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Just more than a year ago, the Charlotte Checkers' move to the AHL and affiliation with the Carolina Hurricanes was in its infancy. Those ties just became even stronger. Michael Kahn, the Checkers' owner and governor, was announced Thursday as an ownership partner of the Hurricanes by Canes CEO Peter Karmanos Jr.

Karmanos Jr. has been actively pursuing minority partners since at least February when it was reported that he was seeking 20 to 30 investors to buy stakes of about $2 million to own a share of the Hurricanes. In late July those numbers changed, with Karmanos Jr. telling Triangle Business Journal he was pursuing 10 to 15 investors who would invest between $1 million to $5 million for a collective ownership stake of 20 to 25 percent of the club.

Kahn, who spoke to Canes Country in February 2010 when it was announced he was buying the AHL's Albany franchise and relocating it to Charlotte to replace the same-named ECHL Checkers with an American Hockey League affiliate, is the first investor, though there is no word yet as to how much his investment is or what his stake in the team will be.

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This point has been edited by Caniac59: 20 November 2012 - 11:58 AM

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MOVING WEST

Ask coach Jeff Daniels what he knows about the Checkers’ next opponent, the Peoria Rivermen, and he’ll answer quickly and without hesitation.

Not much.

Though the specific example is relevant as it pertains to Charlotte’s opponent for its first two home games of the season on Saturday and Sunday, the Rivermen aren’t the most mysterious team it will face all season. With former NHL goal-scoring champion Jonathan Cheechoo in tow, they might actually rank among the more recognizable.

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SANGUINETTI'S HEALTHY RETURN

He’s still got a long road ahead of him, but Bobby Sanguinetti has already come a long way.

The 23-year-old Checkers defenseman hit a major obstacle in his road to the NHL last season, missing most of his first year in the Carolina Hurricanes organization due to hip surgery in November. He came back towards the end of the campaign but admitted struggling to catch up after the four-month layoff, finding himself as a healthy scratch at times during the team’s run to the Eastern Conference Final.

“Everyone always says it’s tough to come back, but until it happens to you, you don’t really know,” he said.

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Charlotte Checkers 2011-12 season preview

"I thought it was fantastic...We did a lot of good things on the ice, but I thought the transition was great."

So says Charlotte Checkers GM/head coach Jeff Daniels on the team's first season in North Carolina, a move that saw the parent club Carolina Hurricanes help usher AHL hockey into the state and more closely link the NHL franchise with its top affiliate.

Both on and off the ice, the Checkers were a success in 2010-11. Daniels, now entering his fourth season as the guiding force behind the Canes' AHL squad, led Charlotte to the Eastern Conference Finals last season. And with many of his core players returning for the 2011-12 campaign, the expectation should be that the team will again compete for a Calder Cup title.

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CHECKERS HANG ON TO WIN HOME OPENER

It was exciting to watch, but at the end of the day, the Checkers were more relieved than anything.

Matt Pistilli scored the winning goal in the seventh round of the shootout, allowing the Checkers to escape with a 4-3 victory over the visiting Peoria Rivermen on Saturday that ended up being much closer than anticipated. Coming off a dominant start, including a second period that saw the team allow just one shot on goal while going up 3-0, a sudden collapse changed all that.

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GAME PREVIEW: CHECKERS VS. PEORIA

They'll take the same result, but the Checkers wouldn't mind taking a different route to get there.

The team considered itself lucky to escape with a 4-3 shootout victory over Peoria in its home opener, after losing a three-goal lead in the span of just 3:08 to start the final period.

Coach Jeff Daniels considered it a lesson learned, which will have to be the case in today's rematch at Time Warner Cable Arena (3 p.m.). While the Checkers now have a victory on the season, improving their record to 1-1-1, the Rivermen, already disappointed with their start to the season, are still searching at 0-2-1.

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CHECKERS WON'T NAME INTERIM CAPTAIN

When the Checkers returned to practice on Tuesday following their weekend sweep of Peoria, they did so with one notable absence.

Center Brett Sutter, recalled by the Carolina Hurricanes on Monday to fill in for the injured Zac Dalpe, is expected to make his season debut for the Canes as they visit Boston on Tuesday. That leaves the Checkers without a full-time captain – a situation that will continue for the time being.

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CHARLOTTE FINISHES HOME STAND WITH WIN

As the third game in three nights for both teams, Sunday’s match-up between the Checkers and Norfolk was never going to be a masterpiece. Still, no one on the home team was complaining.

Thanks to Mike Murphy’s 44 saves, his second superb outing in as many nights, Charlotte topped its former division rival by a 3-1 score. Michal Jordan and Cedric McNicoll had given the Checkers the lead heading into the third period, which would hold up with the added cushion of a late Drayson Bowman insurance tally.

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PETERS OUT FOR WEEK; SHUGG RECALLED

The Checkers will not have Justin Peters for at least the next three games, as the goaltender did not accompany the team to begin the first leg of its season-long nine-game road swing in Oklahoma City.

Checkers coach Jeff Daniels said that Peters, who has been struggling with a lower-body injury, could return for the team’s next practice in Charlotte, which should be on Tuesday or Wednesday of next week. After leaving last Friday’s start and missing the next two games, Peters was told at a Wednesday doctor’s appointment that more rest would be needed.

“They just wanted us to hold off for a week or so, but it’s nothing beyond that,” said Daniels.

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Aeros edge Checkers in final minutes

When it comes to facing the Houston Aeros, it appears that no lead is safe.

