SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WGGB/WSHM) - The Springfield Thunderbirds will begin their quest for the Calder Cup against the Charlotte Checkers in a best-of-3 First Round of the Calder Cup Playoffs.

Springfield will be the No. 6 seed in the Atlantic Division and take on the No. 3 seeds from Charlotte. All games in the first round series will be played inside Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte.

Game 1 is scheduled for Wednesday, April 22 at 7 p.m. Game 2 will be played Friday, April 24 at 7 p.m., and Game 3, if necessary, will be played Saturday, April 25 at 7 p.m.

This marks the second time the Thunderbirds and Checkers will meet in the Calder Cup Playoffs. The two clubs previously squared off in the 2022 Atlantic Division Finals, when Springfield swept the Checkers in three straight games enroute to a berth in the Calder Cup Finals.

The Checkers picked up wins in six of the eight regular season meetings between the teams and posted a mark of 3-1-0-0 against the Thunderbirds at Bojangles Coliseum. The Checkers’ head coach, Geordie Kinnear, was the Thunderbirds’ first head coach and served in that role from 2016 until 2020.

In the two most recent contests, the Thunderbirds earned three of a possible four points. Those were also the only two games played against each other since Steve Ott took over as head coach on Jan. 20.

Springfield posted a record of 19-13-2-0 under Ott’s leadership, helping the Thunderbirds overcome a 2-10-2-1 start to earn their second straight postseason berth and fourth in the last five years.

All games of the first round series can be seen on AHLTV and heard over the air on NewsRadio 560 WHYN and the iHeartRadio app.