Game Preview: Checkers at San Antonio (Nov. 15, 2014)

The Checkers conclude their two-game trip to San Antonio with a rematch against the Rampage tonight.

Having missed an opportunity to put together their first win streak of the season in Friday night’s 2-1 overtime loss, the Checkers hope to continue a recent trend of splitting two-game sets against the same opponent with a victory tonight. As it stands, they have earned points in three of their last four games (2-1-1), making that their most successful four-game stretch of the season.

Following tonight’s game, the Checkers make a brief return home to face the Norfolk Admirals on Tuesday before hitting the road to face another West Division opponent in Oklahoma City on Friday and Saturday.

Charlotte

Offense has been hard to come by all season for the Checkers, with Friday’s loss in San Antonio no exception.

Charlotte lost the game despite allowing just 17 total shots, which tied the franchise record for fewest in a single game. Had the game not gone to overtime, the 14 conceded at the end of regulation would have easily set a new mark. The end result was that the Checkers scored just one goal for the sixth time in their 12 games this season and remain 29th in the AHL with an average of 1.92 goals per game.

The defensive effort was enough that the Checkers may still have won the game with a single goal from Justin Shugg, who, in his return from injury, provided the much-needed spark with a third-period, power-play goal that tied the game at one goal apiece, if not for a freak Rampage goal in the first period. That goal came when Drew MacIntyre stopped the puck behind his own net and left it for a teammate, only to see San Antonio’s Andrew Yogan swoop in and score an empty-net wraparound.

Though the exception was an ugly 8-2 loss to Texas last week, the Checkers have allowed just one regulation goal in three of their last four games.

The Checkers may have to play tonight’s game without the services of Brody Sutter as injuries continue to rock their depth at center. With Ben Holmstrom and Patrick Brown already ruled out, Sutter’s first-period injury on Friday left the Checkers with just one true middleman in PTO signing A.J. Jenks. Greg Nemisz and Brendan Woods can and have played the position for much of this season, though coach Jeff Daniels prefers both on the wing.

With the Checkers’ extra forward being a winger in Alex Aleardi, Daniels must now get creative with his lineup or perhaps find someone else to play down the middle if Sutter is unable to go. The team has two extra defensemen in Dennis Robertson and Beau Schmitz.

With MacIntyre becoming the fastest Checkers goalie to make his 10th start of the season (12 games) on Fridray, John Muse could be in line to make his third of the campaign and first since an Oct. 25 game in Iowa as the Checkers prepare to play back-to-back contests. That said, MacIntyre’s 17-shot workload on Friday was light by his standards and Daniels has started him on consecutive nights on one previous occasion this season (vs. Grand Rapids on Oct. 17 and 18).

San Antonio

Friday’s win allowed the Rampage to claim the top spot in the West Division at 8-6-0, giving them a one-point lead over the Texas Stars, who have two games in hand. A perfect 6-0-0 divisional record has been a big part of that, with the team picking up three consecutive wins against Oklahoma City and Charlotte in the last week after dropping their previous four.

Over the course of their current winning streak, former Checker Dan Ellis has made all three starts, stopping 76 of 80 shots along the way to improve his goals-against average to 2.42 on the season. Among his 30 saves on Friday were a sparkling stop on Shugg’s one-timer in the slot in the second period and back-to-back stops against Chad LaRose on a shorthanded, two-on-one break in overtime. The latter immediately set up the game-winner as Drew Shore struck on the counterattack with Danny Biega in the box for hooking.

“We got outplayed for most of it,” Shore told Rampagecentral.net following the game. “Good teams, the best teams find a way to win even when they don’t have their best game. We’re making strides towards doing that and I think tonight was a step in that direction.”

The goal was the first in 14 games for Shore, a 2009 second-round pick with 67 NHL games under his belt. He now ranks tied for fourth on the team in scoring behind veteran forward Bobby Butler (14 points) and 31-year-old defenseman Shane O’Brien, who has 528 games of NHL experience and 10 points in 12 games this season but sat out Friday’s game as a healthy extra.

Should the Rampage not turn back to Ellis, who has yet to start on consecutive days this season, the honors would go to Michael Houser. The 22-year-old has a 3.97 goals-against average and .854 save percentage this season and gave up five goals on 25 shots in his last appearance against Rockford on Nov. 1. His seven goals allowed at Adirondack on Oct. 29 tie the most by an AHL goaltender this season.

Checkers Notes

Against the Rampage

Tonight marks the 22nd all-time meeting between the Checkers and Rampage, with the Checkers holding a 12-8-1 record, including wins in five of the last nine matchups. Of those nine contests, six were decided by just one goal, including San Antonio's 2-1 overtime victory on Friday.

Charlotte's Justin Shugg, who scored his team's lone goal on Friday, has seven points (4g, 3a) in his last nine games against the Rampage, while defenseman Michal Jordan has six (1g, 5a) during that same time period. For San Antonio, Friday overtime hero Drew Shore has nine points (2g, 7a) in his last eight games against Charlotte.

