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The Checkers returned home from their latest road trip with two more victories, giving them five wins in their last six games.

A pair of two very different victories in Abbotsford, one by a 5-1 score and the other by a narrow 1-0 margin, have solidified the team’s position in the Western Conference playoff race (they lead ninth-place Rochester by 12 points), though they still trail the red-hot Texas Stars by five points for the top spot in a competitive South Division.

The Checkers’ six-game road swing concludes with their next game against Norfolk on March 1, after which time they finally return home to face Oklahoma City on Sunday and Monday. Those games start a stretch of playing 14 of their next 17 at Time Warner Cable Arena.

Week in Review

Checkers 5, Abbotsford 1

Zac Dalpe (2g, 2a) and Brett Sutter (1g, 3a) tied a franchise record with four points apiece as the Checkers scored three third-period goals to top Abbotsford by a 5-1 score on Friday. Both of Dalpe’s goals came shorthanded, making him the first Charlotte player to record multiple shorthanded goals in the same game, while Sutter recorded four points for the second time in three games. Matt Beca and Luke Pither also had goals and Justin Peters made 27 saves to earn the victory. Full recap

Checkers 1, Abbotsford 0

Justin Peters made a season-high 41 saves to earn his sixth shutout of the season and Chris Terry scored the game-winning, power-play goal with four minutes remaining as the Checkers completed their two-game sweep of Abbotsford with a 1-0 win on Saturday. Peters’ shutout extended his team records for most shutouts in a single season and most overall shutouts (seven), while Terry’s seventh game-winner of the season led the league and extended his own franchise record. Full recap

Notables

Peters Shuts the Door

Checkers goalie Justin Peters made a season-high 41 saves to record his sixth shutout of the season on Saturday, pulling him into second place in the AHL in that category. In doing so, Peters extended his career high and his own franchise record for most shutouts in a single season, while extending his team record for most total shutouts (seven).

Peters, who participated in his second AHL All-Star Classic in January, has started 15 of the Checkers' last 18 games. He is tied for seventh in the league in games played (36), is tied for third in wins (21), is tied for eighth in save percentage (.921) and is 10th in goals-against average (2.30).

The Checkers now have eight team shutouts this season, which ranks second in the AHL behind Syracuse's nine.

Terry's Winners

Checkers forward Chris Terry scored the game's only goal with 4:26 remaining in regulation in Abbotsford on Saturday to record his league-leading seventh game-winning goal of the season. That mark extends his own team record for most in a single campaign and gives him sole possession of first place in team history (14).

Six of Terry's game-winners came in the third period or later, including two by way of overtime, and six put the Checkers ahead in what had been a tie game. Terry also has one shootout-winning goal, which does not count towards his overall total.

Terry leads the Checkers and ranks tied for 10th in the AHL with 20 goals this season, marking the second time he has hit the 20-goal mark in his four professional campaigns. He also leads the team and ranks 18th in the league with 42 points.

More to Four

Checkers forwards Zac Dalpe (2g, 2a) and Brett Sutter (1g, 3a) tied their own career highs and tied a franchise record with four points apiece in a 5-1 win at Abbotsford on Friday. The feat has now been accomplished 12 times in team history, including six times this season and four times in the team's last four games.

Sutter is the only Checkers skater with two four-point games this season, both of which have come in his last four games (4a at Milwaukee on Feb. 16). Prior to that, he had never scored four points in a single game in 383 previous AHL contests. Dalpe now has three four-point games in his career, with Friday the first since he recorded back-to-back, four-point outings in January of 2011.

Other Checkers to record four-point games this season are Marc-Andre Gragnani (4a at Grand Rapids on Oct. 26), Tim Wallace (1g, 3a at Oklahoma City on Jan. 11) and Riley Nash (2g, 2a at Milwaukee on Feb. 16). All six four-point games this season have come on the road.

Dalpe Dangerous Shorthanded

Checkers forward Zac Dalpe scored two shorthanded goals against Abbotsford on Friday, making him the first Checker to score multiple shorthanded goals in the same game in the team's three AHL seasons. It also tied the most shorthanded goals scored by one player in a single AHL game this season, with two other players also scoring two.

