Over the weekend in Manitoba, the Rockford IceHogs had a huge opportunity to solidify their place in the Calder Cup Playoff race in the Central Division. With back-to-back games on Saturday and Sunday against the Manitoba Moose, the IceHogs were only able to come away with one point out of a possible four, losing both games with Sunday going to overtime. With the losses, the IceHogs sit in a tie for fifth-place with the Milwaukee Admirals and trail the Texas Stars by three points for fourth-place.
Rockford IceHogs Drop Back-To-Back Weekend Series In Manitoba
The IceHogs came to Manitoba with a big opportunity to put themselves squarely into the Calder Cup Playoff conversation in Central Division. Entering the weekend after a full week off from game action, and sitting in fourth-place themselves, the IceHogs did the bare minimum to keep pace in the Division with just one overtime point earned. Granted it wasn’t without great effort.
The IceHogs feel in their first contest of the weekend against the Moose on Saturday night, 3-1. Anton Forsberg had the start in net for the IceHogs, stopping 22 shots on 25 shots faced in the loss. The lone goal for the IceHogs came from defenseman Dennis Gilbert, his third goal of the season. Gilbert’s tally came early in the third period to cut a then 2-0 Moose lead in half, but Manitoba would make it a 3-1 game just under two minutes later and were able to hold on for the win.
Rockford out-shot Manitoba on Saturday night. 34-25, but Moose goaltender Eric Comrie made 33 saves in earning his 21st win of the season. Forsberg saw his record fall to 12-11-2 on the season with a 2.59 GAA and a 0.920 save-percentage.
Following Saturday night’s loss, the IceHogs had a quick turnaround to try to get a split with a 2pm afternoon puck drop on Sunday against the Moose. Looking to keep pace in the Central Division and keep the Moose from making things even tighter in the Playoff race, the IceHogs held a 1-0 lead heading into the third period after Peter Holland was able to get the lone tally through the first 40 minutes of action. Holland’s third goal with the IceHogs and 23rd on the season was not enough to hold on for a regulation win for the IceHogs as Mason Appleton would tie the game at 1-1 with a powerplay goal just under eight minutes remaining in the third period.
It would only take 51 seconds into overtime for the Moose to gain the extra point and a 2-1 win. Michael Spacek picked up a rebound off Kevin Lankinen and was able to beat the rookie net-minder for the game-winning tally. