Former Checkers captain Michal Jordan, down from the Carolina Hurricanes on a conditioning stint, struck twice in the opening frame to put the home team on top by the same 2-0 score as the previous contest. After a stalemate of a second period, the Iowa began to mount their comeback in the third. Wild defenseman Dylan Labbe threaded one through traffic and in five minutes into the frame to cut the lead in half and Iowa continued to push.
With under six to go it was Drayson Bowman who gave the Checkers their cushion back, firing a quick backhander that beat Leland Irving low and put the home team on top 3-1. The Wild made things interesting with a tally less than one minute later, but the Checkers buckled down and avoided another comeback, riding the clock out to clinch their 3-2 victory.
“It’s great to see an older vet come in and be a calming influence,” said head coach Mark Morris. “He settles (Rasmus) Rissanen’s game down, he eats up big minutes, he’s a harder guy to play against and he puts guys in slots where they need to be. His presence has been very noticeable for us on the back end.”
“If I’ve got a lane I’ll keep shooting,” said Jordan “The first goal we had some zone time and Riss made a good play, someone went hard to the net, I just put it on and the goalie didn’t see anything. The next play was a set play where Trevor took a one-timer and the rebound was right there.”
Both Morris and Jordan mentioned Rissanen in their postgame comments. He has long been Jordan’s partner on the Charlotte blue line and has seen an uptick in his production since Jordan’s return. Rissanen now has three points in his last two games and a three-game point streak overall, chipping in on the offensively-savvy Checkers D-corps.
“We played together the last couple of years so we know what to expect from each other,” said Jordan. “I think it makes the game easier.”
“I haven’t seen Riss smile this much since I’ve been here,” said Morris. “I’m happy that he’s feeling comfortable with a guy that he’s familiar with. It’s kind of fun because he’s settled down the whole back end while we’re breaking things out, and defensively they’re two big bodies that work well together and apparently like to play with each other too.”
While a familiar face was handling the bulk of the offense, a new one was holding down things between the pipes.
Daniel Altshuller made his AHL debut tonight, coming away with 24 saves and earning his first AHL victory.
“The boys really made it easy on me, said Altshuller. “All the guys were nice and I’m just really excited right now.”
The second-year pro has been excelling with the Florida Everblades of the ECHL this season, leading the league in goals-against average and save percentage and earning the Goaltender of the Month award in November. That success helped the young netminder as he turned aside a frantic Iowa attack.
“There’s a little bit of a difference between the AHL and the East Coast league, but it’s pretty close,” said Altshuller. “Just being down there, to succeed is really good for your confidence. It’s big for sure.”
While the Wild were held mostly in check for the first two periods, they came alive in the third, peppering Altshuller with 14 shots. But he stood tall and kept the visitors from clawing their way back into the contest.
“Dan did a heck of a job for us in the net,” said Morris. “It had to be a really stressful time for him playing his first American Hockey League game but I thought he did a whale of a job for us and I think he’s only going to get better.”
The Checkers will close out this home stand with back-to-back meetings with the Lake Erie Monsters beginning Saturday. With the holidays right around the corner, Morris know it’s important to carry this momentum into those contests.
“Every point we can garner right now is going to make a world of difference for us in trying to get this thing moving in the right direction,” said Morris. “Just focus on the next game, the next shift, the next period and try to compartmentalize our thought processes. You can’t get too far ahead. For young guys that are anxious to get home for the holidays, we’ve still got work to do.”