Game Preview: Checkers at Milwaukee (Nov. 15, 2016)

The Checkers are back in action and looking to start another streak as they travel to Milwaukee for the first time this season to face the division-leading Admirals.

Here are nine things to watch for in tonight's game.

1. LOCKDOWN

Despite a few hiccups as of late, the Checkers’ have been one of the strongest defensive teams in the AHL this season. They rank third in the league in terms of goals against per game and second in terms of shots against per game, and have allowed two or fewer goals in six of their last eight contests.

The majority of the Checkers’ success this season has stemmed from that stingy defense, as they are 5-1-0 when allowing two or fewer goals in a game.

The Checkers’ defense has shown some vulnerability recently, however. After a stretch where they allowed single-digit shots in nine out of 10 periods, the Checkers have now allowed double-digit shots in four of their last five.

They’ll face a Milwaukee team tonight that hasn’t been spectacular offensively, slotting right in the middle of the pack in terms of the league’s goals per game rankings. Still, the Admirals have been buoyed by the formidable forward duo of Matt White and Adam Payerl.

2. LEIGHTS OUT

A big contributing factor to the Checkers’ overall defensive prowess this season has been the play of Michael Leighton. The veteran netminder was saddled with his first loss of the year on Saturday, bringing his record to 6-1-0, but even with that blemish he has put up jaw-dropping numbers.

Leighton ranks second in the AHL in goals-against average, with his 1.44 mark leading all goalies with at least five games played (the lone player ahead of him in the league rankings is Penguins rookie Casey DeSmith, who has appeared in four games and is right at the minute cutoff to qualify).

The win over Iowa on Friday was the 227th of Leighton’s AHL career, moving him past Gord Henry and into sole possession of seventh all time. He needs two more to tie Bobby Perreault for sixth.

3. FRESHMAN PHENOM

Though he has cooled from his red-hot start, Andrew Poturalski has emerged as a force on the team and one of the top first-year players in the league. He is tied for fourth among league rookies in scoring and is tied for second with a plus-7 rating.

With 10 points through the first 11 games of the year, Poturalski is on pace to compete for the franchise rookie single-season scoring record, set in 2010-11 when Zac Dalpe recorded 57 points.

4. MISSING FIREPOWER

The Checkers have been without their top two scorers for the last two game as Derek Ryan and Brock McGinn were recalled by the Hurricanes Friday evening.

Those two contests marked the third and fourth games over the last two seasons in which both players were out of the lineup. In those four games without McGinn and Ryan, the team scored just five goals total and were shut out twice.

Losing the captain alone from the lineup has proven to be a big hit for the Checkers’ offense as well. In the six games he missed last season, the team scored nine goals for a 1.50 goals per game average, well below their season mark of 2.82.

To make up for the loss of two of their top producers, the Checkers will look for an offensive spark from other candidates. Valentin Zykov has been a force in front of the net early on this season, as has Patrick Brown. Keegan Lowe has lit the lamp three times already, matching his career high, while Lucas Wallmark has seen an uptick in his production. But the biggest boost could come from two proven scorers in Sergey Tolchinsky and Andrew Miller. The former is starting to come around after a bit of a slow start, while the latter continues to ramp up his play after missing the beginning of the season due to injury.

5. PHIL'S BACK

The losses of Ryan and McGinn were somewhat offset by the return of Phil Di Giuseppe to the lineup. The third-year pro began last year in Charlotte before heading up to the NHL, where he would spend the majority of his season, producing 17 points in 41 games with Carolina.

After beginning this season with the Hurricanes, Di Giuseppe had a bit of slow start, going scoreless through the first 11 contests. Now with the Checkers, the 23-year-old will be looked at to take the reins of the offense.

Coming into this season, Di Giuseppe had racked up 49 points (19g, 30a) in 104 games with the Checkers. He (along with the rest of the team) was held scoreless in his first game back last Saturday, but he did lead the club with seven shots on goal. Di Giuseppe’s offensive prowess should be a significant boost for the Checkers, especially on the power play.

6. ON THE ROAD

While they have been flawless on their home ice, it has been a different story for the Checkers on the road.

Charlotte is 3-4-0 away from home, with all three wins coming against Iowa. Despite being just outscored overall (22-23), three of the four road losses have been by at least two goals.

7. OFFENSE COMES THROUGH

The Checkers have leaned on their offense to bring them success this season.

The team is 6-0-0 when scoring three or more goals this season, accounting for all but one of their wins, and are 6-2-0 when outshooting their opponent. Similarly, they have excelled when they get their offense going early, holding a 6-2-0 mark when scoring the first goal, and are defending leads, having only lost one game in which they led or were tied at either intermission.

8. START STRONG

The Checkers have been a dominant team late in games. On the season they are outscoring their opponents 14-3 in third period. In fact, the empty net goal surrendered to Rockford on Saturday was the first third-period goal the Checkers have allowed in eight games. The middle frame has been tight, but they hold a slight 8-7 advantage in the scoring department there too.

It has been the first period that has given the Checkers fits thus far. Despite outshooting opponents 124-109, Charlotte has been outscored in the opening frame this season by a count of 16-13.

9. TUNE IN

There's been a string of bad luck regarding the radio broadcasts in away buildings as of late, but hope fully things will turn around for tonight's broadcast! Tune in to hear Jason Shaya's call, with the pregame show kicking off at 7:45, and tweet at him to let him know you're listening!