The goals gave Dalpe three shorthanded goals on the season, which sets a new team record. Dalpe is the Checkers' all-time leader with seven shorthanded goals and is the only Charlotte skater with more than one this season.

Another Big Win

The Checkers' 5-1 win over Abbotsford on Friday marked their eighth win by four or more goals this season - the most in the AHL. No other team has more than six (Syracuse and Toronto).

The Checkers rank tied for second for the most wins by five or more goals (four), while their three wins by six or more goals are most in the AHL.

Fast Finishes

The Checkers out-scored Abbotsford by a combined 4-0 margin in the third periods on Friday and Saturday, improving their third-period goal differential to plus-29 (67 for, 38 against) this season. That mark, along with the team's 67 third-period goals, is the best of any AHL team in any period.

The Checkers' differential in each of the first two periods is much closer, as they are plus-1 in the first period (40 for, 39 against) and plus-3 in the second period (56 for, 53 against).

Power Surge

The Checkers, who have the AHL's best road power play at 27.5 percent, scored two more man-advantage goals in Abbotsford to improve to 13-for-31 (41.9 percent) in their last six road games. Meanwhile, the Checkers are 0-for-15 in their last four games at home, where they have the league's 30th-ranked power play at 11.6 percent.

Overall, the Checkers, who have a significantly higher amount of attempts on the road (138) than at home (86), rank tied for third in the AHL 21.4 percent.

PK is OK

The Checkers killed all 14 power plays they faced over the weekend - seven in each game - to improve to third in the AHL at 85.3 percent. Prior to those games, the Checkers, who are the AHL's third-best disciplined team with an average of 12.8 penalty minutes per game, had not found themselves shorthanded seven times in one game all season.

The team also scored two shorthanded goals on Friday, tying it for fifth in the AHL with eight on the season. The Checkers, who have not allowed a power-play goal since Feb. 14 (16 total attempts over four games), finished the month of February with an 88.2 percent success rate (30-for-34 in eight games).

Well Rounded

The Checkers rank in the AHL's top six in average goals scored (3.13 - 6th), average goals allowed (2.50 - 6th), power-play percentage (21.4% - t-3rd) and penalty-killing percentage (86.3% - 3rd). They are the only team to rank in the top six in all four categories.

Gragnani's Helping Hand

Despite missing 21 games this season due to injury and illness, Checkers defenseman Marc-Andre Gragnani ranks tied for third in the AHL and tied for first among active defensemen with 16 power-play assists. Gragnani, the only player in the AHL to record four power-play assists in a single game this season (at Grand Rapids on Oct. 26), has five assists in his last five games, including four on the man advantage. Seventeen of Gragnani's 21 points this season have come on the power play.

Road Warriors

The Checkers have compiled a record of 19-7-4 on the road, giving them a total of 42 points that is tied with Syracuse (20-6-2) for the most in the AHL. Charlotte is currently in the midst of a six-game road swing that marks the third time they have played six or more consecutive games away from Time Warner Cable Arena this season. Only one team has played more road games than the Checkers' 30 this season (San Antonio with 31).

Player Streaks

• Justin Shugg has points in each of his last four games (Feb. 16-23; 1g, 3a)
• Chris Terry has points in each of his last two games (Feb. 22-23; 1g, 1a)
• Luke Pither has points in each of his last two games (Feb. 22-23; 1g, 1a)
• Jerome Samson has points in each of his last two games (Jan. 4-6; 1g, 1a)

Injuries

• A.J. Jenks (upper body, Jan. 17) - missed 13 games
• Jerome Samson (upper body, Jan. 6) - missed 18 games

Transactions

Incoming

• Feb. 20 - (C) Brody Sutter recalled to Charlotte from Florida (ECHL)

Outgoing

• Feb. 18 - (C) Jeremy Welsh recalled to Carolina (NHL) from Charlotte
• Feb. 18 - (C) Riley Nash recalled to Carolina (NHL) from Charlotte

