Weekly Report: March 16, 2015

Facing off this week with the two top teams in the Western Conference, the Checkers found themselves on both ends of the spectrum in terms of results.

The Checkers entered the week having taken three of their last four games, and while they couldn't keep the momentum of that hot streak going, they came away with a four-game split against some formidable opponents.

They will continue their longest road trip of the season this week with a midweek match against the Rampage followed by a back to back series this weekend in Iowa.

Week in Review

Grand Rapids 3, Checkers 2

Welcoming the hottest team in the AHL to town, the Checkers nearly upended the streaking Griffins, but came up just short. Rookie Brock McGinn gave the home team the lead with an early power-play goal, but the Griffins got it back to keep the teams square heading into the second period. Grand Rapids rookie Andreas Athanasiou gave his team the lead with a highlight reel goal in the second, then Nick Jensen added an insurance marker early on in the third to put Grand Rapids ahead 3-1. Brendan Woods pulled the Checkers back within striking distance later in the third, but they could not find the tying goal, and the Griffins escaped with their 16-game points streak intact. Full recap

Checkers 2, Grand Rapids 1 (SO)

With a day off to prepare for their rematch, the Checkers turned in a strong performance to earn two points in the standings. The two squads skated to a stalemate until early in the third, when Martin Frk finally broke through and gave Grand Rapids the advantage. Justin Shugg responded midway through the frame with a snipe to knot things up and send the game to overtime. After that didn't provide a winner, the game moved on to a shootout. For the home team, Brody Sutter was stopped in the first round, Brock McGinn and Shugg each beat Tom McCollum on their attempts. On the opponent's side, Adny Miele put the Griffins on the board with the first attempt, but Drew MacIntyre shut down the following skater. With the game on the line, MacIntyre stonewalled Kevin Porter and clinched the win for the home team. The victory moved the Checkers to 5-1 in shootouts this season, currently the second-best mark in the AHL. Full recap

Checkers 2, Oklahoma City 1

The Checkers kicked off their longest road trip of the season against the division-leading Barons and came away with their most thrilling victory of the year. Brad Hunt put the home team on the board late in the first frame with a power-play strike, but rookie Phil Di Giuseppe lit the lamp in the second with a power-play goal of his own to tie things up. The teams battled for much of the rest of regulation without a go-ahead goal and it looked as if overtime was inevitable. But with 27 seconds to go, Curtis Hamilton was sent to the box for slashing, giving the Checkers a man advantage for the last bit of regulation. With less than two seconds left on the clock, Zach Boychuk ripped a wrister that beat Laurent Brossoit and gave the Checkers a buzzer-beating win. Full recap

Oklahoma City 6, Checkers 1

Having beaten the top two teams in the Western Conference in back-to-back contests, the Checkers entered their final game at Cox Convention Center with some momentum, but it wasn't enough to escape the Barons' revenge. Curtis Hamilton kicked off the scoring just 73 seconds in, and the Barons never looked back. They added two more to head into the first intermission with a 3-0 lead. The Checkers stopped the bleeding somewhat in the second, allowing just one goal, but they couldn't mount any attack of their own. Andrew Miller chipped in two goals in the third to complete his hat trick and push the Oklahoma City lead to 6-0. Brendan Woods broke up Laurent Brossoit's shutout bid with a goal late in regulation, but the game was already in the books and the Checkers left OKC with a 6-1 loss. Full recap

Notables

Home And Road

The Checkers have been two completely different teams on the road and at home this season. At the friendly confines of Time Warner Cable Arena, the Checkers are 17-13-1-1, giving them the third highest number of home wins in the Western Conference. That record includes a 6-2 mark in their last eight contests on home ice. They also have 82 goals for at home, with a goal differential of -6.

On the opposite end of the spectrum is their road record, which currently sits at an AHL-worst 8-19-4, including a 3-7 mark over their last 10 games. Their offense has been non-existent on the road, with the team managing just 56 goals and a goal differential of -45.

Boychuk's Back

Reigning AHL goal-scoring champion Zach Boychuk has found his scoring touch of late with seven goals and 11 points in his last 14 games. Since being held off the score sheet in 10 of 13 games following his reassignment from the NHL on Jan. 8, he has scored at least one point in 10 of his last 14.

Six of Boychuk's 11 goals this season have come on the power play, tying him with Chad LaRose for the team lead in that category and making him responsible for 20 percent of the team's total (30 goals) despite playing in only 29 games. Boychuk led the AHL with 18 power-play goals last season, with that total accounting for exactly half of his team-record 36 on the campaign.

Boychuk is the Checkers' all-time leader with 113 goals and 52 power-play goals in 271 games played.

Carrick Lights It Up

Rookie defenseman Trevor Carrick has found his scoring touch of late, recording seven points (2g, 5a) in his last eight games. He currently leads all Checkers defensemen in goals (six) and points (21). His goal total is a new record for a Checkers rookie defenseman while his point total is one shy of tying Ryan Murphy's record set in 2013-14.

A fourth-round pick in 2012, the 20-year-old Carrick put up 51 points in his final season of junior last year, split between Mississauga and Sudbury, and ranked second among OHL defensemen in goals (22).

MacIntyre's Workload

Checkers goalie Drew MacIntyre ranks fourth in the AHL with 2,427 minutes played and is second with 1,208 saves. He would only need to appear in six of the team's last 13 games to tie the franchise record for games played by a goaltender in a single season (48 by Justin Pogge in 2010-11).

