Monsters, Checkers Split Weekend Series

CHARLOTTE – Fresh off ending their nine-game losing streak, the Cleveland Monsters headed to North Carolina to take on the Charlotte Checkers. Normally, the series against the Checkers is a rather tame one for the Monsters. It’s usually 60 minutes of everyone showing off their skills instead of their grit. However, this weekend, both teams shone a light on both skill and toughness.

Saturday Night

The weekend got off to a wild start when Checkers forward Zac Dalpe aggressively said “hello” to Monsters forward Tristan Mullin 29 seconds into the first period. Even though it wasn’t much of a fight, they both earned five minute majors for fighting. Dalpe also received a two-minute minor for unsportsmanlike conduct due to the fact he threw Mullin’s helmet into the stands.

Cleveland struggled a bit on their first power play of the night. At one point, defenseman Dillon Simpson turned the puck over near the crease, allowing Checkers forward Cole Schwindt to get a deadly shot on net. Cam Johnson, Cleveland netminder, quickly stuffed it. 

Speaking of Johnson, during the first five minutes of the game, he faced a few rushes, wicked wristers from the slot, and a blue line bomb — all of which he was able to stop with ease. 

The Monsters second power play of the night came 5:01 into the game when Checkers Kole Lind got aggressive with Monsters newest winger Dallas Gerads. Almost a minute and a half into the man advantage, the Monsters made magic happen when Jake Slaker fired a wicked wrister from the left faceoff dot for the first goal of the night.

Shortly after Slaker’s goal, the Monsters headed to another power play. Having three power plays within the first 10 minutes of the game was a great way for the Monsters to take charge of momentum off the bat. Plus, their power play was simple & fast, which allowed the cogs to be greased enough to get the machine rolling to peak performance. 

On the other side of the special teams coin, the Monsters’ first penalty kill of the night was firing on all cylinders. They didn’t allow a single registered shot on goal and made it very difficult for the Checkers power play to get within shooting range. 

The plot thickened when Logan Hutsko tied the game at one for Charlotte with 6:30 to play in the first period. Hutsko threw a pass just out of reach to one of his teammates causing it to bounce off of the corner on the other side of the net. Seeing the errant puck, every member of the Monsters rushed to the left side of the net while Hutsko patiently sat in the right circle. This allowed the Checkers to keep the play moving without fear of being shut down by the Monsters. 

The second period was full of rushes and missed chances for both teams. However, Charlotte was able to find the back of the net with 5:42 to play in the second. Alexander True passed to his teammate, but he whiffed on the catch. True chased down the errant puck, held onto it for a moment, and then backhanded a shot into the net. The Monsters were a hair behind him the entire time the play was unfolding. 

The Monsters started the third period by leaving Checkers defenseman Dennis Cholowski alone near the top of the left circle. This allowed Cholowski to fling the puck down the ice without worry of someone poke checking him. The two Monsters haphazardly screening Johnson didn’t help either. 

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Charlotte now had the 3-1 lead over Cleveland 1:39 into the final period of play.

With 11:48 left in the game, all eyes were on Monsters forward Carson Meyer and Monsters defenseman Jake Christiansen. Fortunately, for the Monsters, it meant the Checkers completely forgot about forward Robbie Payne, allowing him to have the space to bring the Monsters within one of the Checkers, 3-2.

Payne’s goal put even more pep in the Monsters’ step for the rest of the game. They continued to rush the net and pepper Checkers netminder Spencer Knight with shots. It felt like the Monsters were going to push the game into overtime. Then, with 15.2 seconds left in the game, Charlotte forward Max McCormick picked up a Cleveland shot that went wide of the net, carrying it to the other end of the ice before firing it into the empty net. There was no way the Monsters were going to be able to come back from a 4-2 deficit with 15.2 seconds to play in the game. 

Charlotte may have taken game one on the weekend but it wasn’t easy for them. When you look back on the night, there was really only one thing that hurt the Monsters: leaving different members of the Checkers alone. The Monsters didn’t need to play man-to-man hockey but they shouldn’t be on one side of the net in the defensive zone. 

Sunday Afternoon

During the first 2:30 of Sunday afternoon’s game, the Monsters won most of their stick battles in the neutral zone. This prevented the Checkers from being able to make any sound moves towards the Monsters defensive zone. 