Coming Up

By the Numbers

Team Statistics
CATEGORY	RECORD	AHL RANK	LAST WEEK
Power play	21.4%	t-3rd	21.2% (t-4th)
Penalty kill	86.3%	3rd	85.3% (6th)
Goals per game	3.13	6th	3.13 (7th)
Shots per game	31.0	8th	31.5 (6th)
Goals allowed per game	2.50	6th	2.58 (7th)
Shots allowed per game	29.7	t-11th	29.5 (10th)
Penalty minutes per game	12.8	3rd	12.5 (1st)

Team Leaders
CATEGORY	LEADER(S)
Points	Chris Terry (42), Zac Dalpe (36), Riley Nash (35)
Goals	Chris Terry (20), Zac Dalpe (18), Zach Boychuk (16)
Assists	Riley Nash (24), Chris Terry (22), Marc-Andre Gragnani, Brett Sutter (20)
Power play goals	Zach Boychuk, Chris Terry (7), Drayson Bowman, Riley Nash (6)
Shorthanded goals	Zac Dalpe (3), five tied with (1)
Game-winning goals	Chris Terry (7), Zach Boychuk (5), Drayson Bowman, Zac Dalpe (3)
Shots on goal	Zac Dalpe (147), Chris Terry (127), Drayson Bowman (117)
Penalty minutes	Brett Bellemore (78), Nicolas Blanchard (77), Rasmus Rissanen (56)
Plus/minus	Zac Dalpe (+17), Justin Krueger (+14), Brett Bellemore (+12)
Wins	Justin Peters (21), Dan Ellis (8), John Muse (3)
Goals-against average	Justin Peters (2.30), Dan Ellis (2.46), John Muse (2.72)
Save percentage	Dan Ellis (.922), Justin Peters (.921), John Muse (.891)

Checkers in the NHL

Carolina Hurricanes
Player	POS	GP	G	A	PTS	PIM	+/-	NOTES
Drayson Bowman	LW	17	1	1	2	8	-4	First G of season vs. TB (2/23)
Zac Dalpe	C	6	0	2	2	0	-3	Reassigned to Charlotte 2/3
Justin Faulk	D	16	2	5	7	0	3	t-1st CAR D in PTS
Michal Jordan	D	5	0	0	0	2	-2
Riley Nash	C	4	0	1	1	0	0
Bobby Sanguinetti	D	13	1	1	2	4	-5	First NHL G at NYI (2/24)
Tim Wallace	RW	6	1	0	1	15	0	First CAR G at NYI (2/11)
Jeremy Welsh	C	3	0	0	0	0	0

Goaltender	GP	RECORD	GAA	SV%	SO	NOTES
Dan Ellis	6	3-2-0	2.39	.925	1

Checkers in the ECHL

Florida Everblades
Player	POS	GP	G	A	PTS	PIM	+/-	NOTES
A.J. Jenks	LW	14	1	2	3	9	+2	Recalled to Charlotte 1/10
Tommi Kivisto	D	42	4	10	14	33	-1	Recalled to Charlotte 2/14
David Rutherford	C	31	14	18	32	42	+2	Recalled to Charlotte 1/11
Beau Schmitz	D	45	0	7	7	31	-15
Justin Shugg	F	19	11	11	22	20	-2	Recalled to Charlotte 12/10
Brody Sutter	F	37	8	8	16	13	-3	Recalled to Charlotte 2/20

Goaltender	GP	RECORD	GAA	SV%	SO	NOTES
John Muse	21	9-8-4	3.61	.886	0	Recalled to Charlotte 1/12
Rob Madore	26	11-11-3	3.25	.902	1	Five-game W streak snapped 2/23

South Carolina Stingrays
Player	POS	GP	G	A	PTS	PIM	+/-	NOTES
Matt Beca	F	42	12	21	33	20	-6	Recalled to Charlotte 2/14

Reading Royals
Player	POS	GP	G	A	PTS	PIM	+/-	NOTES
Joe Sova	D	38	0	4	4	30	-13