After scoring his fourth goal of the season, more than any other AHL defenseman, Trevor Carrick also had Charlotte’s best chance to tie the game in the final minute of regulation but goaltender Anton Forsberg and the Monsters were able to hang on. Brody Sutter also scored for Charlotte, which fell to 5-4-0 on the season.
Lake Erie has now earned points in five consecutive games (4-0-1), allowing just four total goals in that time. Drew MacIntyre, who has played in all nine of the Checkers’ games this season, turned in another impressive outing with 27 stops.
What was shaping up to be a goaltender’s duel similar to the Checkers’ previous game, a 2-1 shootout victory in Rockford on Tuesday, opened up late in the second period when Sutter capitalized on a turnover in the Monsters’ zone to beat Anton Forsberg with a quick shot. That goal, which tied the game at 1-1, was quickly followed up by two by the Monsters in the final five minutes of the period as the ice tilted heavily in the home team’s favor.A 3-1 lead seemed perhaps larger than the raw numbers would suggest given the Monsters’ early defensive prowess. However, Carrick gave the Monsters a scare by putting home one of his trademark blasts from the point midway through the final frame. With MacIntyre pulled for the extra attacker, Carrick received the puck all alone in front of goal with approximately 35 seconds left on the clock only for Forsberg to produce an excellent blocker save.
That was a fitting cap for an impressive night by Forsberg, who most notably stopped both Patrick Brown and Derek Ryan on shorthanded breakaways during the same Lake Erie power play in the second period. He finished with 31 stops on the night and now boasts a 2.27 goals-against average in four appearances.
Earlier, Lake Erie opened the scoring on their first power play of the game in the first period when the rebound of Markus Hannikainen’s shot bounced off Charlotte defenseman Rasmus Rissanen and into the net.
The teams now get set to play a Halloween-night rematch this Saturday that will mark the final game of the Checkers’ epic 10-game swing to start the season. After that, their next contest will be the long-awaited home opener at Bojangles’ Coliseum on Saturday, Nov. 7.