Paul Branecky
(Twitter: @Paul Branecky)

The Checkers begin the second leg of their season-long road swing with their first-ever match-up with the Milwaukee Admirals tonight.

Charlotte enters the game having taken two of three games on the road last weekend and has won six of its last eight contests, improving to 6-3-1 overall. Though it technically holds fewer points in the standings (eight to the Checkers’ 13) due to having played two fewer games, Milwaukee actually holds a better winning percentage with a record of 5-2-1.

	GAME INFORMATION
	VIDEO: www.AHLLive.com
	RADIO: WFNZ 610 AM | www.AHLLIVE.com
	TWITTER: @CheckersHockey | @PaulBranecky
	SEASON SERIES
	Friday, Nov. 4 at 8 p.m. (Milwaukee)
	Saturday, Nov. 26 at 7 p.m. (Charlotte)
	Sunday, Nov. 27 at 2 p.m. (Charlotte)
	Saturday, Jan. 7 at 8 p.m. (Milwaukee)
	Friday, Feb. 10 at 8 p.m. (Milwaukee)
	Tuesday, April 3 at 7 p.m. (Charlotte)
	Thursday, April 5 at 7 p.m. (Charlotte)
	Sunday, April 15 at 4 p.m. (Milwaukee)
	CHECKERS STATS
	RECORD	6-3-1-0	2nd Western Conference
	GOALS / GAME	3.10	t-13th AHL
	GOALS ALLOWED / GAME	2.60	t-7th AHL
	POWER PLAY	12-53 (22.6%)	9th AHL
	PENALTY KILL	34-42 (81.0%)	17th AHL
	PIM / GAME	14.70	8th AHL

With a regulation win tonight, the Admirals, who currently sit in seventh place, would tie the Checkers in points and could move as high as the No. 2 seed.

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CHARLOTTE

The Checkers underwent a bit of a roster shake-up earlier in the week, with forward Drayson Bowman, tied for the team’s goal-scoring lead with 5 in 10 games, recalled to the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday. To help offset the loss of Bowman and fellow winger Zach Boychuk, who has been in the NHL since Oct. 25, the Canes assigned center Zac Dalpe to the Checkers.

Dalpe, named to the AHL’s All-Rookie team after posting 57 points (23g, 34a) in 61 games with Charlotte last season, will be looking to pick up where he left off following two weeks on the sidelines with a lower-body injury. The 22-year-old made the Hurricanes out of training camp this season and was playing on the team’s fourth line up until his injury in Buffalo on Oct. 14. Checkers coach Jeff Daniels said the team will use Dalpe as much as possible over the weekend, keeping in mind that he’s still working his way back into pre-injury fitness.

Goaltender Justin Peters will make his return to the lineup following an injury of his own, having not seen game action since having to leave the Oct. 21 against Houston. Daniels said that he is expected to play one game this weekend in relief of Mike Murphy, who has made appearances in the Checkers’ last six games and in eight of 10 overall.

The Checkers will be without forwards Cedric McNicoll and Justin Shugg for the next three games, as each did not make the trip due to injury. McNicoll suffered a lower-body injury in Oklahoma City last Friday, while Shugg was cut by his own skate during a practice accident on Tuesday. Left wing Scott Pitt, recalled from the Florida Everblades and set for his AHL debut, will give the team the full allotment of 12 forwards.

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MILWAUKEE

Though the Admirals have lost each of their last two games, allowing five goals in each, those mark their only regulation losses of the season. Prior to dropping back-to-back decisions at home to Grand Rapids and Texas last Saturday and Sunday, respectively, Milwaukee had earned 11 out of a possible 12 points in their first six games, including one shootout loss to Abbotsford.

Up front, the Admirals are led by Chris Mueller (7 points), Kyle Wilson (7 points) and Ryan Thang (6 points). Thang, the team’s goal-scoring leader (5), made his NHL debut during a one-game stint with the Nashville Predators earlier this week. On defense, rookie Ryan Ellis, the 11th overall pick in the 2009 draft and arguably the Admirals’ top NHL prospect, has goals in each of his last two games.

