Game Preview: Checkers at Belleville (Jan. 4, 2019)

The Checkers are kicking off 2019 with a three-in-three trek through Canada, starting tonight with a visit to Belleville.

1. NEW YEAR, NEW ME

It’s only been a few days since they last played, but the Checkers’ roster for the first game of 2019 features a lot of turnover. Charlotte’s second-leading scorer Janne Kuokkanen was returned to the team from his NHL recall, with Saku Maenalanen taking his spot on the Canes’ roster, while Greg McKegg was recalled this morning to replace Clark Bishop, who suffered an injury last night. The Checkers also added former Olympian Bobby Sanguinetti on an AHL deal and receieved Martin Necas back from his stint at the World Junior Championships, but it’s unclear whether either skater will be ready to go for this weekend’s series.

2. POTTING POINTS

Despite not getting an All-Star nod, Andrew Poturalski has been the Checkers’ most dominant offensive weapon throughout the season. The third-year forward leads the team and ranks 10th in the AHL with 33 points thus far, as well as tying for third in game-winning goals and tying for the league lead in overtime-winning goals.

Poturalski has been especially strong as of late, registering 13 points over the last 12 games.

3. SLOW STARTS

The Checkers have found themselves in holes early on as of late. Over their last 10 games the team has registered a first-period goal in just two of them while surrendering at least one in six of those. In fact, the Checkers have allowed two or more goals in the first period in four of the last five games, getting outscored 11-1 in those opening frames.

The good news for the Checkers is that they have shown an ability to erase those deficits. Over the last 10 games Charlotte is 6-2-2 despite being outscored 13-2 in the first periods of those games.

4. LAST TIME

The Senators have traveled to Charlotte for a pair of games already this season just before Thanksgiving. The first was a lopsided affair that saw the visitors respond to Charlotte’s opening goal with five unanswered tallies to run away and hand the Checkers a frustrating defeat. The Checkers rebounded the next night, however, tying the game at two inside the final three minutes of regulation and then winning in overtime thanks to a tally from Martin Necas.

Both contests featured Alex Nedeljkovic and Filip Gustavsson facing off between the pipes.

5. SCOUTING THE SENS

Sitting just below .500, the Senators currently slot in just outside of the North Division playoff picture at sixth place. Belleville’s offense ranks in the bottom third of the league but possesses plenty of firepower, namely rookie Drake Batherson, who is averaging over a point per game, and veteran Paul Carey, who spent all of last season in the NHL. They also received 11-goal scorer Jack Rodewald back from Ottawa but subsequently lost leading scorer Rudolfs Balcers to recall.

Filip Gustavsson has taken the majority of the action in the crease, appearing in 22 of Belleville’s 36 games this season. The rookie netminder, who boasts a 9-11-1 record with a 3.50 goals-against average and an .887 save percentage, has allowed three or more goals in five of his last seven appearances.

The Sen’s brightest spot this season has been their play in Belleville, where they have logged the second-most home wins in the AHL with an 11-6-0 record.

6. TUNE IN

You can tune in to tonight's broadcast with a subscription to the league’s new streaming platform AHLTV. Sign up here and catch the action on the road.

As always, the radio broadcast will be available via the Checkers app or this link, so tune in and tweet Jason Shaya to let him know you’re listening!