Preview: Gulls Flock To Charlotte For First Of Back-To-Back Battles
Nov 3, 2023By Nick Aguilera/SanDiegoGulls.com
For the first time since 2016, the San Diego Gulls head east for a matchup with the Charlotte Checkers.
The first of two back-to-back games comes on Friday, Nov. 3 at Bojangles Coliseum (4 p.m. PT). The last time San Diego faced Charlotte in its home barn, the Gulls came out with a perfect 2-0-0-0 record. All-time against the Checkers, the Gulls hold a 2-2-0-0 record.
After opening the season 2-0-0-0, the Gulls dropped four straight to push their record to 2-4-0-0. Despite the lack of wins, San Diego has entered the third period of each of its past three contests tied.
"Composure is kind of the first thing," head coach Matt McIlvane said. "We’ve done something well enough to keep ourselves in a game. We’ve gotten leads. Being able to not get tired of doing the right things. That’s a part of our journey right now, is getting through that. It’s really blatantly obvious when you sit and look at the video. For our guys, it’s learning a little bit of composure to be able to get through those moments and we feel like we’re on our way."
"Obviously not the outcomes we wanted, but I think we’re right there going into the third,” center Ben King added. "Right there, we just got to tighten some things up and we’ll get some wins moving forward."
San Diego’s offense has been stagnant as well, scoring seven goals across their four-game skid. McIlvane feels the team is right on the verge of a breakthrough and can solve their offensive woes before it’s too late.
"[Finishing goals] is part, but it’s also how many opportunities do you get to finish," McIlvane said. "The more opportunities you get to finish, the higher the likelihood [to score]. I think for us it’s as much traffic as you can get. As cliché as it is in hockey, goalies in this league are so good and we need to be able to get in there and get a couple greasy ones with some numbers in and around the net."
Charlotte provides a tough test for the Gulls with two excellent goaltenders in Spencer Knight and Mack Guzda. The two have combined for a .926 save percentage on the season.
Defenseman Trevor Carrick spent five seasons in Charlotte from 2014-19 and helped the Checkers win the Calder Cup in 2019. Friday marks the first time Carrick will step on the ice as a visiting player.
"It obviously brings back some very good memories," Carrick said. "In five years here, [I] made some really good friendships. Just being back in the city just brought back some really good memories… I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s game and reconnecting with some of the fans here."
Calle Clang will likely get the nod in net Friday after Alex Stalock was recalled by the Anaheim Ducks on Wednesday. Clang matched his AHL career high in saves in Sunday’s game against Henderson, stopping 35-of-38 shots. He’s made 30-or-more saves in each of his first three starts this season.
There was some movement on San Diego’s roster prior to the trip. Goaltender Tomas Suchanek was called up from Tulsa of the ECHL in Stalock’s place. Defenseman Robert Hagg was reassigned to San Diego from Anaheim and defenseman Luka Profaca was assigned to Tulsa prior to Friday’s contest.