Charlotte Checkers: New Kids on the Block

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As the summer rolls on we are getting closer and closer to another season of Charlotte Checkers hockey at Bojangles Coliseum! To further fuel your excitement here are some of the names you can look forward to seeing come the fall as the Checkers look to make it back to the playoffs after narrowly missing them this past year.

Charlotte Checkers game at Bojangles Coliseum

Haydn Fleury was originally drafted in 2014, 7th overall and now looks to start his professional career in Charlotte this year. Haydn comes in with high expectation and should be a dominant force on the Checkers blue line at defense. At 6'3" and 210 lbs he loves to use his formidable size to stifle opposing offense and excels in a primarily defensive role. Enjoy seeing him while he is in Charlotte, because he has the skill and pedigree to be called up to the Hurricanes in no time. 

On the same note of defense look no further than Roland McKeown to also step in and have a huge impact on a potential pairing with aforementioned Fleury. This past season in the Ontario Hockey League he was put up for the honor of "Defenseman of the Year" for the entire league. Acquired as part of a trade that sent Andrej Sekera to Los Angeles a year ago he figures to push for a high spot on the Checkers depth chart this year.

Haydn Fleury

One forwards Checkers fans should get fired up about this season is Andrew Poturalski. Last year Hurricanes GM Ron Francis was able to lure Poturalski away from the University of New Hampshire to come play in Charlotte to groom him for the NHL someday. During his last year at UNH he was one of 10 college players to be nominated for the Hobey Baker Award (given to the top college player). While Poturalski had a short stint with the Checkers last year look for him to explode onto the scene in the 2016-2017 season

Coming all the way from Finland, Aleksi Saarela looks to figure in a prominent role on the Charlotte Checkers next season as well. Another forward, Saarela has honed his craft in a Finnish professional league for the past 4 years, playing against grown men as a teenager. Saarela has excelled in several international tournaments for team Finland since he was a teenager and seems poised to have a productive first year playing hockey in North America.

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