Mar 12, 2024
CHARLOTTE, NC – The Hartford Wolf Pack have arrived in North Carolina for the first of two trips to the Queen City this season. Tonight, the Wolf Pack open a back-to-back set against the rival Checkers.
The puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m. and coverage is available on AHLTV and Mixlr.
Tale of The Tape:
This is the third of eight meetings between the clubs this season. It is the first of four at the Bojangles Coliseum, where the sides will meet again tomorrow night. The Checkers return to Hartford on March 28th, then the series shifts back to Charlotte for two games on April 6th and 7th.
The season series will conclude at the XL Center on April 14th.
The Checkers have claimed victory in each of the first two meetings this season. The series opened with a 4-2 triumph for the Checkers on January 31st at the XL Center. Last time out, Mackie Samoskevich was the overtime hero in a 2-1 road victory for Charlotte.
After a goalless first period, Matt Kiersted opened the scoring 4:19 into the middle stanza. The defenseman scored his fourth goal of the season from the left-wing circle on a feed from Samoskevich.
The Wolf Pack drew even 4:36 into the third period, as Blake Hillman and Blade Jenkins sprung in on a two-on-one. Hillman sent a perfect pass to Jenkins, who buried his first goal with the club to force overtime.
Samoskevich earned the second point for the Checkers 3:48 into overtime, scoring his 14th goal of the season. The rookie forward danced down the right-wing side and beat Louis Domingue for victory.
A season ago, the Wolf Pack went 2-1-1-0 at the Bojangles Coliseum. They are 3-1-1-0 in their last five games in the building. All-time, however, the Wolf Pack are 3-16-1-1 in Charlotte.
Wolf Pack Outlook:
The Wolf Pack extended their current point streak to five games on Saturday night (3-0-1-1) but saw their three-game winning streak snapped by the Bridgeport Islanders 3-2 in a shootout.
After neither side was able to draw blood in the opening frame, Brian Pinho finally broke the ice 5:05 into the second period. William Dufour found a loose puck along the right-wing boards and threaded a pass to Pinho in front of the Wolf Pack goal. Pinho got inside and lifted a shot by Dylan Garand for his sixth goal of the season.
Alex Belzile tied the affair 6:48 into the third period, jamming home a rebound for his 16th goal of the season. Nic Petan wandered into the high slot and fired a shot that Jakub Skarek…
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