Game Preview: Checkers vs. Grand Rapids (Oct. 18, 2014)

After dropping their home opener on Friday, the Checkers get another crack at the Grand Rapids Griffins in tonight’s 7 p.m. rematch at Time Warner Cable Arena.

Continuing an early-season trend seen in the team’s opening road trip one week earlier, the Checkers got standout goaltending but not enough offense in their first home game, a 2-1 defeat. AHL saves leader Drew MacIntyre stopped 41 shots in the defeat, which had the exact same scoreline as the team’s previous two games in Chicago (one loss and one overtime victory).

Charlotte has now lost each of its last two games against Grand Rapids dating back to last season, both of which took place at Time Warner Cable Arena. The teams meet a total of eight times this season.

Charlotte

With the likes of Zach Boychuk, Victor Rask and Chris Terry currently impressing in the NHL with Carolina, not to mention other players from last year’s team having moved on to other clubs, scoring was always going to be a question for a relatively inexperienced Checkers club. With seven goals in four games, it seems they have yet to find the answer.

“We have some young guys who have some potential, but by no means are we putting pressure on those guys to step up,” said coach Jeff Daniels. “It’s got to be done by committee, and right now our forwards have to do a better job of protecting the puck, making stronger plays with the puck and going to those tough areas.”

Though seven different Checkers have scored goals this season, none have scored more than one. The team’s scoring lead is shared by Alex Aleardi, Ben Holmstrom, Dennis Robertson and Brendan Woods, each of whom have two points.

To this point, opponents have out-shot the Checkers by a combined 142-77 margin. Charlotte ranks last in the AHL with an average of 19.3 shots per game, while it allows the fourth-most at 35.5 per game.

“We’re a fragile team,” said MacIntyre following Friday’s loss. “We just don’t have a lot of confidence. (On Sunday in Chicago) to squeak it out, I thought we’d react better with having more confidence. You can tell we’re jittery with the puck and whatnot in our own end. That’s going to come, but we’ve got to be better.”

“You look at the last three games, (the goalies) have given us a chance to win and that’s going to be key early here until we get our legs under us and get a little rhythm going with our team,” said Daniels. “They’re doing their job, and we’ve got to help them out and cut down on some chances against.”

Staying out of the penalty box will be a huge key in tonight’s rematch. Though they’ve passed with flying colors by nullifying 21 of 23 (91.3 percent), the Checkers’ penalty killers are among the most tested in the league. The Griffins’ nine power plays on Friday were the most allowed by the Checkers since Oct. 30, 2011, at Houston (10).

“I think our goaltending has been real good and our PK was real good again tonight,” said Daniels. “Right now those are the two positives. I think if we cut down on some shots against and some penalties we might be a little fresher to play the other way, but right now we’re killing ourselves with too much time in our end killing penalties and soft plays.”

Given the back-to-back set and MacIntyre’s heavy workload to this point, Daniels may elect to turn to John Muse, who made 27 saves in his only appearance of the season last Saturday in Chicago. Other players available for tonight’s game who did not play Friday are center Mike Aviani, who is awaiting his professional debut after singing a tryout deal on Thursday, and Robertson, who has not played since the Checkers’ first game of the season in Milwaukee.

Grand Rapids

Another team that has struggled to find offense early in the season, the Griffins are actually slightly behind the Checkers in terms of goals per game (1.67 vs. 1.75). Much like the Checkers in their only win of the season last week, they were nonetheless able to gut out a close victory.

Petr Mrazek, one of two standout goaltenders on the Griffins roster along with Tom McCollum, stopped 18 of 19 shots on Friday. McCollum, who turned in a stellar 35-save effort in his team’s previous trip to Charlotte in April to put a serious dent in the home team’s playoff hopes, may get the start tonight.

Those two returning players join a strong returning core in Grand Rapids, giving that team much more continuity than their opponents in that regard. Friday’s winning-goal scorer, Teemu Pulkkinen, one of Boychuk’s chief competitors for the league’s top goal scorer with 31 last season, has picked up right where he left off with three points (2g, 1a) in three games to lead the team. Friday’s other goal scorer, Xavier Oullet, was on the cusp of making the Detroit Red Wings’ team out of training camp after posting 17 points (4g, 13a) in his rookie season with Grand Rapids.