For the third time in their three meetings this season, the Checkers allowed the Aeros to score a crucial late goal, this time in the form of Carson McMillan's game-winner with 2:10 remaining in the third period of Sunday's match-up in Houston. The home team would add an empty-net goal to ensure a 5-3 final that capped a rally of three unanswered goals and ended the Checkers' winning streak at four games.

Justin Soryal scored his first goal of the season in the losing effort, while Jon Matsumoto and Jerome Samson each scored on separate five-on-three power plays 41 seconds apart near the end of the second period of a penalty-filled contest. Checkers goalie Mike Murphy made 20 saves, losing for the first time in his last six starts.

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Gameday: Checkers at Admirals

Charlotte Notes:

Mike Murphy is expected to get two starts this weekend, with Justin Peters playing once.

With Drayson Bowman in Raleigh with Zach Boychuk, Zac Dalpe will be making his season debut in a Checkers sweater. He’s on a conditioning stint from the Hurricanes.

The Checkers signed Scott Pitt to a PTO yesterday, and he will also make his Checkers debut tonight. Pitt, a RW from Ottawa, is a former NCAA player who spent four years at Mercyhurst College. Pitt has four points (2G, 2A) with the Everblades this year, and was called up for the roadtrip after injuries fell to Cedric McNicoll and Justin Shugg.

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First Ever Charlotte Checkers Movember Draft

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Charlotte at Grand Rapids – Checkers win 2-1

Special teams were MUCH better, but the Checkers also did a good job staying out of the penalty box. The Checkers had two power play opportunities, and scored on one of them with Justin Faulk’s second period goal. Their penalty kill unit was also successful, killing seven minutes of penalties that left the Checkers shorthanded.

The five-minute charging penalty on Chris Terry seemed pretty out of line. It was an ugly play :16 seconds before the end of the second period, but the Griffins player who sent Terry even harder into the goaltender with a legal check from behind was equally responsible. To call a charge, which indicates an INTENTIONAL hit is just absurd. What was even more asinine, for lack of a better word, was that during intermission, the officials decided to give Terry an additional game misconduct, so he didn’t return for the remainder of the game.

Justin Peters was fantastic in his first game back from injury. Early on, he seemed a bit shaky and his rebound control was lacking, but after the first period, he found his footing and had a fantastic game. It was a huge relief to see him bounce back after being out for over two weeks.

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Samson's goals pace Checkers

With two of the Checkers' top scorers spending the week in the NHL, Jerome Samson is showing he's more than capable of carrying the offense.

Samson scored two power-play goals, extending his point streak to seven games, to lead Charlotte to a 4-2 win against Rockford on Sunday that concluded the team's road trip. Jared Staal and Michal Jordan also scored for the Checkers, who won their second consecutive game to improve to 8-4-1.

Samson's two-goal effort was the only multi-goal game of his streak, which ranks as the second-longest active streak in the AHL behind Houston forward Jon DiSalvatore's nine-game run.

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[Caniac59]

WEEKLY REPORT: NOV. 7

Overall record: 8-4-1 (Home 4-1-0 | Road 4-3-1)
Last week’s record: 2-1-0
Standings: 1st Midwest Division | 2nd Western Conference

For the third consecutive week, the Checkers finished with a record of 2-1-0 on a three-games-in-three days road trip. This time, they dropped the first contest by a 3-1 score in Milwaukee before picking back-to-back wins against more rested squads in Grand Rapids (2-1) and Rockford (4-2). The team’s most recent winning streak lands them in second place in the Western Conference.

The Checkers have one more hectic road trip coming up that will conclude a run of three consecutive three-in-threes. They will begin by facing Oklahoma City, a team that is currently level with the Checkers in the standings with 17 points, on Friday and Saturday before heading out to face No. 1 Houston on Sunday.


Full Report

[Caniac59]

AHL SUSPENDS TERRY FOR TWO GAMES

As a result of his collision with Grand Rapids goaltender Joey MacDonald last week, the American Hockey League has suspended Checkers forward Chris Terry for two games.

Terry, who was given a five-minute major penalty for charging and a 10-minute game misconduct following the play, will miss Charlotte’s games in Oklahoma City this Friday and Saturday, ending his league-leading streak of 173 consecutive games played. He will be eligible to return for Sunday’s game in Houston.

The play occurred near the end of the second period in Charlotte’s 2-1 win on Saturday, when Terry came down the right wing at full speed and cut inside Grand Rapids winger Tomas Tatar close to the goal before losing control of the puck and making hard contact with MacDonald. MacDonald left the game following the incident and did not return. According to the Grand Rapids Press, MacDonald suffered a concussion on the play and is out indefinitely.


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[Caniac59]

SAMSON DOING WHAT HE DOES BEST


For as much grief as he’s been causing the opposition lately, Jerome Samson might get just as much of it back from his own teammates.

No one is begrudging him of the fact that his current seven-game point streak (4g, 6a) has launched him to the top of the team’s scoring chart. He’s been the Checkers’ most consistent forward all season, recording points in 10 of the team’s 13 games. He’s also been a force on the power play, as he leads the team with 7 points on the man advantage.

Instead, it’s another stat that he constantly hears about. Once again, he’s the AHL’s runaway leader in shots on goal with 69 – a full 19 shots more than any other player. Had it not been for his NHL recall at the end of last season, he almost certainly would have finished with the league lead for the second year in a row.

“All my coaches have appreciated me shooting so much, but my teammates always tease me about it,” he said, a claim that was confirmed minutes later when a small group of Checkers players walked by, unaware of what Samson had said, and did just that.


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