April 15, 2012 5:59 AM
It’s only fitting that a rollercoaster of a season comes down to the very last game.
Wins in the first three games of their road trip have brought the Checkers to the brink of the postseason. All they need is a point in today’s game against Milwaukee OR for Houston to lose its home game against Texas in either regulation or overtime/shootout. Should one of or both of those occur, the Checkers will be in the playoffs, potentially as high as the No. 5 seed. Should neither occur, they’ll finish ninth and head home early.
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GAME INFORMATION |
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WATCH: www.AHLLive.com |
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LISTEN: WBCN 1660 AM | www.AHLLive.com |
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TWITTER: @CheckersInGame | @PaulBranecky |
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SEASON SERIES |
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Friday, Nov. 4: Milwaukee 3, Checkers 1 |
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Saturday, Nov. 26: Checkers 3, Milwaukee 2 |
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Sunday, Nov. 27: Checkers 5, Milwaukee 1 |
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Saturday, Jan. 7: Checkers 4, Milwaukee 3
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Friday, Feb. 10: Checkers 2, Milwaukee 1 (OT)
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Tuesday, April 3: Milwaukee 4, Checkers 0
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Thursday, April 5: Milwaukee 4, Checkers 2
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Sunday, April 15 at 4 p.m. (Milwaukee) |
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CHECKERS STATS |
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RECORD
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38-28-9 |
8th Western Conference
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GOALS / GAME
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2.77 |
16th AHL |
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GOALS ALLOWED / GAME
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2.77
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13th AHL |
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POWER PLAY |
19.7%
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4th AHL |
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PENALTY KILL
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84.5% |
t-4th AHL |
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PIM / GAME
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14.0 |
6th AHL |
These two Midwest Division rivals won’t make things easy on one another, as they enter the game tied with 85 points heading into their season finales. However, should the game go to overtime, both teams will qualify for the postseason.
CHARLOTTE
After losing four games in a row at home, the Checkers knew they might need to win all four games of their road trip to make the playoffs. Thanks to wins in their first three, they now have a little breathing room.
Charlotte began the week with convincing wins in Rockford on Tuesday (3-0) and in Peoria on Friday (6-1). However, Saturday’s game was much closer, as the Checkers needed the shootout to top the IceHogs for the second time in a week, this time by a 4-3 score. In order to take care of their own business today, they’ll need to at least match their best-ever record in a three-in-three set, a pair of 2-0-1 finishes earned last season.
The common thread of each recent win was the play of Justin Peters, who tied a season high with three consecutive starts. The veteran netminder has stopped 87 of 91 shots against him during that span, not including three of four in Saturday’s shootout. Having already bucked the Checkers’ previous rotation that saw him split starts with Mike Murphy, he could again get the nod and become the third Charlotte goalie to play on three consecutive days this season, joining Murphy and John Muse.
Other players who have played well during the Checkers’ road streak are Bobby Sanguinetti (1g, 6a during an active four-game point streak) and Evgenii Dadonov (1g, 4a during a four-game streak). Sanguinetti’s assist gave him 43 points in 43 games since returning from a broken foot on Dec. 11, while Dadonov, who had been piling on assists, scored just his third goal in 34 games with Charlotte.
The Checkers have two healthy extras in the form of forward Brody Sutter and defensemen Brian Dumoulin – amateur tryout signings who joined the Checkers after the conclusion of their junior and college careers late in the season. Sutter scored his first professional goal in his last game on Tuesday, while Dumoulin has yet to make his professional debut.
Forwards Sean Dolan and A.J. Jenks, who are recovering from upper-body injuries in Charlotte, will not play today.
MILWAUKEE
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ADMIRALS STATS |
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RECORD
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39-29-7 |
6th Western Conference
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GOALS / GAME
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2.72 |
t-18th AHL |
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GOALS ALLOWED / GAME
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2.52
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4th AHL |
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POWER PLAY |
19.2%
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t-7th AHL |
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PENALTY KILL
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82.3% |
16th AHL |
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PIM / GAME
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13.8 |
5th AHL
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The Admirals eked out a 2-1 overtime win over a playoff-bound Chicago squad that was resting several regulars on Saturday, putting them on even terms with the Checkers heading into today’s game. Prior to that, they had lost two consecutive games, including one in a shootout, after a four-game win streak that included two victories in Charlotte last week.
