Game Preview: Checkers vs Hartford (Dec. 13, 2018)

The Checkers are back at home to kick off a whirlwind slate of games heading into the holiday break starting with a Thursday night matchup against the Wolf Pack. Here are nine things to know before puck drop.

1. CARDIAC CHECKS

The Checkers have won three straight games coming into Thursday’s contest, all of which came in thrilling fashion. Each of those victories featured the Checkers erasing two-goal deficits, with two of those comebacks taking place in the third period. In fact, at 3-2-1 the Checkers are the only team in the AHL with a winning record in games where they trailed after two periods of play.

None have been more jaw-dropping then the Checkers’ come-from-behind victory over Springfield last weekend, in which they erased a two-goal deficit with under a minute to play and won in overtime.

“I haven’t ever seen anything like that and I’ve been around a long time,” said Checkers head coach Mike Vellucci. “It was good, we stayed with it. We were aggressive in pulling our goalie early and they kind of got a lucky bounce to score on the empty net but we stayed positive. You don’t see it too often but I never rule anything out with these guys. They love to win.”

2. STEPPING UP

Last weekend saw the Checkers missing several key faces from their usual group, but the new-look lineup impressed and got the job done with a pair of hard-fought road victories.

“I’ve said it all year, we have a lot of depth,” said Vellucci. “Sometimes there are guys who are out of the lineup who we know should be in.”

Perhaps the most notable depth forward was Nick Schilkey, who stepping into the lineup and produced five points over the two games, giving him four goals over the Checkers’ last four games.

“He always seems to get the short end of the stick but when he’s called upon he plays great,” said Vellucci of the second-year pro. “Even when he’s out of the lineup he’s got a great attitude so I was excited to see him get those two goals Saturday.”

The Checkers have also counted on young talent like Steven Lorentz to factor into the lineup, as the second-year forward was recalled from Florida and remains with the team through this week.

“Lorentz gets called up and he played really well,” said Vellucci. “He was physical and played a power forward game and that’s what we need out of him.”

3. BUSY SCHEDULE

Thursday kicks off a busy slate of games for Charlotte heading into the holiday break. Starting with tonight’s contest against Hartford the Checkers will play four games over the next six days, the first part of a tough stretch that will test the team’s mettle.

“It’s six games in 10 days and we’re going to empty the tank every game,” said Vellucci. “So it’s about getting the proper rest and getting back at it.”

4. NECAS STAYS HOT

Martin Necas continues to tear through his rookie campaign, entering tonight on a three-game point streak. The rookie forward is coming off back-to-back games with four and three assists, respectively, efforts that were impressive enough to garner him AHL Player of the Week honors.

It took some time for Necas to find his scoring touch with the Checkers – going scoreless in his first four AHL games – but the 19-year-old has caught fire since then, racking up 20 points over 18 games and pushing his way to third on the team in scoring. That hot streak has rocketed Necas into a tie for fourth among AHL rookies in scoring as well.

“He’s getting more comfortable in his offensive game,” said Vellucci. “This is a tough league, it’s not as easy as everybody thinks it is. You come down here and you have to earn your spot and earn your points and he’s done that offensively.”

The next step for the teenager is to round out the rest of his game, something Necas is committed to.

“We’ve been doing some more video where we work on his play away from the puck, it’s improved but it can still get better,” said Vellucci. “He’s learning every day and he wants to learn and that’s the key.”

5. HOME SWEET HOME

After an extended road swing the Checkers are finally back in the friendly confines of Bojangles’ Coliseum, where they have turned in some strong showings this season. The Checkers, who have played the fewest home games in the AHL, have won six of their eight contests in Charlotte this season – including each of the last three – and have not lost any consecutively.

6. MCKEGG STANDS OUT

With six points over a four-game stretch Greg McKegg was on a tear before having to exit the lineup die to an injury in early November. Sitting out for four games didn’t derail McKegg’s offensive game, however, as the forward immediately got right back to producing. McKegg, who is currently on a three-game point streak, has racked up nine points in his last seven games, finding the scoresheet in all but one of those contests.

7. SHOOT YOUR SHOT

Despite ranking in the middle of the AHL pack in terms of shots per game, the Checkers have ratcheted up the volume of pucks on net as of late.

After going five consecutive games with a shot total in the 20s, the Checkers have fired at least 30 shots on goal in each of their last four games, including a season-high 47 in a win over Providence earlier this month. Over that stretch of four games with 30+ shots the Checkers logged a 3-1-0 record.

8. BEST BEHAVIOR

After a run as the league’s most penalized team, the Checkers have done their best to stay out of the box over their last handful of games. In fact, the team kept their penalty minutes in the single digits for five of the last seven contests, something that only happened three times through the first 19 games.

Overall this season the Checkers are 6-2-0 when taking less than 10 minutes’ worth of penalties.

9. TUNE IN

If you can't make it to Bojangles' Coliseum tonight, you can tune in to the broadcast with a subscription to the league’s new streaming platform AHLTV. Sign up here and catch the action.

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!