The Bruins struck first early on, but Lafferty swung things back in Charlotte’s favor - first with his team’s opening tally 75 seconds later and again with a power-play snipe midway through the second. That would secure the lead for the home team, and they wouldn’t relinquish it.
Mastrosimone extended the Charlotte lead later in the middle frame, and while the Bruins picked up a power-play marker late in regulation to pull back within one, Lafferty found the empty net in the waning moments of play to cap off his hat trick and put the Checkers back in the win column.
That patience 👌 https://t.co/qrqDaUgOZl
— Charlotte Checkers (@CheckersHockey) November 11, 2026
QUOTES
Coach Geordie Kinnear on using Monday’s practice to prepare for this gameI think you look at Monday, you get to correct some things with the video before practice and then go out and apply it on the ice. I thought the guys moved the needle today with the structure part. Obviously we were giving up too many odd-man rushes, so tonight was much better.
Kinnear on making adjustments from last weekend
It's not an adjustment, it’s just correcting our systems. We have a lot of new players from different places. We’re all creatures of habit so they’ve been doing it, especially when you get tired, you start reverting back to some of the old systems. We corrected a few things today and there was more trust in our game. Overall it was a step in the right direction.
Kinnear on what impresses him about Sam Lafferty
The individual, first. Such an incredible person in how he approaches every single day. We’re very fortunate to have a guy, and I’m just getting to know him, but how he approaches every day, if I’m a young player I need to watch him work in the gym with his preparation. His game is coming along, and he’s moved all over from center to wing but obviously he’s had impact with each. A step in the right direction from him.
Kinnear on scoring a power-play goal for the fifth straight game
What I did like about the power play is that we weren’t at our best in the two previous games and they got us started in the right direction. Obviously they didn’t follow it up, but it’s a step in the right direction to score timely goals. It’s not all about the percentages, it’s about when you score those goals.
Sam Lafferty on his experience in Charlotte so far
It's been a blast. The guys are great, it’s a fun team to be a part of and honestly I love living here and I love coming to the rink every day. I’m very grateful to be here, and I think we’re coming together more as a team. It’s just getting better and better.
Lafferty on the team’s improvement from last weekend
We talked a lot about getting back to our game and simplifying. I thought we did a better job of that tonight with being more consistent and better decisions with the puck. I think everyone in the dressing room knows what it looks like when we’re at our best, so that’s something we’re just working towards.
Lafferty on his performance tonight
I just try to go out there and play my game every night. I benefitted from some great plays by Beecher tonight. Just both the first two goals, he makes unbelievable passes on. My game is same as our team. We want to simplify and make it something that we can repeat over and over. It just comes down to skating for me, and I think a lot of guys on our team are the same way.
