Despite storming out of the gates with a 2-0 lead courtesy of two Brock McGinn tallies in the game’s first 10 minutes, Charlotte allowed the Monsters to score five unanswered goals to defeat the Checkers for the second consecutive night, this time by a 5-2 score.
With the loss, Charlotte’s only hope of making the postseason is for the San Jose Barracuda to suffer back-to-back, regulation losses in their final two games of the regular season, a home-and-home with Stockton that takes place on Saturday (10:30 p.m. start) and Sunday (6 p.m. start). San Jose is 8-0-2 against Stockton this season.
The Checkers’ five-game slide to end the season ties their longest of the campaign and is the longest active streak in the league. Had they won just two of those, they would have been assured of making the playoffs even before San Jose had an opportunity to respond this weekend.
Though the Monsters got one back on a fluke goal before the end of the first, one in which Alex Broadhurst corralled a missed shot off the end boards and banked it in off goalie Daniel Altshuller from side of goal, Charlotte still led 2-1 at the intermission. Prior to this game, they were 18-2-3 when able to make that claim.
Lake Erie would break through on two more unusual goals to take the lead, the first coming in the second period when Mark Cundari’s shot from the point went off a Checker and past Altshuller’s glove, and another in the third when Oliver Bjorkstrand’s centering feed went off a Charlotte defenseman and into the net following a scramble in front.
From there, a conventional goal on the power play from Sonny Milano put the Checkers in serious danger with eight minutes to play. Nick Moutrey then provided the dagger on an empty-net goal as the Checkers, desperate for points, pulled Altshuller with approximately four minutes remaining in regulation.
Althsuller, making just his third start since March 15, saw his personal winless streak extended to five games (0-4-1) despite a strong effort. His last win came on Feb. 28, with John Muse, who started the previous night’s 3-1 loss, earning each of the team’s last nine victories.
Charlotte finishes with a 3-5-0 record in its eight-game season series with Lake Erie, a club that was playing for the third time in three nights and was locked in to the No. 2 seed in the Central Division’s playoff bracket entering tonight’s game.