CHECKERS COMING TO TOWN 

The Charlotte Checkers have announced their first AHL schedule and it includes two visits to Hartford to take on the Wolf Pack who’s team they were affiliated with when they were in the ECHL.

Here’s the official release:

CHECKERS ANNOUNCE SCHEDULE FORMAT, OPPONENTS
Albany, defending champs Hershey highlight 80-game layout

The Charlotte Checkers announced today the schedule format and opponents for the 2010-11 season, their first as a member of the American Hockey League.

Charlotte fans will have the opportunity to watch 14 of the AHL’s 29 other teams at Time Warner Cable Arena and the complete schedule will be announced in August.

The Checkers will battle their closest rival geographically, the Norfolk Admirals (Tampa Bay Lightning), 12 times – six in Charlotte and six in Virginia. Charlotte will also split eight games with the defending Calder Cup champion Hershey Bears (Washington Capitals) and six games with the Albany Devils (New Jersey Devils).

Other East Division matchups will include the Adirondack Phantoms (Philadelphia Flyers), Binghamton Senators (Ottawa Senators), Syracuse Crunch (Anaheim Ducks) and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (Pittsburgh Penguins).

In addition, the Checkers will play two home games and two away games against each member of the Eastern Conference’s Atlantic Division, including the Hartford Wolf Pack (New York Rangers).

The full schedule format is as follows (NHL parent club in parentheses):

Team	Home	Away
Eastern Conference  East Division Adirondack Phantoms (PHI) Albany Devils (NJD) Binghamton Senators (OTT) Hershey Bears (WSH) Norfolk Admirals (TB) Syracuse Crunch (ANA) Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (PIT)   Atlantic Division Bridgeport Sound Tigers (NYI) Hartford Wolf Pack (NYR) Manchester Monarchs (LA) Portland Pirates (BUF) Providence Bruins (BOS) Springfield Falcons (CBJ) Worcester Sharks (SJ)	3 3 4 4 6 2 4     2 2 2 2 2 2 2	3 3 4 4 6 2 4     2 2 2 2 2 2 2
Total	40	40

Season tickets for the Checkers’ inaugural 2010-11 AHL season are now on sale and packages start as low as $10 per game. Ticket information can be obtained by calling 704-342-4-ICE or visiting www.gocheckers.com.