Checkers Silenced by Stars 4-0
February 1, 2015 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Charlotte Checkers News Release
The Checkers wrapped up their road trip through the Lone Star State with a disappointing 4-0 blowout loss to the Texas Stars.
One night after a wild first period did them in against San Antonio, the Checkers kept things closer against the Stars, ceding just one goal despite being outshot 19-9. Texas took a lead into the first intermission thanks to a deflection from Derek Hulak, who tipped in blast from Greg Rallo inside the last three minutes of the period.
The Checkers bounced back in the second in terms of shots on goal, leading Texas 13-11 in the frame, but still could not solve Stars goalie Jussi Rynnas, heading into the final 20 down 2-0 after defenseman Derek Meech lofted a shot from the blue line that a screened Drew MacIntyre never saw and extended the Texas lead.
The Stars continued to dominate in the final frame, launching 20 shots on MacIntyre, which matched the most by a Checkers opponent this season, set by this same Stars team. Hulak nabbed his second of the night early on in the period and Troock piled on with a snipe from the circle to push the Texas lead to 4 four goals midway through the third. The Checkers could not muster up any kind of spark to get a rally going, and were shut out for the fourth time this season.
Although the final score doesn't reflect it, MacIntyre turned in a tremendous performance in net for the Checkers. The 50 shots that Texas peppered him ties the most that Charlotte has seen this season, and MacIntyre's 46 saves is one shy of the season-high for a Checkers goalie. Had it not been for the play of MacIntyre, the end result of tonight's game could have been far uglier.
After seeing a slight uptick recently, the Checkers power play has fallen back into the slump that has plagued it all season. Charlotte went 0-for-3 with the man advantage tonight, including a first period power play that saw the Stars control the puck and create more scoring chances shorthanded than the Checkers did with the extra man. With tonight's performance, the Checkers are 0-for-9 across their last two contests, after scoring four powerplay goals in the four games prior to that.
Along with the struggling power play, the Checkers inability to put the puck in the net cost them again, as they were shut out for the fourth time this season.
After a tough opening period, they were able to put pucks on net, but could not create any real scoring chances. A shuffled lineup could be partially to blame for the offensive problems, as having both Brendan Woods and Brock McGinn out forced head coach Jeff Daniels to only dress 11 forwards and mix things around up front. But regardless, the Checkers never really threatened to score, despite getting awarded two penalty shots, the first time that has happened in team history.
The Checkers will return home to Charlotte where they will have some time to regroup and prepare for a pair of contests against a formidable Chicago Wolves team that is right in the thick of the battle for the final Western Conference playoff spot that the Checkers desperately want to climb back into.
American Hockey League Stories from February 1, 2015
- Bears Blank Admirals to Extend Point Streak - Hershey Bears
- Hershey Outlasts Admirals in Super Bowl Sunday Goaltending Duel - Norfolk Admirals
- Springfield Falcons Release Defenseman Nathan Oystrick from PTO - Springfield Falcons
- Dallas Stars Reassign Oleksiak, Ritchie - Texas Stars
- Petr Straka Returned to Phantoms - Lehigh Valley Phantoms
- Capitals Re-Assign Cameron Schilling to Hershey - Hershey Bears
- Wolves Earn Victory over Hogs - Rockford IceHogs
- Wathier Scores Twice to Lead Pirates over Sound Tigers - Portland Pirates
- OT Loss Pushes B-Sens Losing Streak to Four - Binghamton Senators
- Checkers Silenced by Stars 4-0 - Charlotte Checkers
- Crunch Take Conference Lead - Syracuse Crunch
- The Stars, Rynnas Shut Out Charlotte in 4-0 - Texas Stars
- Monsters Rally to Beat Barons in OT - Oklahoma City Barons
- Six-Goal Surge in Impressive Road Win at Wilkes-Barre - Lehigh Valley Phantoms
- Monsters Earn 2-1 Overtime Win in OKC - Cleveland Monsters
- Admirals Turn Tables on Griffins - Grand Rapids Griffins
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