Brock McGinn
No player on the Checkers may have made bigger strides in asserting himself this season as a valuable player in the organization than Brock McGinn. He has twenty-six points in thirty-two games making him only two points away from his point total from last season with the Checkers. McGinn also made his NHL debut early on in the NHL season, scoring his first goal in his first NHL game.
McGinn was drafted 45th overall in the 2010 OHL Draft by the Guelph Storm. He played four seasons for the Storm, eventually becoming a top scorer for the team in his last two seasons. The Hurricanes then drafted him 47th overall in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, one pick before the drafted fellow Checker/Hurricane Phil Di Giuseppe. McGinn laced up his skates for his first full season with the Checkers last year playing seventy-three games and putting up twenty-six points. The difference in his play from last season to this season is huge. He is playing more assertive when he has the puck and looks like he is gaining more confidence every time the puck touches his stick. He also looks noticeably stronger when he comes into contact with defenders when going for the puck and is not easily being shrugged away. With his good skating ability and power forward type playing style McGinn could be compared to former Hurricane favorite Erik Cole.
McGinn has not been up with the Hurricanes since December. He might not be called back up with the Hurricanes for the rest of the season because of the Checkers recent struggles and the fact that the team needs him if they want to even think of making the playoffs. At the same time, the Hurricanes are now fighting for a playoff spot and if there is any injury on offense for the Canes then Brock McGinn could be on his way to Raleigh.
Checkers Slide Continues
The Checkers were unable to rebound this week losing all four games. The first loss was a 3-2 game to San Antonio on Wednesday (Feb. 10). They would then lose to San Diego 3-2 on Friday (Feb. 12), and again on Saturday night (Feb. 13) by a score of 5-4. They finished off a rough week with a 3-0 loss to Milwaukee on Tuesday (Feb. 16).
Three stars of the week
Sergey Tolchinsky was one of the few Checkers to standout this past week. Tolchinsky was able to tally two points in the four games and he was one of the only players to show a consistent fight each and every game, no matter how the outcome was looking. He showed most importantly that he is willing to do whatever it takes to try to keep winning. Brody Sutter had three points in the four games the team played. Sutter centered the third line, which scored both the teams goals Friday night. Ryan Murphy, like Sutter, had a three-point week and almost single-handedly brought the team back Saturday night after it went down two goals and was looking flat for the majority of the night. If Murphy keeps playing like he did Saturday night, he will be getting a call from the Hurricanes soon.
Who’s Hot
Even though Zach Boychuk did not score a goal over the week, he was able to create multiple scoring chances for himself and his teammates. He was able to set up his teammates for two goals during the week. Brendan Woods had two points himself, including the tying goal on Friday night that sent the game into overtime.
Who’s Not
The award for this category goes to the defense and goaltending for this week. During the current slide for the Checkers, the defense has had a noticeably harder time getting the puck out of their own zone compared to earlier in the season. They have had uncharacteristic turnovers while trying to clear the puck or trying to start the breakout. The recent shaky play of the defense has trickled down to the confidence of the goalies. Each of the Checkers goalies have let in long shots from the point and bad angle shots from the side of the net. These are mistakes that fans did not see from this team earlier in the season.
Injury and roster notes
Tyler Ganly, Carter Sandlak, Erik Karlsson and Mike Cornell were all healthy extras during the week for multiple games. Danny Biega missed every game due to injury, while Justin Shugg and Ethan Werek both missed the game on Wednesday. The Checkers recalled Carter Sandlak from Forida and released Sean Escobedo from his player contract on Wednesday (Feb. 10). The Hurricanes called up goaltender Daniel Altshuller while the Checkers called up goalie Anthony Peters from Florida on Monday (Feb. 15).
Forward lines as of now
First line: Zach Boychuk-Derek Ryan-Justin Shugg
Second line: Brock McGinn-David Wohlberg-T.J. Hensick
Third line: Kyle Hagel-Brody Sutter-Brendan Woods
Fourth line: Sergey Tolchinsky-Ethan Werek-Patrick Brown
Defensive pairings as of now
First pairing: Trevor Carrick-Keegan Lowe
Second pairing: Rasmus Rissanen-Ryan Murphy
Third pairing: Jake Chelios-Mike Cornell
