Checkers Drop Weekend Finale In Springfield

Details
The Checkers put up a fight in their weekend finale, but a tough start proved to be too much to overcome as they fell 5-2.

The Thunderbirds came out firing in Sunday’s matchup, opening the scoring just 21 seconds after the puck dropped and doubling their lead less than five minutes after that. Gerry Mayhew gave the Checkers some life shortly after, but that didn’t slow down the home side - Springfield would tack on another two goals before the first buzzer sounded and went to the locker room with a staggering 4-1 lead.

SCORE SHEET
That would ultimately be enough for the Thunderbirds. Lucas Carlsson would pull off a stunning coast-to-coast goal in the middle frame to cut into the lead (and set a franchise record for goals by a defenseman at the same time), but Charlotte couldn’t find a spark beyond that. Springfield struck once more in the third to cap things off, and a busy weekend for the Checkers ended with a 5-2 defeat.



NOTES

The Checkers finished their three-in-three weekend with a 1-1-1-0 record … Lucas Carlsson scored for the third straight game to set a franchise record for goals in a season by a defenseman, surpassing Jake Bean (2018-19) and Mark Flood (2013-14) … Carlsson’s goal also moved him into the league lead among blue liners … Today’s loss snapped Charlotte’s road points streak at nine games, which was tied for the franchise record … Gerry Mayhew scored for the second straight game and extended his point streak to three games … The Checkers were outshot 21-3 in the first period … Those 21 shots were the most the Checkers have allowed in a period this season … Springfield’s 40 shots are the most the Checkers have allowed this season … J-F Berube entered the game to start the second period … Riley Nash, Cory Conacher, Connor Bunnaman and Cam Morrison were the scratches for Charlotte