The Checkers’ attack, which was averaging over four goals a game heading into tonight, only managed to fire 24 shots in the contest and failed to solve Marlies netminder Garret Sparks, who picked up his first shutout of the season.
Jeremy Smith was between the pipes for Charlotte and was formidable for much of the game, fending off unrelenting pressure from Toronto. After keeping things scoreless in the first frame, Smith surrendered a pair of tallies late in the second, finally breaking after seeing a staggering 18 shots during the period. The Marlies would tack on two more early in the final frame and that would be more than enough to seal Toronto’s fifth win of the season.
The Checkers found themselves in penalty trouble throughout the contest, handing the Marlies six man advantages overall. The visiting penalty kill stood tall, however, keeping Toronto’s power play at bay until Dymtro Timashov’s strike early on in the third. The Checkers were afforded three power plays on the night, but for the first time this season they failed to register any goals on the man advantage.