The Gulls applied much of the pressure in the opening frame, outshooting the visitors 14-8, but it was the Checkers who broke through on the scoreboard. Just seconds after the first penalty of a two-man advantage expired, Jake Chelios collected a pass at the right circle and fired a quick wrister that beat former Carolina Hurricanes netminder Anton Khudobin along the ice to put Charlotte on top after 20.
The Checkers took advantage of a carry-over penalty taken by San Diego in the waning moments of the first when defenseman Mike Cornell jumped up and threaded a shot through traffic and in from the faceoff circle to double the Charlotte lead. The home team responded, however, breaking onto the scoresheet thanks to a rebound conversion by Nick Ritchie midway through the frame.
Special teams was the key for the Checkers, as they took advantage of the league’s most penalized team for two markers on the man advantage. Charlotte has now scored a power-play goal in each of its last five games, as well as having scored multiple ones in each of its last two.
On the other side, the Checkers held the Gulls’ power-play unit, which ranks second in the league, in check, killing off four of the five penalties they took.
Daniel Altshuller returned to the crease for the Checkers and was stellar once again. He turned aside 29 of the 30 shots he was peppered with by a potent San Diego attack, including making a few sprawling saves to keep his team in front. The young netminder improved to 6-0-1 on the season as he made his sixth start in seven games.
With their franchise record point streak continuing to climb, the Checkers will wrap up their inaugural California road trip tomorrow night with a rematch against the Gulls.