Weekly Report: Heavyweight Bouts
November 11, 2024 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Charlotte Checkers News Release
The Checkers squared off with another Eastern Conference powerhouse when they welcomed Toronto to town and exited the weekend with a hard-fought split.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Team Statistics
Overall record
7-2-0-1
Home record
4-2-0-0
Road record
3-0-0-1
Last week's record
1-1-0-0
Last 10 games
7-2-0-1
Division Standings
3rd
Conference Standings
5th
League Standings
8th
Marlies 4, Checkers 3
The first meeting between the two sides was a tightly contested affair, with a pair of strikes from Aidan McDonough helping propel the Checkers to a one-goal lead after 40 minutes of play. The Marlies tilted things their way in the third, however, lighting the lamp twice to complete the comeback win over Charlotte.
Checkers 5, Marlies 4 (OT)
Charlotte's power play went into overdrive in the following night's rematch, finding the back of the net four times across 60 minutes of regulation. A late surge from Toronto pushed the game to overtime, however, but the Checkers got the last laugh as John Leonard threaded a shot past the Toronto netminder late in the OT to claim a win for the home side.
QUICK HITS
STARTING STRONG
With 10 games in the books this season, the Checkers sit at 7-2-0-1, tying them for the second best record through 10 games in franchise history with the 2012-13 campaign.
The Checkers currently find themselves in third place in the Atlantic Division, trailing Hershey and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton but having played fewer games than any other team in the division - in fact, Charlotte boasts the best points percentage in the Atlantic and the third best mark in the Eastern Conference.
LIGHTING THE LAMP
The Checkers offense continues to churn out goals at a staggering rate this season. The team remains atop the AHL with an average of 4.5 goals per game and has posted at least five goals in half of their games thus far. In fact, the Checkers have been held to fewer than three goals just once all season. They have done it against some formidable opponents as well, with five of their 10 games this season coming against teams that currently rank in the AHL's top 10 defensively.
POWERING THROUGH
Charlotte's power play hit a bump for the first time over the weekend when they were held scoreless in Saturday's loss to Toronto - the first time they haven't registered a goal in a game this season. The unit would bounce back in a big way, though, racking up four power-play goals in the next night's win. The Checkers still reign as the top power play in the league - clocking in nearly 12 percentage points higher than the second ranked club - and have scored 19 power-play goals in 10 games, a mark that is 41 percent of the way to their 72-game total of 46 a season ago.
BLUE LINE BREAKS THROUGH
As the team racks up the goals, the Checkers are getting plenty of contributions from their blue line. Leading the way are Trevor Carrick - who is tied for the league lead for points among defensemen - and Mike Benning - who is tied for third. Carrick bounced back from having his seven-game point streak snapped on Saturday by posting a three-point effort on Sunday, while Benning has eight points in his last five contests.
