Charlotte came right out of the gates firing on all cylinders, with David Wohlberg and Ethan Werek each lighting the lamp in the first three minutes of play. The IceHogs were able to quickly get one of those tallies back, but the Checkers poured on two more in the final five minutes of the frame to head into the first intermission with a sizeable 4-1 lead.
The scoring slowed down in the second, but the Checkers kept their foot on the gas, outshooting the IceHogs 16-3 in the frame. Justin Shugg popped in a rebound out front for the period’s lone goal, and the home team moved on to the third with a four-goal advantage. Rockford didn’t take their shellacking laying down, however. After penalties muddied up the first half of the third, the IceHogs put home two goals in the final six minutes of play to narrow the gap to 5-3. But the Checkers were able to snuff out the rally, and Patrick Brown delivered the final blow with an empty netter from the neutral zone, icing Charlotte’s 6-3 rout.
The Checkers’ performance was a tale of two halves, roaring out early but letting the IceHogs back in a bit late. Still, those highs were enough to stave off their opponent.
As they have in their last few contests, Charlotte’s new additions came up big, factoring in one two of the goals in the first period. The new-look roster for the Checkers has provided the spark it was intended to.
“There’s a little more size on our team right now,” said Morris. “Some guys with a little swagger that really help to balance things out for us.”
The newest face on the ice belonged to Andrew Poturalski. The nation’s second-highest college scorer this year at the University of New Hampshire, Poturalski made his pro debut tonight just days after signing with Carolina and did not disappoint. The 22-year-old was thrown right into the thick of things and came away with his first pro goal, finishing up a tic-tac-toe passing play from Sergey Tolchinsky and Shugg. That trio was a force throughout the game.
“I thought we played well and made some good plays,” said Poturalski. “They made a great play on my goal and set me up for an empty-netter. I said, ‘Thank you’ in the huddle. It was fun playing with them.”
Even with such a short preparation, Poturalski slid seamlessly into the lineup and did not look out of sorts.
“I thought he played really well,” said Morris. “He seemed to have that early success and he looked like he belongs for sure. He moves the puck well, sees the ice and wants to possess it.”
Shugg ended up with three points on the night, leading all skaters. This performance, his best all season, comes one game after serving as a healthy scratch, something that was used as a kind of motivational tool.
“It’s amazing what a little in-house competition will do to get guys to play up to their potential,” said Morris. “It’s never an easy choice for any coach to have to draw the line as to who’s in and who’s out. Your biggest hammer as a coach is ice time, and when push comes to shove it’s usually up to the effort that the guy gives. You want to be firm and fair, and I’m happy that we had some success there.”
With their backs against the wall in terms of making the playoffs, the Checkers have now rattled off three straight wins. This one over a Rockford team that has blazed ahead to first in the mighty Central Division shows how strong this team can be when it’s clicking.
“That team’s been at the top of the standings the whole year,” said Shugg of Rockford. “When you come in and play a game like that it just shows that we’re prolific and resilient. We’ve got accountable guys in that room that respect each other.”
The Checkers will face this same Rockford team tomorrow. The IceHogs will undoubtedly came at them will all they have after taking their most lopsided loss in a month, but Charlotte has built some momentum and is showing off that same level of confidence they had early on in the season.
“Swagger is the right attitude,” said Shugg. “We’re just rolling with it right now.”
