Lucas Carlsson tied the game with 3.1 seconds left and Gerry Mayhew scored the winner in overtime in the first meeting between these teams with the 2015-16 season. Zac Dalpe and Ryan McAllister also scored for Charlotte, which got a second straight victory in goal from Spencer Knight.
The teams play a rematch Saturday night that will conclude the Checkers’ four-game home stand.
Dalpe got things started with his second goal of the season on a redirection with less than a minute remaining in the first period. The Gulls would score the next two in the second, however, with former Checkers defenseman and 2019 Calder Cup champion Trevor Carrick assisting on the first goal and scoring the other.
After sitting out the last two games, McAllister got on the score sheet by finishing off a frantic play in front of goal to briefly tie the game late in the second. That was quickly canceled out by the Gulls, who got a would-be winner when Ben King tipped a shot from Carrick.
Charlotte turned on the pressure late in the third, securing several minutes of time in the Gulls zone even before Knight made way for the extra attacker. A timeout to draw up one final play on an offensive zone faceoff worked wonders, with Carlsson quickly firing home to tie the game.
Buzzer beater to force OT and one more for the win.
— Charlotte Checkers (@CheckersHockey) November 4, 2023
You love to see it. pic.twitter.com/oWyecZZup0
QUOTES
Gerry Mayhew on overtimeYeah, I thought that we had the puck most of the time. Got them tired. Made a couple changes, had some fresh legs. Had a chance to end it and I messed it up and got a second chance.
Mayhew on his first chance
I think I faked myself out on that one. I’ve been on a little slump, I would say, for goals, so it was good to get that.
Mayhew on learning from a tough loss in Rochester to win three straight
Yeah, definitely, you know. We’re a young team and they’re going to learn and sometimes it’s an unfamiliar way, but luckily we have another game the next night, usually, so um, we just continue to do the right thing.
Mayhew on Dalpe’s injury
Yeah it’s a pretty scary situation there. Knowing his past with his knees, and stuff, it’s tough to see and tough to watch, we were all holding our breaths.
Coach Geordie Kinnear on the team’s resiliency Yeah, that’s a word I used, too, with our group: resilient, after the second period. Gotta stick to it and be resilient and I thought they did, and we were rewarded for it.
Kinnear on three straight wins after a tough loss in Rochester
Yeah well, we continue to learn what winning hockey looks like. It’s a process and we’ve talked about respecting that process. You know, it’s still early in the season and there’s going to be lots of lessons, we learned a couple tonight. We lost coverage on the faceoff there, we don’t like to do that. You know, it’s a nice shot, but it’s a free goal, it’s a coverage thing, so we continue to learn, continue to grow. Guys get experience, guys are getting opportunities, so I’m proud of the group tonight.
Kinnear on Lucas Carlsson
Yeah, he’s just, he’s been “Carly” right? Like that’s what you see, what you come to expect. He plays a lot of hard minutes. I repeat myself many times over again, but when you’re the hardest working guy everyday in practice you’ll be rewarded for it and he’s obviously one of those guys.
Kinnear on Dalpe having to leave the game in the second period after a hard collision with a Gulls player
To be honest, there’s concern for both players. Obviously, Dalps, because he’s on our side, but you don’t like those collisions because no one is expecting them. I hope everybody’s OK to play tomorrow, but those are scary, again because no one is expecting it, and it’s part of the game we play but I’m glad both guys got up.
Kinnear on Gerry Mayhew
Yeah, well he had to be resilient. He hasn’t had the start he wanted, with regards to production so he had a lot of chances the last little while. He’s been getting those chances, and we stuck to him in overtime. Gerry’s just a good leader. Brings it every single day, every single game. Has an extreme passion for the game, so I’m happy for Gerry but more, I’m happy for the group.
