On a sunny and crisp Friday afternoon in Charlotte, North Carolina, we had ourselves a hockey game. The Charlotte Checkers after Thanksgiving hosted the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins for the first of a two-game set. They wanted to bounce back after losing both games versus the Cleveland Monsters during the week, and there was no doubt that they wanted to make a statement versus an Atlantic Division Foe.
Checkers Start Off Hot
The start of the first period seemed to be all Penguins as they led in shots on goal 6-1 with 11:42 left. However, just two minutes later the Checkers scored their first goal of the game. They were on the power-play due to a Cory Andonovski holding penalty and Charlotte did not waste any time as Justin Sourdif put the Checkers up 1-0 just over halfway.
Just over a minute into the man advantage, Mackie Samoskevich broke into the Penguins’ zone looking for an option. Luckily, he found Sourdif wide open on the opposite side of the ice and put it right into his wheelhouse. Sourdif wound up and ripped the slapshot past the Penguins’ netminder Magnus Hellberg. It was Sourdif’s first goal of the season, and a great start for the Checkers.
It did not take long for the Checkers to double their lead. Just five minutes later, Sourdif returned the favor to Samoskevich as he scored his second goal of the season. Skating into the Penguins’ zone, Sourdif made a give-and-go sequence with Rasmus Asplund to find space by the left faceoff circle. After getting the pass back, Sourdif found Samoskevich streaking on the other side of the goal and fed it to him. He didn’t waste the opportunity and buried it to make it 2-0 in the first period.
The period ended with the Checkers up 2-0 while outshooting the Penguins 10-6 after being down 6-1 earlier in the frame. When the second period started, the Checkers continued to play just like they left off in the first.
Oh Captain, Our Captain
Just like in the first period, the Checkers controlled the middle frame by setting the tone. Charlotte ended up outshooting the Penguins 10-6 again. However, they did add another goal, this time from the Captain. Zac Dalpe coming into the game has tallied three points in the last four games. Well, he decided to keep that form going as he scored his fourth of the season.
While keeping control of the puck, Asplund passed it up to the blue line where Lucas Carlsson was looking to get the puck on the net. He ended up shooting it on the net which got tipped in front by Dalpe. The puck managed to get through traffic after the tip and into the net to make it 3-0 Checkers. The power-play at the time was 2-for-3 on the night and officially en fuego.
Also, what makes the goal even better was that Carlsson tallied his 14th point in what is now the last 11 games. On the Checkers’ second power-play goal, both Dalpe and Carlsson kept their point runs going on the same play. Furthermore, one cannot overlook that Asplund up to this point has tallied an assist on all three Checkers goals.
At this point, it looked like it was all Checkers on this one. However, the third period had other plans as it turned into a barnburner.
Welcome to the Chaos
Before diving into the chaos of the third period, we will just focus on the Checkers’ goals to make this easier for the reader. The reason is that there were six goals scored in the period. That is not a typo. Going into the third period, the score was 3-0 in favor of the Checkers. Both teams managed to score three goals each in the final frame. Apparently everyone wanted to put on a show to close this one out.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton decided to remember how to play hockey in the third period. They ended up scoring the first two goals of the period within the first three minutes.
Checkers Drop Hammer on Penguins
The Checkers were not having them ruin the first game back after Thanksgiving. They did not seem in a thankful mood as Charlotte decided to score two goals of their own. Unlike how it took three minutes for the Penguins, the Checkers did it in 31 seconds. Santtu Kinnunen wanted to join the scoring party as he notched his first goal of the season at the 5:28 mark of the period.
The interesting part of the Kinnunen goal was that he wasn’t even trying to score on this play. On a closer look, he was trying to get a cross-crease pass over to Asplund who was on the backdoor of the Penguins’ goal. What actually happened was that the puck went in off of Penguins player Ty Smith’s skate.
The second goal that was scored 31 seconds later was scored by Brendan Perlini. What makes this goal even better is that the Checkers PA guy Miles Conrad was trying to call the Kinnunen goal at the same time. Just like how he played in California, Patrick Khodorenko keeping his head on a swivel fed Perlini a beautiful pass right into his wheelhouse. Perlini wound up and just ripped a rocket of a slapshot into the net to give Charlotte a 5-3 lead. In the span of 31 seconds, it went from 3-2 to 5-2 before people had even stopped celebrating the previous goal.
Ty Smith for the Penguins did score to bring the game to within two to make it 5-3. At one point the Penguins had a 6-on-4 power-play because they had their net empty. Despite that advantage, it was the Checkers who capitalized on the situation. Sourdif scored his second goal of the game while tallying his third point. This time it was a shorthanded goal to put the dagger into the hearts of the Penguins and their fans. Plus, the great part of this is that Sourdif scored the first and the last goal of the game. Both of them are on the special teams. His first goal was on the power-play while the other one was on the penalty kill. Talk about having a night.
Sourdif and Asplund both in this game tallied three points in the Checkers win. Fans will be fed well too because the Checkers scored first securing them $10 off pizza at Mellow Mushroom. Also, the Dalpe goal secured the fans a free Bo-Berry Biscuit from Bojangles. This team loves to feed their fans.
Outside of all of the goals that were scored, Spencer Knight was in the net for the Checkers tonight. It was his first game back after missing the last few while being out due to injury. He was in the middle of a shutout going into the third period but ultimately let in three goals. Despite that, he played a great game his first one back from injury. Solid night for the goaltender in a 6-3 Checkers win. The team’s next game is on Saturday, Nov. 25 versus the Penguins again for Teddy Bear Toss Night.
What Did the Checkers Say?
After the game, AHL News Now was able to ask questions to the Checkers’ First Star of the Game, forward Justin Sourdif, and Checkers’ Head Coach Geordie Kinnear.
Justin Sourdif
When asking Sourdif about bookending the scoring with a power-play goal and a shorthanded goal: “It is nice to score to break the ice, the first goal of the season and the second goal like you said. I was just happy, if the team is winning I think that is the main thing. I wasn’t really too concerned. Obviously if I’m not scoring and not getting the chances and we’re losing games that is a whole different story. But we’re just gonna go on a run here again and just keep playing our same game.”
Geordie Kinnear
When asking Kinnear about the special teams scoring three goals and shutting down the Penguins’ power-play: “Special teams are always a big factor, either you score or don’t score [and] when you get the goals it’s a bonus. PK has been good all year, power-play has had a tough stretch there. But when you start doing the right things and getting in sync as a group you will be rewarded. Overall, I think the whole game was really good for two periods and I think there was a growth moment in the third period where they had to find their way out of it and they did it collectively as a group and we just move forward now.”
When asked about Rasmus Asplund’s three-assist night: “True pro, to be honest, I didn’t know he had three assists. Credit to him. He’s just the ultimate pro, I put him at center at certain points. Put him on the wing. He’s killing penalties, he’s on the power-play. There is a lot to like about Rasmus and I think more importantly the type of person he is off the ice and the leadership quality he has. We’re excited to have him and I’m excited to work with him.”