Transactions
Incoming
Nov. 11 - Josh Davies - Recalled from Savannah (ECHL)
Nov. 10 - Cooper Black - Recalled from Savannah (ECHL)
Nov. 7 - Justin Sourdif - Assigned from Florida (NHL)
Outgoing
Nov. 7 - Matt Luff - Released from PTO
RANKINGS
Trevor Carrick leads the AHL in power-play points (9)
Trevor Carrick is tied for the AHL lead in power-play assists (6)
Kyle Criscuolo is tied for the AHL lead in power-play goals (4)
Aidan McDonough is tied for second in the AHL in goals (9)
Aidan McDonough is tied for second in the AHL in game-winning goals (3)
Rasmus Asplund is tied for second in the AHL in shorthanded goals (2)
Ryan McAllister is tied for third in the AHL in power-play assists (5)
Kyle Criscuolo is tied for seventh in the AHL in points (15)
Trevor Carrick is tied for seventh in the AHL in power-play goals (3)
Aidan McDonough is tied for seventh in the AHL in power-play goals (3)
Sandis Vilmanis is tied for second among AHL rookies in power-play assists (4)
Sandis Vilmanis is tied for fourth among AHL rookies in power-play points (4)
Trevor Carrick leads all AHL defensemen in power-play goals (3)
Trevor Carrick leads all AHL defensemen in power-play assists (6)
Trevor Carrick leads all AHL defensemen in power-play points (9)
Trevor Carrick is tied for the lead among AHL defensemen in points (11)
Mike Benning is tied for the lead among AHL defensemen in shorthanded goals (1)
Mike Benning is tied for the lead among AHL defensemen in shorthanded points (1)
Mike Benning is tied for third among AHL defensemen in points (10)
Trevor Carrick is tied for third among AHL defensemen in assists (8)
Mike Benning is tied for third among AHL defensemen in assists (8)
Trevor Carrick is tied for fourth among AHL defensemen in goals (4)
By the Numbers
CATEGORY RECORD AHL RANK
Power play 40.4% 1st
Penalty kill 82.4% 15th
Goals per game 4.50 1st
Shots per game 32.20 4th
Goals allowed per game 3.00 16th
Shots allowed per game 25.10 2nd
Penalty minutes per game 13.50 19th
LEADERS
CATEGORY LEADER(S)
Points Kyle Criscuolo (13), Aidan McDonough (12), Ryan McAllister, Trevor Carrick (11)
Goals Aidan McDonough (9), Rasmus Asplund, Kyle Criscuolo, Ryan McAllister (5)
Assists Trevor Carrick, Mike Benning, Kyle Criscuolo (8)
Power play goals Kyle Criscuolo (4), Trevor Carrick, Aidan McDonough (3)
Shorthanded goals Rasmus Asplund (2), MacKenzie Entwistle, Mike Benning (1)
Game-winning goals Aidan McDonough (3), Ryan McAllister (2), Kyle Criscuolo, John Leonard (1)
Shots on goal John Leonard (29), Wilmer Skoog (25), Rasmus Asplund (24)
Penalty minutes Riley Bezeau (16), Marek Alscher (13), Three tied (10)
Plus/minus John Leonard (+5), Kyle Criscuolo, Mike Benning, Aidan McDonough (+4)
Wins Chris Driedger, Ken Appleby (3)
Goals-against average Ken Appleby (2.23)
Save percentage Ken Appleby (.910)
• Discuss this story on the American Hockey League message board...
American Hockey League Stories from November 11, 2024
- Greaves Shutout Leads Monsters to 4-0 Win over Comets - Cleveland Monsters
- Comets Point Streak Ends vs. Monsters in 4-0 Loss - Utica Comets
- Points Streak Stretched Again After Belleville's Successful Home Set with Laval - Belleville Senators
- Griffins Recall Bednar, Alexander Reassigned to Toledo - Grand Rapids Griffins
- Hartford Wolf Pack and 'Boxes to Boots' Team up to Give Back this Veterans Day - Hartford Wolf Pack
- Phantoms Power Play Presented by Provident Bank - Lehigh Valley Phantoms
- Weekly Report: Heavyweight Bouts - Charlotte Checkers
- Bears Battle Islanders, Phantoms - Hershey Bears
- Wolf Pack Weekend Recap: November 11th, 2024 - Hartford Wolf Pack
- Calgary's Devin Cooley Named Howies Hockey Tape/AHL Player of the Week - AHL
- Isaak Phillips Reassigned to Rockford - Rockford IceHogs
- Penguins Reassign Mats Lindgren to Nailers - Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins
- Weekly Sports League and Franchise Report - OSC Original by Dan Krieger
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
Other Recent Charlotte Checkers Stories
- Checkers Take Revenge Against The Penguins
- Checkers Take Revenge With A 4-0 Shutout Over The Penguins
- Checkers Assign Cooper Black to Savannah
- Bojangles Game Preview: December 13 at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
- Five-Goal Third Sinks Checkers in Road Trip-Opening Loss