Game Preview: Checkers at Norfolk (March 25, 2015)

The Checkers wrap up their longest road swing of the season tonight in their final matchup with the Norfolk Admirals, who are moving to the ECHL next season.

Charlotte heads into the game having won two straight contests, sweeping Iowa over the weekend. With a 3-2-2 record so far this season, the Checkers could clinch the season series with a victory tonight.

Following this game, the Checkers will return home for their final and longest home stand of the season, a six-game stretch starting with games against the Lake Erie Monsters this Friday and Sunday.

Charlotte

The Checkers travel to Norfolk to bring their longest road swing of the season to a close. After suffering two brutal losses in a row, the Checkers swept the Wild in back-to-back contests in Iowa to come into tonight's contest on a winning streak.

While their offense has been sporadic at best for much of the season, the Checkers turned in seven combined goals in the two contests in Iowa. A big catalyst in that production was the return of Chad LaRose, who came back after missing 11 games with an injury. On top of scoring a goal of his own on Sunday, his inclusion in the lineup had bigger effects on the team as a whole.

"It gives Chucky another skilled player to play with," said head coach Jeff Daniels. "He’s a calming influence on the ice. He’s patient with the puck and he makes plays. He was our leading points guy before he got hurt and he’s kind of picked up where he left off."

The Checkers head into tonight's game with several players on hot streaks. The most impressive of which has been Trevor Carrick, who has lit it up as of late with points in each of his last three games and 12 in his last 11, setting franchise records for goals, assists and points by a rookie defenseman. The young blueliner was held out of practice yesterday with a bug, but made the trip to Norfolk and is expected to play.

The Checkers could be getting another piece of their ailing blue line back soon as well. Keegan Lowe, who has missed 11 games with an injury, was a full participant in practice yesterday for the first time since getting hurt.

"We’ll see," said Daniels on Lowe's status. "He’s itching to get back in the lineup. It’ll be sooner rather than later, for sure."

If he is not ready to go, the Checkers have found a serviceable replacement in the meantime with veteran Jordan Henry.

"He’s been great on the bench, very vocal," said Daniels. "He’s helping out with some of the younger guys. That’s what we’re looking for, some experience back there. He’s knows he’s just here day to day, but he was a very positive influence on both games this past weekend."

Another key for the Checkers to continue their recent success will be the play of their special teams. Charlotte's power play has scored a goal in 10 of their last 14 games dating back to Feb. 22, going 13-for-51 (25.5 percent) with the man advantage. That has pulled their overall percentage from out of the basement of the AHL.

"We’re shooting the puck and getting bodies in front of the net," said Daniels. "You look at the goals we’ve scored lately, it’s either been with a deflection in front of the net or a rebound. As much as you want to get cute with the puck, at the end of the day most of those goals come from those situations. So we have to keep that up."

Norfolk

The Admirals continue to limp their way to the end of the season, having lost 13 of their last 15 games and finding themselves in the cellar of the Eastern Conference.

Norfolk's offense has fallen off drastically here down the stretch, with their 2.11 goals per game putting them in dead last in the AHL. In seven of their last nine contests, the Admirals have been held to two goals or fewer. Max Friberg leads the squad in scoring with 29 points, making Norfolk the only team in the AHL to not have a 30-point scorer on their roster. With Chris Wagner and Emerson Etem in the NHL with the Ducks, Louis Leblanc's 12 goals pace the Admirals, the lowest total by a goals leader in the league.

Friberg has had a hot hand as of late, racking up four points in his last two contests, while rookie blue liner Jaycob Megna has recorded a point in each of his last three games. The other bright spot for the Admirals has been defenseman Brandon Montour. After putting up 20 points in 21 game sduring his freshman season at UMass, Montour has forgone his final three years of college eligibillity and signed with Anaheim, who selected Montour in the second round of last year's draft. In the three games he has played with Norfolk, the 20-year-old has recorded two assists.

Jason LaBarbera has taken full command of the Norfolk crease, having started eight of the team's last nine games. Despite putting up solid number (2.50 goals against average and 0.917 save percentage in 30 games) the 15-year veteran hasn't gotten much help, finding himself with just one win in his last 11 appearances.

Checkers Notes

Against Norfolk

Tonight marks the last of eight meetings against Norfolk - the only Eastern Conference team the Checkers play this season - and the final time that the two squads will face each other, as the Admirals are moving to the ECHL starting next season. Including a 3-2-2 record this season, the Checkers have an all-time mark of 23-15-5 against their former East Division rival, including a 10-8-3 mark in Norfolk. Charlotte has won the season series three times in their four AHL campaigns, with the exception coming during the Admirals' 2011-12 Calder Cup campaign.

Of active Checkers, Trevor Carrick (1g, 3a) and Justin Shugg (3g, 1a) lead the team with three points apiece in seven games. John Muse has started four games, going 2-1-1 with a 2.60 goals-against average and .927 save percentage, while Drew MacIntyre is 1-1-1 with a 2.58 GAA and .927 SV%.

Nic Kerdiles leads the Admirals in scoring against the Checkers this season with six points (3g, 3a) in five games. The two goalies on the Admirals current roster, Jason LaBarbera and Ryan Faragher, have faced the Checkers a total of three times. LaBarbera is 0-0-1 in his two appearances with a goals-against average of 3.45 and a save percentage of .904, while Faragher lost his lone game, registering a goals-against average of 3.12 and a save percentage of .833.

