in the midst of a dogfight in the Atlantic Division, battling alongside the likes of the Penguins, Phantoms, Thunderbirds and Wolf Pack - all of whom are within two points of each other but have varying totals of games played - and chasing the defending champion Bears - who are 10 points clear of the second-place spot but have played a staggering six more games than Charlotte.
As the schedule continues to roll on, the view on what makes this team click becomes more clear.
“I think we have a lot of offensive threats to score if you look up and down our lineup,” said Dalpe. “And then our D and all four lines can generate offense. Some big bodies, some NHL experience, which is never a bad thing.”
Charlotte’s attack has put up the gaudiest of the numbers surrounding the team, boasting the league’s top offense and power play.
“I think offensively we’re there,” said Dalpe. “Maybe in years past it’s taken us a while to get to the building blocks that we needed to get to in order to be successful, but I feel like we’re getting there earlier this year.”
The Checkers continue to work on the other side of the puck, where they are currently tied for 16th in the league in terms of goals-against per game. The brightest spot defensively has come in the shot suppression department, as Charlotte is averaging the second fewest shots against in the AHL.
Building off that area of success and carrying it over into the full defensive realm has been an area of focus for the team as of late.
“You want to make sure you don’t give skill and elite teams time and space,” said Kinnear. “We’re learning what that time and space looks like and how to combat giving too much space.”
There is still plenty of hockey left to be played this season and plenty of growth to be had, but the Checkers find themselves in a positive space 25 percent of the way through.
“Right around Thanksgiving is a good time to start clicking,” said Dalpe. “I think we’re doing that.”
INJURY UPDATES
Navigating injuries is a challenge that every team encounters in any given season. For the Checkers, that challenge has presented itself over the last few weeks.Heading into the weekend, the Checkers have a star-studded list of skaters nursing a variety of ailments.
The most recent additions were Aidan McDonough and Ryan McAllister, who both exited Friday’s contest prematurely. McDonough’s injury was immediately deemed “longer-term”, and while McAllister was called day-to-day initially, that diagnosis has changed.
“It’s going to be longer term for sure,” said Kinnear of the injury to McAllister, who has not returned to the ice.
Mike Benning missed the first contest in the most recent road trip before suiting up for the next four, but he missed both games over the weekend and has not skated this week.
“Benning is going to be a little bit longer term too,” said Kinnear.
Up front Will Lockwood remains sidelined with an injury sustained on Nov. 10 and has not returned to skating, while Justin Sourdif has missed the last three games after returning from an injury that cost him the first month of the season.
“Sourdy is more day-to-day,” said Kinnear. “He makes some progress then takes a little step back. But that’s part of the injury.”
While removing key pieces like that certainly creates a challenge for the coaching staff, it also opens up slots for other hungry skaters to snatch up.
“For me it’s a great opportunity for guys who have worked hard on the road trip and come back here, younger guys who have put in the reps,” said Kinnear. “I’m excited to see these guys get more quality time on ice and make the most of it.”
“It’s the whole cliche of next man up,” said Dalpe. “Obviously you hate to see those guys lost to injury - McAllister was playing really well, same with McDonough. Crucial parts of the power play. But in the same breath that’s hockey, those guys are going to have to rehab and try to come back stronger. In the meantime some of the guys are going to have to step up and seize the opportunity. That’s the ebbs and flows and the nature of our business.”
