After falling behind 2-0 on a pair of goals by All-Star rookie defenseman Kyle Wood in each of the first two periods, the Checkers got goals from Valentin Zykov and Patrick Brown to even things up in the first half of the third period. However, the Roadrunners’ Laurent Dauphin found wide-open space in the game’s final minute, one-timing a Tyler Gaudet pass home past Michael Leighton for the dagger.
The game was the first of back-to-back contests at Gila River Arena in Glendale, Arizona – home of Tuscon’s NHL parent club, the Arizona Coyotes.
Tucson goaltender Adin Hill, who stopped 34 shots in his only other meeting with the Checkers, a 2-1 overtime loss for Tucson just two weeks ago, was again outstanding with a 37-save effort in this contest as the Checkers out-shot their opponent 39-24. The rookie netminder also got some help from his post late in the game, with Charlotte defenseman Roland McKeown drawing iron as the Checkers pressed to get the winning goal before Dauphin and the Roadrunners got it first.
Leighton, playing his first game following his most recent NHL stint with Carolina and his fifth career AHL All-Star appearance, did his part by holding his ground in a penalty shot situation shortly after Zykov’s goal. On the attempt, Tucson’s Chris Mueller shot high and wide over Leighton’s left shoulder.
The loss dropped Charlotte to 2-10-1 against the Pacific Division, with their only two victories having come against Tucson at home. All of the other games were on the road, where the Checkers are now 6-17-2 on the season.
