CHARLOTTE, NC—Charlotte Checkers head coach and general manager Derek Wilkinson announced today that forward Devin DiDiomete has been recalled to the American Hockey League’s Hartford Wolf Pack, defenseman Ryan Crane has been released and rookie goaltender Garrett Zemlak has been signed to a contract.
The moves come less than one week before the end of the regular season, at which time the Checkers must submit a 23-man playoff roster.
Zemlak, 20, joined the Checkers on Mar. 22 from the Prince Albert Raiders of the Western Hockey League. He is 2-0-0 in two games with a 1.85 goals against average and .933 save percentage. His two victories came against Reading, both by virtue of shootouts.
Prior to arriving in Charlotte, Zemlak enjoyed a four-year junior career in the WHL with Prince Albert and Saskatoon. In 57 games with the Raiders this season, he posted a 26-25-4 record with a 3.11 GAA and .909 save percentage, leading the team in wins, shutouts, GAA and save percentage.
The 6-foot-1, 195-pound netminder was named Prince Albert’s Most Valuable Player, Most Inspirational Player and won the Molson Cup Three Star Award. He was also runner-up for the WHL’s Eastern Conference Goaltender of the Year.
DiDiomete spent 15 games with the Checkers, recording two goals, two assists and 128 penalty minutes.
The Checkers (42-21-7) will travel to Florida this weekend for two games before returning next week to host two or three playoff games next week. Playoff dates will be announced shortly and ticket information can be obtained by calling 704-342-4-ICE or visiting www.gocheckers.com/playoffs. Season tickets for the inaugural 2010-11 AHL season are now on sale and 40-game packages start as low as $200. Visit www.gocheckers.com/AHL for more information.
Notes: Saturday’s crowd of 12,044 was the largest in the entire ECHL this season…The Checkers are 16-3-1 in their last 20 home games and are 11-1-0 in their last 12 overall…Ryan Munce is 10-1-0 in his last 11 starts and leads the ECHL with a .912 save percentage…Kenny Roche is currently on a six-game point streak (3g, 7a)…Andrew Carroll leads the ECHL with six shootout-winning goals and leads the Checkers with 29 goals…Julien Brouillette and Derek Couture are up with Hartford (AHL), Kenny Roche is with Providence (AHL), Ethan Graham is with Texas (AHL) while Matt Ford and Randy Rowe are with Lake Erie (AHL)…Codey Burki, Chris Chappell, Trevor Glass, T.J. Reynolds and Chris Snavely are on the 21-day injured reserve.
