CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The games in this series have been wildly different. We have seen shutout performances, one-goal games and high scoring shootouts thus far. The chippiness has continuously simmered, but rarely boiled over as the squads play disciplined hockey. There has been a large discrepancy between what the referee sees and what actually goes on behind his back. This has led to frustration for the coaches who tend to see all of the ice rather than just the puck. It has been a suspenseful series, and tonight for game six, it was no easy task to post a win. The Cyclones suffered another scoreless first period, while giving up the first goal of the game. At 2:24 Kenny Roche took a feed from Trevor Hendrikx and buried the puck behind ‘Clones netminder Jeremy Smith. The Cyclones had several quality opportunities to even the score, but Ryan Munce closed the door each time. The second period began and in short order, the Checkers went on the power play as Dustin Sproat sat in the sin bin. The Cyclones had a shorthanded opportunity before the Checkers were given another power play as Mark VanGuilder took his turn in the box. In four minutes of power play time Charlotte managed only three shots on goal. 
With a 33 percent power play, the Checkers are dangerous with the man advantage. Most of the period was a defensive struggle, with neither team gaining traction. With less than three minutes left in the stanza, Charlotte was given another man advantage situation in which Randy Rowe converted into a two goal lead, leaving the Cyclones a larger deficit to overcome in the third period. The Checkers managed another marker in the final period to gain a three goal advantage. 
This series is tied at three games apiece with the winner take all, game seven on Wednesday night in Charlotte. The ‘Clones remain winless in even numbered games, so game seven may just be their number. Contact Rob.Huelsoman@prohockeynews.com
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