February 11, 2012 8:34 AM
The Checkers will look to make it four in a row as they make their first ever visit to Peoria to face the Rivermen.
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GAME INFORMATION |
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WATCH: www.AHLLive.com |
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LISTEN: WBCN 1660 AM | www.AHLLive.com |
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TWITTER: @CheckersInGame | @PaulBranecky |
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SEASON SERIES |
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Saturday, Oct. 15: Checkers 4, Peoria 3 (SO) |
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Sunday, Oct. 16: Checkers 3, Peoria 1
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Saturday, Feb. 11 at 8 p.m. (Peoria) |
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Monday, Feb. 17 at 8 p.m. (Peoria) |
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Tuesday, March 20 at 7 p.m. (Charlotte) |
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Wednesday, March 21 at 7 p.m. (Charlotte) |
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Saturday, March 31 at 8 p.m. (Peoria) |
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Friday, April 13 at 8 p.m. (Peoria) |
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CHECKERS STATS |
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RECORD
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29-16-4 |
2nd Western Conference
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GOALS / GAME
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2.90 |
t-14th AHL |
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GOALS ALLOWED / GAME
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2.61
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5th AHL |
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POWER PLAY |
21.3%
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t-2nd AHL |
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PENALTY KILL
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84.1% |
5th AHL |
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PIM / GAME
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14.5 |
7th AHL |
Thanks to a win in another divisional game on Friday, Charlotte (29-16-4) holds a six-point lead in the Midwest entering tonight’s game. The Checkers are 11 points ahead of Peoria (24-12-3), the division’s fourth-placed team who they have not faced since a two-game sweep of the season’s first home games on Oct. 15 and 16.
Both teams will be playing the middle game of a three-in-three set. The Checkers are coming off a 2-1 overtime win in Milwaukee, while the Rivermen lost 3-2 to the visiting Lake Erie Monsters.
CHECKERS
Though offense wasn’t easy to come by on Friday, the Checkers nonetheless kept rolling during their most successful stretch of the season, picking up their eighth win in the last 10 games. They have the same record over their last 10 road games, giving them a season record of 14-9-1 away from Time Warner Cable Arena.
The win over Milwaukee, their fourth straight against the Admirals, also improved the Checkers to 12-4-1 against fellow Midwest division teams. They also have a perfect 5-0-0 record in the middle game of a three-in-three set.
One change from the Checkers’ recent run and tonight’s game could come in goal. John Muse, who started the season as the team’s No. 3 option behind Mike Murphy (injured) and Justin Peters (recalled) made his sixth consecutive start on Friday to improve to 8-1-0 with a 1.58 goals-against average and .949 save percentage as a Checker.
With a home date against Norfolk on the schedule for Sunday, coach Jeff Daniels could hand a start to tryout signing Dave Caruso, most recently of the ECHL’s Trenton Titans. In 51 games of AHL experience, including a handful of appearances with the Albany Devils last season, the 29-year-old Ohio State product has a 3.49 goals-against average and .885 save percentage.
Daniels, who has now brought in a different goalie on a tryout basis in each of the last three weeks, said an experienced option was more important this time due to the possibility of playing during a three-in-three set.
“You’re looking for someone with a little more experience,” he said. “You want a guy that’s played at this level before and will be comfortable if he goes in.”
Center Riley Nash is questionable for tonight’s game after leaving Friday’s contest late in the first period after a hard hit along the boards. If he can’t play, Jared Staal, who sat out that game as a healthy scratch, would re-enter the lineup.
PEORIA
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RIVERMEN STATS |
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RECORD
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24-21-3 |
t-9th Western Conference
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GOALS / GAME
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3.02 |
t-7th AHL |
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GOALS ALLOWED / GAME
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2.90
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15th AHL |
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POWER PLAY |
21.3%
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t-2nd AHL |
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PENALTY KILL
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83.0% |
12th AHL |
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PIM / GAME
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15.4 |
12th AHL
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After enduring a few tough stretches earlier in the season, the Rivermen have won four of their last six games entering tonight’s match-up. Though Friday’s loss was their second in a row at home, they won eight of 11 in their own building prior to that.
The Rivermen are led by one of the league’s top offensive players in T.J. Hensick, who ranks third in the AHL with 57 points (17g, 40a) in 48 games. Only the Hershey Bears’ dynamic duo of Keith Aucoin and Chris Bourque have topped Hensick’s total this season. The fifth-year veteran with an active four-game point streak (2g, 5a) recorded a single assist over his previous two games against Charlotte this season.