Despite those two Admirals wins, which came by 4-0 and 4-2 scores on Tuesday and Thursday of last week, respectively, at Time Warner Cable Arena, the Checkers have a 4-3-0 lead in the season series. That includes a 2-1-0 record in Milwaukee.
Milwaukee won’t have a travel or rest advantage on the Checkers, as they are also playing the third game of a three-in-three set involving Saturday-night travel. Goalie Jeremy Smith, who made 31 saves to shut out the Checkers last Tuesday, started each game, stopping 56 of 58 shots. Smith ranks second in the AHL with 30 wins, fourth with a 2.20 goals-against average and 10th with a .921 save percentage.
In four games against Charlotte, Smith is 2-1-0 with a 1.79 goals-against average and .937 save percentage.
Other Admirals that have played well against Charlotte include leading scorer Chris Mueller, who scored the overtime winner against Chicago on Saturday. Mueller and Kyle Wilson both have 9 points (5g, 4a) in seven games against the Checkers.
CHECKERS NOTES
 SANGUINETTI STARS: Defenseman Bobby Sanguinetti recorded an assist on Saturday to extend his current point streak to four games (1g, 6a) – a run that includes a four-point performance on Wednesday that tied his career high. Though he has missed 16 games this season, Sanguinetti ranks second on the Checkers in scoring with 49 points (10g, 39a) in 59 games while setting new career highs in goals, assists and points. Sanguinetti, who has 43 points in 43 games since returning from a broken foot on Dec. 11, ranks third among AHL defensemen in scoring.
THREE IN THREES: The Checkers are in the midst of playing three games in three nights for the eighth time this season and the fifth time of playing all three games on the road. During the current campaign, Charlotte is 12-10-1 in games that are a part of a three-in-three set, including a 4-4-0 record in Game One, a 6-1-1 record in Game Two and a 2-5-0 record in Game Three. Their-best ever finish in a three-in-three set is 2-0-1 – a mark set twice last season.
COMFORTS OF THE ROAD: After a six-game road winless streak that marked their longest of the season, the Checkers have won each of their last five games away from Charlotte, which is their longest such streak of the season. The Checkers, who are now 20-12-5 on the road, concluded the home portion of the regular season with four straight losses.
SHUTTING THE DOOR: Justin Peters’ 22-save effort on Tuesday marked his first shutout as a Checker but his second of the season, as he earned his first at the NHL level with Carolina on Feb. 20. Prior to Tuesday, Peters had not earned a shutout at the AHL level since March 22, 2009, with Albany. Together with subsequent 31-and 34-save performances later in the week , Peters has stopped 87 of the last 91 shots against (.956 save percentage).
THE MAGIC NUMBER: The Checkers are 32-4-2 when scoring three or more goals this season. All four of those regulation losses were the result of games in which the team scored exactly three goals, making them 19-0-1 when scoring four or more. When the Checkers score two or fewer goals, they are 6-24-7.
STREAKS
• (D) Bobby Sanguinetti has assists and points in each of his last four games (April 8-14; 1g, 6a)
• (RW) Evgenii Dadonov has assists and points in each of his last four games (April 8-14; 1g, 4a)
• (G) Justin Peters has won each his last three starts (April 10-14)
• (C) Brett Sutter has points in each of his last two games (April 13-14; 1g, 1a)
• (LW) Zach Boychuk has assists and points in each of his last two games (April 13-14; 1g, 2a)
• (LW) Chris Durno has assists and points in each of his last two games (April 13-14; 2a)
• (RW) Nicolas Blanchard has points in each of his last two games (April 13-14; 1g, 1a)
INJURIES
• (C) Sean Dolan – missed five games; last played April 5 vs. Milwaukee
• (LW) A.J. Jenks – missed seven games, last played March 31 at Peoria
• (LW) Justin Soryal – missed 15 games, last played March 11 vs. Chicago (out for season)
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Charlotte
• April 12 – (D) Joe Sova assigned to Florida (ECHL) from Charlotte
• April 11 – (D) Brian Dumoulin signed to amateur tryout contract
Milwaukee
• April 14 – (D) Anthony Bitetto signed to amateur tryout contract
• April 12 – (G) Chet Pickard reassigned to Cincinnati (ECHL) from Milwaukee
• April 12 – (G) Jeremy Smith reassigned to Milwaukee from Nashville (NHL) |
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