Goaltender Jeremy Smith has enjoyed a nice start, currently ranking third in AHL goals-against average (1.79), helping Milwaukee achieve the league’s third-stingiest defense. A second-round pick of the Predators in 2007, Peters is a former junior hockey teammate of the Checkers’ Brett Bellemore, Chris Terry and Justin Peters with the Ontario Hockey League’s Plymouth Whalers.

The Admirals are the AHL’s best-disciplined team, recording an average of just 8.50 penalty minutes per game. They may need to stay that way to be successful, as their penalty kill is ranked 29th overall with a 70.4 percent success rate. Their power play ranks 24th at 14.8 percent.

The Admirals are coached by former NHL star Kirk Muller, who is in his first season as a head coach after spending the last five as an assistant with the Montreal Canadiens.

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CHECKERS NOTES

• The Checkers begin their third in a set of four consecutive three-in-three weekend clusters on their schedule tonight. Charlotte is 4-4-2 all time in game one, its worst record of any of the three days. The Checkers are 1-1-0 in the first game of three-in-threes so far this season, and have posted winning records in each of their first two sets.

• At 6-3-1, the Checkers’ month of October was considerably more successful than last season, when the team posted a record of 3-6-1. In 2010-11, Charlotte started the month of November with a six-game points streak (4-0-2) on its way to a 97-point season.

• Charlotte is the only AHL team that has not trailed entering the third period this season. The Checkers have led going into the third period in seven of their 10 games (4-2-1).

• Center Jon Matsumoto recorded two points (1g, 1a) on Sunday for his team-high fourth multi-point game of the season. Matsumoto leads the Checkers in scoring and ranks tied for 11th in the AHL in points with 12 (4g, 8a).

• Jerome Samson took nine shots in Houston on Sunday, the most by any Checkers player in any game this season. That total included six in the first period alone, and vaulted him into first place in the AHL with 54 in 10 games. His average of 5.4 shots per game is higher than his average of 4.6 from last season, in which he ranked fifth in AHL with 245 despite playing in just 53 games. Charlotte currently ranks sixth in the AHL with an average of 33.4 shots per game.

Samson, who recorded two points (1g, 1a) on Sunday, is now second on the team in points (10) and is tied with Drayson Bowman for the team lead in goals. He currently holds a four-game points streak (2g, 4a), which is tied with Matsumoto for the longest by any Checkers player this season.

• Despite seeing his run of wins in five consecutive starts come to an end on Sunday, goalie Mike Murphy still ranks second in the league in save percentage, (.937), tied for second in wins (5), fourth in saves (224) and fifth in goals-against average (2.08). Murphy is also one  of just four goaltenders to have stopped all comers in the shootout (5-5).

• Checkers defenseman Justin Faulk had two assists on Sunday to record his first professional multi-point game. The 19-year-old rookie now has 5 points (1g, 4a) in six AHL games this season and ranks tied with Bobby Sanguinetti for the team lead for points among defensemen.

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TRANSACTIONS

CHARLOTTE

Nov. 3 – Left wing Scott Pitt signed to a professional tryout agreement by Charlotte
Nov. 2 – Goaltender John Muse reassigned to Florida (ECHL) by Charlotte
Nov. 2 – Center Zac Dalpe assigned to Charlotte by Carolina (NHL)
Nov. 2 – Left wing Drayson Bowman recalled to Carolina (NHL) from Charlotte

MILWAUKEE

Nov. 1- Right wing Ryan Thang reassigned to Milwaukee by Nashville (NHL)
Oct. 31 – Center Ben Ryan recalled to Milwaukee from Cincinnati (ECHL)
Oct. 31 – Center Joel Champagne assigned to Cincinnati (ECHL) from Milwaukee
Oct. 31 – Right wing Ryan Thang recalled to Nashville (NHL) from Milwaukee