Keeping play in Cleveland’s offensive zone allowed the Monsters to continue to draw up plays until one finally stuck 3:29 into the game. Justin Scott  was left alone and slowly lurked into the right faceoff circle before Cleveland forward Cole Cassels backhanded a pass from the corner his way. Scott held onto the puck for a slight moment, then fired the puck past the right side of Checkers netminder Joey Daccord. Holding onto the puck allowed Scott to grab control of his shot and see if Daccord would immediately bite or not. 

Around two and half minutes later, Scott tried to get his second of the night, but Daccord slammed the door on his dream. 

While we are on the subject of players named “Scott”, Checkers winger Scott Wilson tied the game at one with 12:25 to play in the first. He managed to get his stick on Connor Carrick’s shot and redirected it into the net. 

Shortly after Wilson’s tying goal, tempers boiled over and a massive kerfuffle broke out between all the skaters on the ice. The refs were able to get things under control and for four minutes there was peace and love between the two teams. Then, with 7:20 to play in the first, Meyer was denied a point blank wrister and was pushed a bit by Checkers forward Kole Lind. Scott wasn’t a fan of that move and started pushing Lind around earning himself a roughing penalty. Since the Monsters were already on the penalty kill, they headed to the two-man disadvantage for 40 seconds. 

It took 14 seconds for the Checkers to turn a 5-on-3 power play into a goal. Johnson stopped Lind’s initial shot but the puck squeaked through his pads just enough for Charlotte forward Zac Dalpe to tap it into the net. 

A two-on-one rush by Meyer and Trey Fix-Wolansky with 2:26 left in the first allowed the Monsters to tie the game at two. Both Meyer and Checkers defenseman Jacob Friend kept the tie, 3-3, going by scoring a goal in the first four minutes of the second period. For the rest of the period, Daccord and Johnson were kept on toes. Whether they were registered shots on goal or shot attempts, the Checkers and Monsters forced Johnson and Daccord to jump and slide around the crease stopping pucks and closing up openings. 

Around the five minute mark of the third period, the Checkers scored two goals in 17 seconds, giving them the 5-3 lead over the Monsters. The two quick goals sucked the wind out of the Monsters’ sails for a moment. 

BUT THEN there was a wild kerfuffle 5:21 into the third period that allowed the Monsters to begin to take control of momentum. Once they got their frustrations out, the Monsters were able to focus on the task at hand and scored three unanswered goals. 

These two are not friends….. well one is a friend

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Dallas Gerads and Jacob Friend drop the gloves at center ice with 14:39 to play in the game.

Do yourself a favor and watch the faces in the background. #CLEMonsters #CLEvsCLT @FPC_AHL pic.twitter.com/9ciWes1jUv

— Elaine Shircliff (@imaraindancer) February 20, 2022

Monsters defender Dillon Simpson brought Cleveland within one of the Checkers, 5-4, with 8:28 to play in the game. It was a one-time slapper off the draw and down the slot. With 6:47 to play in the game, Monsters defender Scott Harrington tied the game like a bow on a present with a wrister from near the blue line. Those two goals gave Cleveland the energy to push the game into overtime for the 14th time this season.

For the bulk of overtime, the Checkers did a lot of drop passing to keep the puck moving, something I haven’t seen the Monsters do a lot of during overtime this season. The constant puck moving by Charlotte forced Cleveland to hone in on how plays were being formed. As overtime ticked on, the Monsters began to break up the Checkers plays with poke checks and interceptions. 

One of those interceptions led to the game-winning goal by Monsters defender Thomas Schemitsch. With 10 seconds left in overtime, Cassels intercepted a puck at the bottom of the neutral zone and went on a rush with Schemitsch. As they neared the slot, Cassels fired the puck between two Checkers right onto Schemitsch’s stick. From there, Schemitsch was able to skate in front of the crease and find the one hole Daccord left open to give the Monsters the 6-5 win over the Checkers. 

Over the years, Cleveland head coach Mike Eaves has preached TWIG — take what is given. This weekend, the Monsters had the three last-minute PTOs, played one game with 11 forwards and seven defensemen, and dealt with a bevy of injuries. They took all that was given this weekend and made it work for them.