The Rockford IceHogs begin the month of March with back-to-back road games against the two hottest teams in the AHL. A tough assignment, even for a team that has won three straight games.
Rockford (22-21-5-2) finished its February slate with a pair of wins at the BMO Center over the weekend. The IceHogs defeated Texas 5-3 on Friday, then pounded Iowa 6-3 on Saturday. Rockford is now firmly in fourth place in the Central Division and just two points back of the third-place Stars.
The Road Ahead
The IceHogs are taking the week to prepare for a pair of challenging games ahead. First, their weekend begins in Milwaukee on Friday, followed by Grand Rapids on Saturday. The Admirals won nineteen straight games until losing this past Sunday to the Griffins, who extended their point streak to fifteen games. It’s no coincidence that both teams have been anchored by terrific goalie play.
Milwaukee started its epic win streak following a 4-3 loss to Rockford on December 31. Despite Sunday’s loss, the Admirals have built a fifteen-point lead in the Central Division standings. Overall, Rockford has two wins in six games with Milwaukee this season.
To beat the Admirals, the IceHogs must find a way to get pucks past Yaroslav Askarov. Milwaukee’s All-Star goalie is third in the AHL with a 2.11 goals-against average. He’d won thirteen consecutive games until Sunday’s setback. He’s 1-0-1 against Rockford with a 1.94 GAA and a .917 save percentage this season.
Rockford is 3-3-0-1 against Grand Rapids this season, though the Griffins have won the last three meetings between the teams. Grand Rapids goalie Sebastian Cossa is also playing well for his streaking club. Cossa is 7-1-2 in his last ten starts and is 3-1 against the IceHogs with a 1.48 GAA and a .939 save percentage. He was also awarded the AHL’s Player of the Week award for the week ending February 25, 2024.
To learn more about the rise of the Griffins, check out the latest episode of The Calder Times’ podcast, Calder’s Calling.
The Return Of Reichel
Lukas Reichel is now four games into his stint with the IceHogs after being assigned to Rockford by the Chicago Blackhawks on February 17. Reichel has yet to pot a goal for Rockford but has a pair of assists, including one in Saturday’s win.
IceHogs coach Anders Sorensen pointed out to the media following Friday’s game just what he’s looking for from Reichel.
“He’s got to get playing right,” explained Sorensen. “Playing minutes, skating and skating with the puck and getting comfortable in those situations. He’s got to compete; that’s what it comes down to for him. I think the first period for him today (Friday) was probably his best since he’s been down here in terms of that aspect, so that’s a good sign.”
Reichel created several scoring chances throughout the weekend. Sorensen believes that the young forward has come to Rockford with the right attitude after struggling to produce with Chicago.
“I think it’s really important,” Sorensen said, “and I think he’s been handling it very well.”
The Injury Bug
After getting several players back over the past couple of weeks, Rockford has lost the services of some of their top point producers.
Rookie Colton Dach, who returned from concussion protocol on February 10, was injured on February 19 in Iowa and did not play last weekend for the IceHogs. David Gust (12 G, 22 A) was placed in the league’s concussion protocol on February 19.
In the third period of Sunday’s win over Iowa, Anders Bjork took a tumble into the boards in front of the Wild bench. He left the contest and did not return. On Tuesday, the team announced that a shoulder injury would keep Bjork (10 G, 17 A) out of action for the next three to four weeks.
Road Trippin’
Friday’s tilt in Milwaukee gets underway at 7:00 p.m. CDT, with Saturday’s game in Grand Rapids set to start at 7:00 p.m. EDT.
