The Checkers hit the road over the weekend and shook out of their slump, navigating a tough three-in-three schedule to collect a pair of impressive victories over formidable foes.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Team Statistics
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Overall record
12-10-0-0
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Home record
6-6-0-0
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Road record
6-4-0-0
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Last week's record
2-1-0-0
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Last 10 games
4-6-0-0
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Division Standings
6th
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Conference Standings
8th
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League Standings
16th
The Checkers kicked off the trip with some fireworks in Rochester. Brendan Perlini put on a show offensively en route to a hat trick, and - after Riley Bezeau gave Charlotte a lead in the opening frame - the visitors blew the game open with a four-goal third to cement the lopsided win.
Things didn’t go as smoothly the next night in Lehigh Valley. The Checkers fell into a 2-0 hole in the first and couldn’t dig their way out. Jake Wise broke through for the visitors in the third to pull them within two, but they couldn’t put anything else past Phantoms netminder Cal Petersen, who finished the night with a gaudy 36 saves.
The Checkers quickly got themselves back on track with a big win over the AHL’s top team in the third leg of the three-in-three. Mackie Samoskevich found the back of the net twice - once opening the scoring in the first and again in the third to put the game out of reach - and the Checkers’ defense did the rest, holding Hershey to just 14 total shots while Spencer Knight stood tall and pulled off the win.
QUICK HITS
ROAD DOGS
The Checkers have excelled away from home as of late, earning wins in five of their last seven road tilts. Looking at the numbers, the Checkers have seen a small dip in goals per game on the road (2.80) as opposed to home ice (3.00) but have fared noticeably better on the defensive side of things - allowing 2.60 goals per game on the road compared to 3.17 at the Coliseum.
WINNING THE SHOT BATTLE
One trend that has emerged for the Checkers is their ability to stifle their opponent’s shot production. Charlotte is giving up the third fewest shots per game in the AHL (26.09) and has held the opposing team to 25 or fewer shots in five of the last six contests. Overall this season, the Checkers have outshot their opponents in 16 of 22 games and in each of their last 11 tilts.
SAMO'S SCORING TOUCH
Mackie Samoskevich came up big in Sunday’s win over Hershey, notching his first multi-goal effort as a pro. The rookie forward now has seven points in his last eight games - including five goals, a mark that ties him for third among rookies and eighth among all AHL skaters since Nov. 20.
POWER OUTAGE
The man advantage has been a work in progress for the Checkers thus far, ranking 29th in the league. Charlotte has scored a power-play goal in one of its last six contests and has seven conversions over the last 67 times the team has had a power-play opportunity.
HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK
Second goal of the night to put away the defending champs - pretty clutch from Samoskevich!
Transactions
Incoming
- Dec. 9 – Cam Morrison recalled from Florida (ECHL)
Outgoing
By the Numbers
| CATEGORY |
RECORD |
AHL RANK |
| Power play |
13.8% |
29th |
| Penalty kill |
87.8% |
2nd |
| Goals per game |
2.91 |
22nd |
| Shots per game |
31.36 |
8th |
| Goals allowed per game |
2.91 |
t-12th |
| Shots allowed per game |
26.09 |
3rd |
| Penalty minutes per game |
12.05 |
t-22nd |
LEADERS
| CATEGORY |
LEADER(S) |
| Points |
Lucas Carlsson (19), Patrick Khodorenko, Gerry Mayhew (13) |
| Goals |
Lucas Carlsson (8), Five tied (5) |
| Assists |
Lucas Carlsson (11), Santtu Kinnunen (10), Rasmus Asplund, Gerry Mayhew (9) |
| Power play goals |
Jake Wise, Mike Benning, Zac Dalpe, Brendan Perlini (2) |
| Shorthanded goals |
Justin Sourdif (1) |
| Game-winning goals |
Lucas Carlsson (4), Gerry Mayhew, Patrick Khodorenko (2) |
| Shots on goal |
Lucas Carlsson (86), Zac Dalpe (55), Rasmus Asplund (44) |
| Penalty minutes |
Lucas Carlsson (32), Riley Bezeau (25), Justin Sourdif (24) |
| Plus/minus |
Patrick Khodorenko (+6), Four tied (+4) |
| Wins |
Spencer Knight (7) |
| Goals-against average |
Mack Guzda (2.02), Ludovic Waeber (2.53), Spencer Knight (2.57) |
| Save percentage |
Mack Guzda (.930), Ludovic Waeber (.903), Spencer Knight (.899) |
