A few things to know before the Devils and Checkers face off at the Times Union Center:
-Season: This is the 6th and final meeting between the two teams, with the Devils holding a 3-2 lead. Last game was on February 15th in North Carolina, a 3-0 Devils shutout win (the first AHL whitewash by Dave Caruso).
-Standings: The Checkers start the day in 3rd place in the East Division with a 41-26-2-7 record and 91 points. They stand 5 points behind 2nd place Hershey and 3 points ahead of 4th place Norfolk. The Devils stand in 7th with a 31-38-1-4 mark and 67 points, 4 points behind 6th place Syracuse and 3 points ahead of 8th place Adirondack.
-Scoring: Charlotte is lead by two former River Rats, forwards Zach Boychuk with 62 points (22 G, 40 A) and Chris Terry with 60 points (32 G, 28 A). The goaltending corps took a hit recently with an injury to Mike Murphy, Justin Pogge has assumed the regular starting role (ECHL callup and expert Jeopardy Tweeter Bobby Goepfert is currently backing up). For the home side, no changes at the top…Matt Anderson with 52 points (21 G, 31 A) and Adam Henrique with 48 points (25 G, 23 A). The goaltending has been trading starts as of late, I would expect Jeff Frazee in net despite coming in to replace Mike McKenna in relief in Adirondack Friday night. (UPDATE: Dave Caruso has been recalled…Frazee apparently is hurt after taking a shot to the knee during his relief stint last night. So I guess McKenna gets a second chance or Caruso gets thrown in.)
Game time: 7 PM. Day 3 of my 9 Days of Devils event…will be in house. It’s Fan Appreciation Day, and for a lovely gift you’ll get a Michael Swift bobblehead doll. Yes we know he’s a Worcester Shark now but keep in mind we voted on this in November before a trade was even thought of.
Thoughts Inside The Box 