Hensick is also one of the league’s top producers on the power play, as the Rivermen rank tied with the Checkers for second in the league at 21.3 percent.
Other notable names on the Rivermen roster include forwards Brett Sterling (41 points in 43 games – t-13th AHL scoring) and NHL veteran Jonathan Cheechoo, who ranks fourth in team scoring with 35 points (16g, 19a) in 47 contests. Rookie defenseman Cade Fairchild leads all AHL players with a plus-24 rating, while fellow blueliner Danny Syvret is tied for fifth among league defensemen in scoring (28 points).
In goal, the 6-foot-7 Ben Bishop is tied for sixth in the league with a 2.32 goals-against average and is tied for third with a save percentage of .926. Bishop, a 25-year-old All Star who has been the subject of trade rumors due to his perceived NHL readiness, has started each of Peoria’s last three games, making 17 saves in the losing effort on Friday. Bishop is tied for the AHL lead with 20 wins and leads the league with six shutouts.
CHECKERS NOTES
 • BOBBY’S WORLD: Defenseman Bobby Sanguinetti has recorded at least one point in each of his last 11 games, setting a new team record. He has 15 points (5g, 10a) dating back to the Checkers’ Jan. 12 game against Hershey, giving him the longest active streak by any AHL player and the third-longest posted this season. Hershey’s Keith Aucoin (16 games) and Chris Bourque (12) are the only players that have recorded longer streaks this season. Sanguinetti’s run is the longest by a defenseman since Binghamton’s Mattias Karlsson had a 12-game run in the 2008-09 season.
Despite missing 11 games, Sanguinetti, in his fourth AHL campaign, is on pace to set new career highs in assists (37) and points (46). He ranks tied for third on the team and is tied for ninth among league defensemen in points (27). Twelve of 15 points on his current streak have come on the power play.
• FINDING MUSE: Starting with his professional debut with Portland at the conclusion of his college career last season and continuing through nine Checkers games this season, rookie goaltender Muse is now 9-1-0 with a 1.61 goals-against average and .948 save percentage in his AHL career. Though he has not yet played enough minutes to officially qualify among league leaders, he would rank first in both categories this season.
Muse, a 23-year-old undrafted free agent signed by the Checkers this offseason, began the season with the ECHL’s Florida Everblades, where he posted a 7-3-2 record, 2.31 goals-against average and .927 save percentage. A winner of two NCAA national championships as a four-year starter at Boston College, Muse has started each of the Checkers’ last six games with Mike Murphy out due to injury.
• THREE IN THREES: The Checkers will play sets of three games in three nights over each of the next two weekends. They are 9-7-0 this season in games that are a part of a three-in-three set, including a perfect 5-0-0 record in Game Two, a 2-4-0 record in Game One and a 2-3-0 record in Game Three.
• ON THE ROAD: The Checkers play seven of 10 games away from home in February, which ties November as the most road-heavy month of the season. The team has won eight of its last 10 games on the road dating back to Dec. 30, giving it a record of 14-9-1 for the season.
• DIVISIONAL DOMINANCE: The Checkers are 12-4-1 against fellow Midwest Division teams this season, giving it the best percentage of possible points earned (.735) of any AHL team against its own division. Of Midwest teams, Chicago has the next best divisional record at 16-13-1 (.550).
STREAKS
• Bobby Sanguinetti has points in each of his last 11 games (Jan. 12-Feb. 10; 5g, 10a).
• John Muse has started six consecutive games (Jan. 24-Feb. 10; 5-1-0) and has wins in each of his last three (Feb. 3-10).
• Jerome Samson has points in each of his last two games (Feb. 4-10; 2g, 1a).
• Zac Dalpe has goals and points in each of his last two games (Feb. 4-10; 2g).
• Nicolas Blanchard has assists in each of his last two games (Feb. 4-10; 2a).
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Charlotte
• Feb. 9 – (LW) Justin Shugg reassigned to Florida (ECHL) from Charlotte
• Feb. 9 – (G) Dave Caruso signed to professional tryout contract
• Feb. 6 – (C) Riley Nash reassigned to Charlotte from Carolina (NHL)
• Feb. 5 – (G) Scott Darling released from professional tryout contract
Peoria
• Feb. 11 - (D) Ian Cole recalled to St. Louis (NHL) from Peoria
• Feb. 9 – (G) David McKee signed to professional tryout contract
• Feb. 8 – (LW) Evgeny Grachev recalled to St. Louis (NHL) from Peoria |
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