Home And Road

With a pair of wins this weekend in Iowa, the Checkers moved out of a tie for the fewest road points in the AHL this season, but their 20 losses away from home are the second most in the league, trailing only Norfolk. Meanwhile, the Checkers are 17-13-2 at home, including wins in six of their last eight games.

The Checkers have a -48 goal differential on the road (66 goals for, 114 against) and a -5 goal differential at home (83 goals for, 88 against). All five shutouts the Checkers have suffered this season occurred on the road.

Carrick Lights It Up

With 12 points in his last 11 games, Trevor Carrick has emerged as an offensive force on the Checkers blue line. He currently leads all Charlotte defensemen in goals (six), assists (20) and points (26), all of which are new records for a Checkers roookie defenseman. Of his five multi-point outings this season, four have occurred during the month of March, including a trio of two-assist efforts in his last five games.

Carrick is currently tied for third on the team in points. His 20 assists lead the team. Eleven of his assists have come on the power play, a total that leads the Checkers, ranks fourth among all AHL rookies and first among AHL rookie defensemen.

A fourth-round pick in 2012, the 20-year-old Carrick put up 51 points in his final season of junior last year, split between Mississauga and Sudbury, and ranked second among OHL defensemen in goals (22).

Sutter Strikes

Brody Sutter's two-goal effort on Saturday marked his second AHL multi-goal game and first since scoring two goals, including the overtime winner, in his first professional playoff game at Oklahoma City on April 26, 2013. He also assisted on Justin Shugg's game-winner, giving him a point on all three Checkers goals in the 3-2 victory and marking a new career high for points in a single game. He then followed that up with another goal the following night, giving him six points in his last five games.

Sutter, who has been limited to just 38 games this season due to injury, has now tied his career high of eight goals set in 69 games last season. His first goal on Saturday marked his 50th AHL point (133 games).

MacIntyre's Workload

Checkers goalie Drew MacIntyre, who has played in six of the team's last eight games, ranks fourth in the AHL with 2,544 minutes played and is second with 1,265 saves. He would only need to appear in four of the team's last 11 games to tie the franchise record for games played by a goaltender in a single season (48 by Justin Pogge in 2010-11).

MacIntyre has made 40 or more saves seven times this season, including twice in his last six starts. Though he has yet to record a shutout, he has won five games by a 2-1 score. He owns a .933 save percentage in overtime games this season (42 saves on 45 shots) and has stopped 21 of 23 in the shootout. He is tied for the league lead in shootout victories this season (4-1 record).

MacIntyre, a 31-year-old veteran now playing his 12th professional season with his eighth AHL club, ranks 10th on the league's all-time wins list with 210 and is just 22 wins away from tying Frederic Cassivi for fifth. He has a 210-139-25 record, 2.48 goals-against average, .935 save percentage and 16 shutouts in 397 career AHL games dating back to the 2004-05 season.

Shugg Takes Over

By scoring 15 points (6g, 9a) in his last 18 outings, Justin Shugg has taken over the Checkers' leads in goals (19, a new career high) and points (36). He is also tied with Ryan Murphy for second on the team in assists with 17.

Shugg, 23, now ranks sixth on the franchise's all-time points list with 108 points (47g, 62a) in 202 games played. He needs two more to pass Jerome Samson and move into the top five.

Powering Up

The Checkers have scored a power-play goal in 10 of their last 14 games dating back to Feb. 22, going 13-for-51 (25.5 percent) during that time. As a result, their power play has risen out of the league's lowest-ranked spot it had occupied since Dec. 14 and now ranks 27th in the AHL at 13.5 percent.

Saturday's game in Iowa marked the sixth time the Checkers have scored multiple power-play goals in a single game this season and second in as many games. All six of those instances have come since Jan. 16. In Sunday's rematch, the Checkers were not awarded a power play, the second time this season that has happened.

Quick Hits

• After winning consecutive games just once before Feb. 16, the Checkers have accomplished that feat four times since
• Kyle Hagel ranks second in the AHL with 21 major penalties, all fights.
• Chad LaRose leads the AHL with three shorthanded assists.
• The Checkers are the only AHL team that has yet to record a shutout.
• Phil Di Giuseppe fourth among AHL rookies with 143 shots on goal.
• The Checkers' two shorthanded goals allowed tie Manchester for the fewest in the AHL.

Streaks

• Trevor Carrick has assists and points in each of his last three games (0g, 5a)
• Justin Shugg has points in each of his last three games and goals in each of his last two games (2g, 2a)
• Brody Sutter has goals and points in each of his last two games (3g, 1a)
• Zach Boychuk has points in each of his last two games (1g, 1a)

Injuries

• Keegan Lowe - missed 11 games starting 2/27
• Greg Nemisz - missed 45 games starting 12/8 (out for season)

Milestones

• Mike Cornell is two shy of 200 AHL penalty minutes
• Jared Staal is one shy of 100 AHL penalty minutes
• Justin Shugg is three shy of 50 AHL goals

Transactions

Incoming

• March 21 - (D) Jordan Henry signed to professional tryout contract

Outgoing

• March 24 - (LW) Carter Sandlak assigned to Florida (ECHL)
• March 18 - (D) Danny Biega recalled by Carolina (NHL)