After a fast-paced, high-scoring tilt last night, the Checkers could not get anything going in the rematch, falling by a score of 3-0 and running their road-winless streak to 5 games.
The Checkers created pressure throughout the game, dominating the play at points, but could not seem to solve Laurent Brossoit, who earned his first AHL sutout. John Muse got the start for Charlotte, his fifth of the season, and was saddled with the loss despite looking solid for the majority of the contest.
After racking up 13 goals in the last three games, the Checkers offense reverted back to their previous struggles, failing to light the lamp for the first time this season. The last time the team was shutout was April 5 of last season, again at the hands of Oklahoma City. The loss pushed Charlotte's road-winless streak to five games. Their last win on the road came on October 24 in Iowa, making this skid the worst since the team finished last season with five consecutive losses away from home.
Despite nothing to show for it on the scoreboard, the Checkers had their fair share of chances. The team peppered Brossoit with a season-high 36 shots, the eighth time in their last 10 contests that they have recorded more than 30 shots after having zero instances in the first six. Charlotte outshot Oklahoma City 36-25, marking the seventh time in the last 10 games that the Checkers have outshot their opponent. The shot production has come a long ways since the early-season issues, but goal scoring remains the biggest sore spot for the Checkers.
The Checkers will return to Charlotte for a quick stay before making the bus trip to Norfolk for a Wednesday night tilt with an Admirals team they crushed last week. The team will then host the Milwaukee Admirals this weekend to begin a five-game home stand. That string of games at Time Warner Cable Arena comes at a good time, as the Checkers have won four of their last five in their own barn.
NOTES
Newcomer Gabriel Desjardins led all Checkers with four shots on goal ... Justin Shugg, Ryan Murphy and Rasmus Rissanen all snapped scoring streaks ... The Checkers held the Barons' second-ranked powerplay unit to 0-5 ... Charlotte went 0-4 with the man-advantage, ending a run of four straight games with a powerplay goal ... Rookie Carter Sandlak was in the lineup for the first time since Nov 8 after serving a four-game suspension ... Forwards Patrick Brown, Ben Holmstrom, Jared Staal and Brody Sutter missed the game due to injury … Forward Alex Aleardi and defensemen Dennis Robertson and Beau Schmitz were healthy extras.
