Weekly Report: Feb. 9

Charlotte closes out their six-game homestand with a pair of tilts against the Hartford Wolf Pack at Bojangles Coliseum!

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Griffins 0, Checkers 3

The Checkers started off the week with a 3-0 shutout of the AHL-leading Grand Rapids Griffins on Friday night. Following a goalless first period, Charlotte scored three times in under 80 seconds. Mike Benning, Noah Gregor and Wilmer Skoog each lit the lamp, which was all the Checkers needed to pick up two points.

Alpena, MI, native Cooper Black notched his first shutout of the season with 27 saves. In two games against the Griffins this year, Black recorded a 2-0 record with a 0.50 goals-against average and a .985 save percentage. Skoog’s 17th goal of the season pushed him ahead of Ben Steeves for the Checkers team lead. Both teams struggled on the power play, each going 0-for-5.

Griffins 5, Checkers 2

Grand Rapids got its revenge on Charlotte on Saturday night, splitting the weekend with a 5-2 victory. Robert Mastrosimone added his ninth goal of the season in the first period, tying the game following Alex Doucet’s ice-breaker. Ondrej Becher restored the Griffins’ lead in the final minute of the opening stanza. Antti Tuomisto struck on the power play in the second, making it 3-1.

Riese Gaber found the back of the net at 17:57 of the second period, stealing the puck in the offensive zone and beating Griffins goaltender Sebastian Cossa. In the third period, Charlotte threw everything they had at Cossa, but failed to find the equalizer. Controversy arose as Robert Mastrosimone pounded home a loose puck behind Cossa, appearing to tie the game midway through the third period. However, the officials blew the whistle as they lost sight of the puck. Grand Rapids scored two empty-net goals to put the game away. The Checkers outshot the Griffins 40-21.

QUICK HITS

A WELL-NEEDED BREAK

The Checkers sit firmly in third place of the Atlantic Division as they head into the 2026 AHL All-Star Break. Charlotte has dealt with multiple game postponements, time changes and hectic travel over the course of the season; the club now has a chance to relax for a few days. “Just decompress and rest up,” Checkers head coach Geordie Kinnear said. “It’s a tough stretch of games all the way to the end because it only gets harder from here. These guys make a lot of sacrifices along the way, so anytime you can see friends and family and get away from the game, I think it’s pretty important. I’m excited that they get a rest.”

Forwards Jack Devine and Ben Steeves will represent the Checkers at the 2026 AHL All-Star Classic, presented by BMO. This year’s game will take place in Rockford, IL, and includes the AHL All-Star Skills Competition on Tuesday, February 10, followed by the AHL Hall of Fame Induction and Awards Ceremony on Wednesday, February 11, and the 2026 AHL All-Star Challenge that evening. Steeves replaced defenseman Tobias Bjornfot, who is currently with the Florida Panthers. Devine and Steeves each have 29 points this season, tied for second-most among Checkers players in 2025-26.

WOLF PACK LIMP INTO CHARLOTTE

Following the break, the Hartford Wolf Pack will play Charlotte twice this week, beginning on Valentine’s Day. Hartford currently sits tied in seventh place with the Springfield Thunderbirds. They’ve lost six straight games (0-5-0-1) and sit in the bottom-10 in both goals for (2.56 - 28th) and goals against (3.44 - 29th). Trey Fix-Wolansky leads the Wolf Pack with 28 points (16 goals, 12 assists), appearing in every game this season for the team. Dylan Garand has been their number one goaltender, suiting up 26 times and logging a 10-12-2 record with GAA of 3.12 and a save percentage of .887.

Saturday’s game marks the third meeting of the year between the two Atlantic Division foes. Charlotte is 1-1 against Hartford in the previous pair of meetings, which came at PeoplesBank Arena in Hartford. Riese Gaber leads all players in the season series with four points, which all came in a 7-1 drubbing by the Checkers on January 28. Black has played in both games, but was pulled in second period on October 29 in Hartford’s 4-1 win. Garand appeared in net for each contest against Charlotte in Hartford this season. The Checkers are 10-3-2 over the last five years against the Wolf Pack at Bojangles Coliseum.

HIGHLIGHT OF THE WEEK

Noah Gregor turned on the jets and potted his second goal of the season to give Charlotte a 2-0 lead over the Griffins on Friday night.

Can't get up ice much faster than this! pic.twitter.com/yvCxZ4tDJ7

— Charlotte Checkers (@CheckersHockey) February 7, 2026

Transactions

Incoming

• Feb. 6 - Mikulas Hovorka - Assigned by Florida (NHL)

Outgoing

• Feb. 5 - Mikulas Hovorka - Recalled to Florida (NHL)

Injury Notes

• Nolan Foote returned on Saturday night against Grand Rapids after missing two games with an upper-body injury.
• Robert Mastrosimone returned on Friday night against Grand Rapids after missing one game due to a lower-body injury.
• Trevor Carrick left Saturday’s game against Grand Rapids with an upper-body injury.

RANKINGS

• Mikulas Hovorka is tied for the league lead among defensemen in shorthanded goals (1)
• Cooper Black is tied for third in the AHL in wins (18)
• Cooper Black is sixth in the AHL in minutes played (1592:28)
• Brett Chorkse is tied for first among AHL rookies in shorthanded goals (2)
• Jack Devine is tied for eighth among AHL rookies in game-winning goals (3)
• Colton Huard is tied for fourth among AHL rookie defensemen in game-winning goals (1)
• Nolan Foote is tied for 10th in the AHL in game-winning goals (4)
• Kirill Gerasimyuk is tied for seventh in the AHL in shutouts (2)
• Jack Devine is seventh among AHL rookies in points (29)
• Jack Devine is tied for ninth among AHL rookies in goals (12)
• Jack Devine is eighth among AHL rookies in assists (17)
• Mitch Vande Sompel and Jake Livingstone are tied for ninth among AHL defensemen in shorthanded assists (1)
• Trevor Carrick is tied for ninth among AHL defensemen in shots on goal (94)
• Mikulas Hovorka is tied for 15th among defensemen in plus-minus (+15)
• Jack Devine is tied for sixth among AHL rookies in plus-minus (+14)
• Nolan Foote is 15th in the AHL in shots on goal (115)
• Colton Huard is tied for 14th among AHL rookie defensemen in goals (3)

By the Numbers

CATEGORY	RECORD	AHL RANK
Power play	16.3%	25th
Penalty kill	84.8%	2nd
Goals per game	3.34	6th
Shots per game	30.68	6th
Goals allowed per game	2.80	9th
Shots allowed per game	24.57	1st
Penalty minutes per game	11.89	24th

LEADERS

CATEGORY	LEADER(S)
Points	Wilmer Skoog (30)
Goals	Wilmer Skoog (17)
Assists	Jack Devine (17)
Power play goals	Ben Steeves (6), Robert Mastrosimone (3)
Shorthanded goals	Brett Chorkse (2), Mikulas Hovorka, Jack Devine, Jack Studnicka, Sandis Vilmanis (1)
Game-winning goals	Nolan Foote (4), Jack Devine, Brett Chorske, Ben Steeves(3)
Shots on goal	Nolan Foote (115), Ben Steeves (114), Wilmer Skoog (99)
Penalty minutes	Ben Steeves (60), Nolan Foote (36), Jack Devine (33), Riese Gaber, Mike Benning, Trevor Carrick(30)
Plus/minus	Mikulas Hovorka (+15), Jack Devine (+14) Jake Livingstone (+13)
Wins	Cooper Black (18)
Goals-against average	Kirill Gerasimyuk (2.40)
Save percentage	Cooper Black(.904)