SPRINGFIELD, Mass. - The Springfield Thunderbirds had few answers for the explosive Charlotte Checkers, who took home an 8-1 win on Wednesday night inside Bojangles Coliseum, giving Charlotte a 1-0 series lead in the Best-of-3 Atlantic Division First Round series. 

After scoring a combined 16 goals in their last two games on home ice against Springfield during the regular season, the Checkers did not waste time continuing that theme in the postseason as Marek Alscher glided over the Springfield blue line and beat Vadim Zherenko with a wrist shot over the glove to give Charlotte the 1-0 edge at 5:05 of the period. 

The T-Birds had no answers for Charlotte's swarming forecheck in the opening 20 minutes, managing just two shots in the period. Meanwhile, the Checkers only gained steam, and Noah Gregor located a rebound in Zherenko's crease at 13:07 to chip it into the yawning twine to make it a 2-0 game.

Studnicka continued making his presence felt when he won a loose puck battle in the left corner before whipping a perfect pass to Nolan Foote in the slot for a one-time goal at 17:01 to elevate the lead to 3-0. 

After the game's first set of matching minors created 4-on-4 hockey, Gregor asserted himself again, intercepting a puck in center ice before speeding behind the defense and chipping a forehander past Zherenko at 19:21 to finish off a four-goal first period explosion for the home team. 

Will Cranley entered the Springfield net for period two, but the results did not get any better for the visitors as Studnicka greeted Cranley with a goal just 1:40 into the frame, and after additional strikes from Sandis Vilmanis and Tobias Bjornfot, the lead had grown to 7-0 for Charlotte by the midpoint of regulation. 

Julien Gauthier would get Springfield onto the scoresheet at 4:39 of the third, deflecting a Thomas Bordeleau shot through Cooper Black on the short side. 

Studnicka concluded his first star performance with a breakaway goal in the game's final minute to round out the scoring. 

The T-Birds will look to keep their season alive on Friday night at 7:00 p.m. in Game 2 of the series at Bojangles Coliseum.

All remaining games of the First Round series can be seen on AHLTV powered by FloHockey and heard over the air on NewsRadio 560 WHYN and the iHeartRadio app. 

Thunderbirds' Pay As We Play playoff plans are available now for no upfront cost and will still be in effect should the T-Birds advance to the next round. In addition, 2026-27 season tickets are available now - fans can order now by visiting www.SpringfieldThunderbirds.com or by calling (413) 739-GOAL (4625).