On Friday night, the Charlotte Checkers defeated the Bridgeport Islanders 8-2, marking the largest margin of defeat for the Islanders in the young season. With the loss, Bridgeport’s record fell to 1-4-1, while Charlotte improved to 4-1-0.

The first period was scrappy. The Isles and Checkers traded scoring opportunities and fisticuffs. At 3:53, Isles forward Tyce Thompson fought Checkers forward Riley Bezeau. Later, Islanders captain Cole Bardreau also dropped the gloves with Bezeau. The teams racked up 30 penalty minutes and scored a goal each in the opening frame.

Islander forward Brian Pinho opened the scoring with a redirected point shot from defenseman Samuel Bolduc. Charlotte quickly responded with an equalizer less than a minute later. At 16:26, Checkers forward Sandis Vilmanis sent a backhanded shot under Islanders goalie Jakub Skarek’s glove. Skarek surely wanted that one back, but it would signal more trouble to come in the second period.

Despite entering the second frame tied, the Checkers dominated the next 40 minutes. They scored six consecutive goals in the game, with five coming in the second period. Charlotte found the net through Aidan McDonough, Ryan McAllister, Kyle Criscuolo, Matt Luff and Rasmus Asplund. By the second intermission, Skarek had allowed six goals on 22 shots, prompting Marcus Hogberg to replace him for the third period.

The Checkers added two more goals in the third. Trevor Carrick scored on the power play at 3:19, and Michael Benning notched Charlotte’s eighth goal with a shorthanded tally at 18:24. The only Islanders highlight in the third period came when Hudson Fasching scored his first goal of the season at 16:54, assisted by Chris Terry.

The Islanders struggled on special teams, converting just one of six power-play chances while allowing three power-play goals. Skarek, who had entered the game on a hot streak, couldn’t come up with the key stops his team needed.

Checkers forward Rasmus Asplund, with a goal and an assist, earned the first star of the game. Vilmanis, also with a goal and an assist, took second star, while Bezeau rounded out the honors with a third star for his assist and two fights.

The Islanders have a chance to split their weekend series against the Checkers on Saturday night. The game at Bojangles Arena in Charlotte begins at 6 p.m., and all AHL games can be streamed on flohockey.tv.

Image Courtesy of the Bridgeport Islanders

Joey McAuliffe

Joey McAuliffe is a passionate Islander fan pursuing a Masters of Accounting in Buffalo, NY. His favorite player of all time is Jordan Eberle. He has followed the team closely since 2014, but he began regularly attending games during the 2006 season. Outside of hockey, Joey loves music and the Buffalo Bills.