The Griffins could be joined tonight by Andy Miele, a Second-Team All Star in the AHL last season, who did not play Friday after the Red Wings assigned him to Grand Rapids the previous day. Miele, a Hobey Baker award winner as national college player of the year in 2011, posted 72 points (27g, 45a) in 70 games with the Portland Pirates last season but has only recently recovered from offseason surgery.

Checkers Notes

Against the Griffins

After splitting last season's series with a 2-2-0 record, the Checkers hold an 8-5-0 mark against Grand Rapids all-time. Charlotte is 4-3-0 against the Griffins in Time Warner Cable Arena. The Checkers won the first six meetings between the two clubs, but have dropped five of the last seven, including two straight on home ice. Of the 13 previous meetings, only three have been decided by more than two goals.

Back Home

Friday's 2-1 loss to Grand Rapids dropped the Checkers to 2-3-0 in their five home openers as an AHL franchise. They have now lost each of their last two home openers and, dating back to last season, have dropped three in a row at Time Warner Cable Arena.

Slow Start

The Checkers' 1-3-0 start to the season ties the fewest amount of points earned (two) through four games in the team's five AHL seasons. Charlotte also went 1-3-0 in its inaugural 2010-11 campaign, one that would go on to mark its most succesful in terms of total points earned (97, 44-27-9) and furthest advancement in the playoffs (Eastern Conference Final).

Holding the Fort

Goalie Drew MacIntyre, who signed a two-way contract with Carolina this offseason, leads the AHL in saves with 104 and is second in minutes played with 180. A veteran of 357 career AHL regular-season games, his last two mark the first time he has posted 40 or more saves in back-to-back games (42 and 41).

Shooting Gallery

Through four games, opponents are out-shooting the Checkers by a combined 142-77 margin. They have allowed over 40 shots in each of their last two games, marking the first time they have done so since Dec. 29-30 of last season. They have also registered fewer than 20 shots in each of their last three games, marking the first such stretch in franchise history.

Two of the three lowest shot totals in the AHL this season belong to the Checkers, who set a franchise record with 15 on Oct. 11 before taking 16 the following day (Manchester registered 14 on Oct. 12). Meanwhile, two of the four highest shot totals taken in the league came against the Checkers (Chicago and Grand Rapids each took 43 on Oct. 12 and 17, respectively).

For the season, the Checkers rank last in the league with an average of 19.3 shots per game and 27th with an average of 35.5 shots allowed per game.

Quick Hits

• With their lone victory coming in overtime, the Checkers have yet to hold a lead for any amount of time this season.
• All four of the Checkers' games this season have come against the Midwest Division.
• Five of Charlotte's seven goals this season were scored in the second period.
• The Checkers' nine power plays allowed to Grand Rapids on Friday marked their most in a single game since Oct. 30, 2011, at Houston (10).
• Despite playing just one game, rookie Dennis Robertson is tied for first among AHL rookie defensemen in scoring (0g, 2a). He is also is tied for seventh among all league defensemen and is ninth among all rookies.
• Winger Phil Di Giuseppe ranks second among AHL rookies with 10 shots on goal.
• Rasmus Rissanen is tied for the league lead in terms of minor penalties by defensemen (4).

Player Streaks

• Alex Aleardi has points in each of his last two games (Oct. 12-17: 1g, 1a)

Milestones

• Mike Aviani set for professional debut
• Ben Holmstrom is three shy of 500 AHL penalty minutes
• Brody Sutter played his 100th AHL game vs. GR (10/17)
• Patrick Brown made his AHL debut vs. GR (10/17)

Injuries

• Justin Shugg - missed one game starting 10/17

Transactions

Incoming

• Oct. 17 - (C) Patrick Brown reassigned to Charlotte from Carolina (NHL)
• Oct. 17 - (C) Brody Sutter reassigned to Charlotte from Carolina (NHL)
• Oct. 16 - (C) Mike Aviani signed to professional tryout contract from Florida (ECHL)

Outgoing

• Oct. 14 - (D) Austin Levi assigned to Florida (ECHL) from Charlotte
• Oct. 12 - (LW) Zach Boychuk recalled to Carolina (NHL) from Charlotte