Checkers goalie John Muse went 5-1-0 in six games against San Antonio last season, posting a 2.96 goals-against average and .908 save percentage along the way. In five appearances against Charlotte last season, Michael Houser went 2-2-1 with a 3.16 goals-against average and .899 save percentage.

Checkers forwards A.J. Jenks and Jared Staal have both suited up for San Antonio in the past, while Rampage goalie Dan Ellis played 18 games for Charlotte during the 2012-13 NHL lockout.

This weekend's series marks the second of eight games this season between the division rivals and the second of four in San Antonio. The Checkers have a 6-4-1 record all-time at AT&T Center.

Series Splits

This weekend's series against San Antonio marks the sixth time the Checkers have played consecutive games against the same opponent this season. Apart from being swept by Grand Rapids, the Checkers split the previous four series, winning one game and losing the other. All four of the Checkers' wins have come after a loss, and the team has yet to win consecutive games. The latest in a season that a Checkers team has taken to register consecutive wins is 15 games, a record set during the inaugural 2010-11 campaign. Tonight will mark their 13th game of the season.

Worst Behavior

The Checkers currently average 22.2 penalty minutes per game, which is the fifth-highest total of all AHL teams. They are tied for fifth with 16 major penalties while also chipping in four 10-minute misconducts and one match penalty. In their four previous AHL seasons, the team never finished with an average higher than 16.5 penalty minutes per game.

Forward Kyle Hagel leads the Checkers with 39 penalty minutes, including five majors that tie him for second most in the AHL. Carter Sandlak's 33 penalty minutes make him third among league rookies, while Trevor Carrick's three major penalties tie him for the most among first-year AHL players.

Nemisz Heating Up

After recording one point, an assist, in his first five games, Checkers forward Greg Nemisz has posted seven (5g, 2a) in his last seven. Since the Hurricanes acquired Nemisz from the Calgary Flames organization last season, the 24-year-old, first-round draft choice in 2008 now has 19 points (8g, 11a) in 26 games with Charlotte.

Low-Scoring Affairs

The Checkers, who average 1.92 goals per game thus far (29th AHL), have been held to a single goal in six of their 12 games this season, all resulting in a loss. They have scored more than two goals just three times. Two of the four lowest shot totals seen in the AHL this season belong to the Checkers, who took a franchise-record 15 against Chicago on Oct. 11. Their single shot in the first period of that game also set a franchise record and is tied for the lowest single-period total seen in the league this season. The Checkers rank 28th in the AHL with an average of 26.2 shots per contest.

Meanwhile, on the defensive side of the equation, the Checkers' 17 shots allowed to San Antonio on Nov. 14 tied the franchise record for fewest in a game originally set at Springfield on Oct. 10, 2010. Although the exception is an ugly 8-2 loss to Texas on Nov. 8, the Checkers have allowed just one regulation goal in three of their last four outings. All four of the Checkers' victories this season have come when the team allows just one goal.

Quick Hits

• Defenseman Rasmus Rissanen became the seventh player to play 200 games as a Checker on Friday. He ranks second in all-time games played by a defenseman and second among active Checkers behind Michal Jordan's 278.
• Justin Shugg scored the Checkers' lone goal on Friday after missing each of the team's previous eight games dating back to an injury suffered on Oct. 12. He now has two goals in four games this season.
• Brock McGinn's eight shots on goal Friday were a career high and the most taken by a Checker this season. Fellow rookie Phil Di Giuseppe posted the next-highest total with seven at Iowa on Oct. 25.
• The Checkers are 1-1 in overtime games this season - neither of which has reached the new three-on-three format or a shootout.
• The Checkers' special teams units have fared much better on the road, as they own the 16th ranked power play (16.7 percent) and and 10th ranked penalty kill (88 percent). At home, their power play ranks 30th at 3.4 percent and their penalty kill ranks tied for 19th at 81.3 percent.
• Drew MacIntyre's 10 starts are the most-ever by a Checkers goalie through 12 games

Streaks

• Drew MacIntyre has started five consecutive games

Injuries

• Ben Holmstrom - missed four games starting 11/2
• Patrick Brown - missed two game starting 11/10

Milestones

• Kyle Jean is one shy of 150 pro games
• Beau Schmitz is one shy of 50 AHL games
• Keegan Lowe is one shy of 100 AHL/professional penalty minutes
• Justin Shugg is five shy of 100 pro goals
• Alex Aleardi is five shy of 50 pro points
• Chad LaRose is six shy of 150 pro goals
• Rasmus Rissanen played his 200th AHL/professional game at SA (11/14)

Transactions

Incoming

• Nov. 11 - (D) Michal Jordan assigned to Charlotte from Carolina (NHL)
• Nov. 10 - (LW) Kyle Jean signed to a professional tryout contract from Greenville (ECHL)

Outgoing

• Nov. 10 - (D) Michal Jordan recalled to Carolina (NHL) from Charlotte