BRUINS BURNED BY BOWMAN 

VERSUS    

LATE GOAL BY BOWMAN BURIES BRUINS
Samson adds goal, assist; Teams to meet again Tuesday

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – After trading goals all game, The Charlotte Checkers used a late third period tally to beat the Providence Bruins, 4-3, on Sunday afternoon.

Drayson Bowman scored twice, including the game-winner, for Charlotte, who also had goals from Riley Nash and Jerome Samson. Justin Pogge was solid in the Checkers’ goal, stopping 23 of 26 shots.

Trent Whitfield notched two goals for Providence, while Joe Colborne netted the Bruins’ other goal.

With 1:45 remaining in the opening period, Nash opened the scoring for Charlotte. Samson took a shot from the left-wing boards and Nolan Schaefer made the initial stop, but Nash collected the rebound and slipped it past the goaltender’s outstretched left pad.

Providence answered back late in the third period with a power-play goal by Whitfield. The Bruins center got his stick on a James Arniel shot to redirect the puck past Pogge.

Just 42 seconds later, Samson buried his team-leading 25th goal of the season to put the Checkers ahead, 2-1. While still shorthanded, the Quebec native powered through the Bruins’ defense and snapped a shot through a defender’s legs to beat Schaefer.

Providence drew even at 2-2, with 51.7 seconds remaining in the second period, when Colborne squeezed the puck through a scrum in front that snuck past Pogge.

Early in the third period, Charlotte regained the lead with an extra-strength goal from Bowman. Quarterbacking the power play, Bryan Rodney found Bowman all alone in the slot and the second-year forward ripped a shot past Schaeffer.

Midway through the third period, Whitfield recorded his second tally of the afternoon to tie the game at 3-3 before Bowman scored his second of the game with 3:43 remaining in regulation. The puck squirted out of a scramble in front and Bowman snapped the loose puck top shelf over Schaeffer to make it 4-3

With less than a minute left in regulation, Providence pulled Schaeffer in favor of an extra attacker, but they couldn’t find the back of the net and were defeated.

The Checkers (28-18-5) will host Providence again on Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Time Warner Cable Arena. For ticket information, call 704-342-4423 or visit www.gocheckers.com.

NOTES:

Tonight was Justin Pogge’s 200th AHL game, Jon Matsumoto’s 300th professional game, and Matthew Pistilli’s 100th professional game…Jerome Samson has seven points (4g, 3a) in his last five games and ranks third in the AHL with 25 goals.

Providence Bruins 3 at Charlotte Checkers 4 – Status: Final
Sunday, February 6, 2011 – Time Warner Cable Arena

Providence 0 2 1 – 3
Charlotte 1 1 2 – 4

1st Period-1, Charlotte, Nash 12 (Samson, Bowman), 8:22. Penalties-McIver Pro (fighting), 3:38; Herauf Cha (fighting, misconduct – unsportsmanlike conduct), 3:38; Schaefer Pro (tripping), 5:26; Bowman Cha (hooking), 8:22.

2nd Period-2, Providence, Whitfield 3 (Arniel, Caron), 13:22 (PP). 3, Charlotte, Samson 25   14:04 (SH). 4, Providence, Colborne 12 (Sauve), 19:08. Penalties-Schaefer Pro (roughing), 5:47; Sutter Cha (roughing), 5:47; Rodney Cha (cross-checking), 6:33; Bodnarchuk Pro (hooking), 9:14; Sauve Pro (roughing), 12:40; Rodney Cha (double minor – head-butting (attempt)), 12:40; Terry Cha (roughing), 12:40; Bodnarchuk Pro (high-sticking), 19:29.

3rd Period-5, Charlotte, Bowman 6 (Rodney, Terry), 6:37 (PP). 6, Providence, Whitfield 4 (MacDermid, MacDonald), 8:40. 7, Charlotte, Bowman 7 (Osala, Matsumoto), 16:17. Penalties-Colborne Pro (tripping), 2:29; LaVallee-Smotherman Pro (interference), 5:18; Cohen Pro (interference), 9:53; Penner Pro (hooking), 11:20.

Shots on Goal-Providence 6-15-5-26. Charlotte 5-10-11-26.
Power Play Opportunities-Providence 1 / 4; Charlotte 1 / 7.
Goalies-Providence, Schaefer 9-14-1 (26 shots-22 saves). Charlotte, Pogge 15-10-2 (26 shots-23 saves).
A-3,971
Referees-Steve Patafie (85), Ghislain Hebert (49).
Linesmen-Ben Shiley (21), Terry Wicklum (58).