CHARLOTTE, NC – The Hartford Wolf Pack were shutout for the fourth time on the season Monday, losing 9-0 to the Charlotte Checkers.
For the ninth straight game, the Wolf Pack surrendered the game’s first goal.
The Checkers had the Wolf Pack stuck in their own zone, applying pressure in the final ten minutes of the first period. At 15:04, the Checkers were finally able to break the ice.
MacKenzie Entwistle sent the puck into the left-wing circle, where Marek Alscher gained possession. Alscher snapped a shot that beat Spencer Martin for his first goal in 25 games to make it 1-0.
Brian Pinho then made it 2-0 63 seconds later. Pinho sped into the offensive zone, split the defense, and worked into the right-wing circle. There, he uncorked a shot that beat Martin at 16:07. The goal was Pinho’s first in 15 games.
Noah Gregor then scored his second goal against the Wolf Pack during this two-game set at 17:36. Gregor let a shot go from the right-wing circle that clipped Martin and found the back of the net.
The goal, Gregor’s fourth of the season, was a four-on-four marker.
The Checkers’ three goals came in a span of 2:32.
Three more quick goals in the middle stanza for the Checkers had them up 6-0 through 40 minutes.
Mitchell Vande Sompel made it 4-0 at 10:27, potting his first goal of the season on a shot from the right-wing circle. 29 seconds later, Ben Steeves took a pass from Jack Devine on the left-wing side and beat a diving Martin to make it 5-0 at 10:56.
Mike Benning completed the stretch of three goals in 5:56 at 16:23, tapping home his eighth goal of the campaign.
A Hunter St. Martin shot leaked through Martin, leaving the puck behind the netminder. Benning found it and tapped it home to make it a 6-0 game.
The six-goal deficit was the largest Hartford has faced through 40 minutes this season.
Three power play goals from the Checkers extended the lead in the final period of play.
Jack Devine struck at 8:08, potting his 13th goal of the season to make it 7-0. 2:12 later, St. Martin struck from the slot to extend the lead to 8-0.
Steeves then buried a five-on-three goal at 11:52, completing a stretch of three goals in 3:44.