MacIntyre has made 40 or more saves seven times this season, including twice in his last five starts. Though he has yet to record a shutout, he has won five games by a 2-1 score. He owns a .933 save percentage in overtime games this season (42 saves on 45 shots) and has stopped 21 of 23 in the shootout. He is tied for the league lead in shootout victories this season (4-1 record).

MacIntyre, a 31-year-old veteran now playing his 12th professional season with his eighth AHL club, ranks 10th on the league's all-time wins list with 209 and is just 23 wins away from tying Frederic Cassivi for fifth. He has a 209-138-25 record, 2.46 goals-against average, .935 save percentage and 16 shutouts in 395 career AHL games dating back to the 2004-05 season.

Shugg Takes Over

Justin Shugg's game-tying goal in the third period of the Checkers' last game on March 12 was his 17th goal of the season, establishing a new career high, and giving him sole possession of team leads in goals and points (32). The third-year forward has 11 points (4g, 7a) in his last 15 outings, including one overtime-winning goal and not including one shootout-winning goal. His eight shots on goal on March 12 marked a new career high and tied the most taken by a Checker this season.

Shugg, 23, now ranks sixth on the franchise's all-time points list with 104 points (45g, 59a) in 199 games played. He needs six more to pass Jerome Samson and move into the top five.

Powering Up

The Checkers have scored a power-play goal in eight of their last 11 games dating back to Feb. 22, going 9-for-41 (21.9 percent) during that time. As a result, their power play has risen out of the league's lowest-ranked spot it had occupied since Dec. 14 and now ranks 27th in the AHL at 12.4 percent.

Saturday's game in OKC marked the fourth time the Checkers have scored multiple power-play goals in a single game this season. All four of those instances have come since Jan. 16.

Shootout Success

Charlotte's six shootout appearances and five shootout victories this season tie them for the second-most in the AHL behind Lehigh Valley (seven appearances, six wins) in both categories. Meanwhile, the Checkers are 2-5 in games decided during the seven-minute overtime period.

The Checkers have found success in the shootout by scoring seven goals on 26 attempts (.269, 14th AHL). Meanwhile, their goaltending tandem of Drew MacIntyre (21 saves on 23 attempts) and John Muse (three saves on four attempts) have given the Checkers the third-best save percentage in the league at .889 percent. In MacIntyre's only shootout loss of the season, he stopped seven of eight while receiving no goals of support.

The Checkers' top scorers in the shootout this season are rookie Brock McGinn (two goals on three attempts) and overall scoring leader Justin Shugg (two goals, both game-winners, on five attempts). McGinn ranks second among AHL rookies in shootout percentage (66.7) and Shugg is tied for the AHL lead in shootout-winning goals.

Ranks

• Kyle Hagel is tied for third in the AHL in major penalties (19)
• Chad LaRose is tied for the AHL lead in shorthanded assists (3) and shorthanded points (4)
• Greg Nemisz leads the AHL in shooting percentage (25.0%)
• Drew MacIntyre ranks second in the AHL in saves (1,208), fourth in minutes (2,427), and is tied for the AHL lead in shootout wins (4)
• Justin Shugg is tied for the AHL lead in shootout-winning goals
• Phil Di Giuseppe is tied for fourth among AHL rookies in shots (138)
• Brock McGinn is tied for the lead among AHL rookies in shootout goals (2) and is tied for second in shootout percentage (50%)
• Danny Biega is tied for the lead among AHL defensemen in shootout percentage (50%)
• Trevor Carrick is tied for sixth among rookie defensemen in scoring (21)

Injuries

• Keegan Lowe - missed eight game starting 2/27
• Chad LaRose - missed 10 games starting 2/25
• Greg Nemisz - missed 42 games starting 12/8 (out for season)

Milestones

• Brendan Woods played in his 100th pro game on 3/14
• John Muse played in his 150th pro game on 3/14
• Zach Boychuk played in his 450th pro game on 3/12

Transactions

Incoming

• None

Outgoing

• March 11 - (LW) Gabriel Desjardins released from his professional tryout contract

Coming Up

By the Numbers

Team Statistics
CATEGORY	RECORD	AHL RANK	LAST WEEK
Power play	12.4%	27th	28th
Penalty kill	85.4%	10th	11th
Goals per game	2.21	29th	29th
Shots per game	28.97	23rd	21st
Goals allowed per game	3.00	22nd	22nd
Shots allowed per game	33.08	27th	27th
Penalty minutes per game	17.79	22nd	22nd

Team Leaders
CATEGORY	LEADER(S)
Points	Justin Shugg (32), Chad LaRose (31), Brendan Woods, Phil Di Giuseppe (23)
Goals	Chad LaRose (17), Justin Shugg (16), Four Tied (11)
Assists	Chad LaRose, Justin Shugg, Trevor Carrick, Phil Di Giuseppe (15)
Power play goals	Zach Boychuk, Chad LaRose (6)
Shorthanded goals	Greg Nemisz, Brendan Woods (2)
Game-winning goals	Chad LaRose (3)
Shots on goal	Chad LaRose (144), Phil Di Giuseppe (138), Justin Shugg (136)
Penalty minutes	Kyle Hagel (139), Mike Cornell (113), Keegan Lowe (102)
Plus/minus	Dennis Robertson (+2), Greg Nemisz (+1), Sean Dolan (-1)
Wins	Drew MacIntyre (17)
Goals-against average	John Muse (2.66)
Save percentage	John Muse (.917)