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Rocket series: Jesse Puljujarvi and these Checkers players to watch out for
Charles-Alexis Brisebois
Rocket series: Jesse Puljujarvi and these Checkers players to watch out for
Credit: That’s it: the Rocket is in the final four of the AHL playoffs. There are only five teams left in the playoffs (the Abbotsford Canucks or Colorado Eagles will be eliminated today, and the winner of the final game will face the Texas Stars in the Western Final), and the Rocket is one of them. […]
That’s it: the Rocket is in the final four of the AHL playoffs.

There are only five teams left in the playoffs (the Abbotsford Canucks or Colorado Eagles will be eliminated today, and the winner of the final game will face the Texas Stars in the Western Final), and the Rocket is one of them.

On Wednesday, the Rocket will host the Charlotte Checkers, the Panthers’ training club, at Place Bell. Tickets go on sale in a few hours, for those interested.

This means there will potentially be two two-game sequences in as many nights on Montreal’s North Shore.

The Charlotte Checkers aren’t in the Rocket’s division, and they’re not exactly the best-known club among Quebec fans. What should both sides be on the lookout for in the series?

1. The Checkers, in Anthony Marcotte’s opinion, are a club with more experience than the Americans and the Rocket. On the other hand, they’re not the most talented of the bunch.

But in the playoffs, experience counts.

2. The Checkers needed eight games (6-2 record) to get out of their division in the playoffs. But even so, no player has more than six points since the end of the regular season.

For the Rocket, in nine games, four forwards have more than six points. And defenseman Logan Mailloux has six points.

  • Alex Barré-Boulet: 3 + 7 = 10
  • Laurent Dauphin: 5 + 4 = 9
  • Sean Farrell: 3 + 5 = 8
  • Joshua Roy: 3 = 5 = 8
But in Charlotte, it’s a different story. Rasmus Asplund and John Leonard, Charlotte’s leading scorers in the playoffs, aren’t even close to the point-per-game mark.

The two guys, aged 27 and 26 respectively, have been the club’s driving force since the start of the playoffs.

Michael Benning, a 22-year-old defenseman in his second year in the pros, is one to watch. He’s the Checkers’ only real young prospect among the club’s top six scorers since the start of the playoffs. An experienced club, as Anthony Marcotte used to say…

Ah: we’re also keeping an eye on Jesse Puljujarvi. He can go out in force if he wants to.

3. In front of the net, there’s no doubt about it: the man you can trust is Kaapo Kahkonen. You’ve probably heard of him, having played 140 NHL games with the Wild, Sharks, Devils and Avalanche.

This season, he’s been around: he played for the Avalanche (one game), but mostly in the AHL with the Eagles, Moose and Checkers.

In the playoffs, he played every minute for his club. He has a 6-2 record, a 1.85 GAA and a .918 save percentage. He’s given up just 15 goals and is full of confidence.

Cayden Primeau (because yes, he’ll probably be the one to start the series) will have to repeat his round-robin exploits against the Americans to give his team a chance.

Unlike the Rocket, the Checkers needed only one goaltender to advance to the Final Four.

The Rocket, on the other hand, saw Jacob Fowler win every game against Cleveland and Cayden Primeau win nothing against the Monsters. And against Rochester, it was the complete opposite. #EhBien

4. What’s in it for the Rocket?

While Charlotte has a great hockey club (94 points, fourth overall in 72 games this season… and sweep of the Bears to get out of the division), the Rocket is also strong.

It had 103 points on the season. That’s no mean feat.

Yesterday, we saw that the club is really strong when it plays like it can. And Sean Farrell wasn’t afraid to say it after the game: nobody can keep up with the Rocket when they play their way.

5. Pascal Vincent’s club (who still can’t focus 100% on NHL coaching jobs right now) doesn’t have an eye-popping star, but it also has a great collective group.

And David Reinbacher, a high draft pick in 2023, helps stabilize the group. Making a bad decision on the ice doesn’t happen very often, let’s say.


overtime

– Les Checkers, en français SVP.

– Of note.

– Bonsoir, he’s (probably) gone.

– A machine.

– To read.

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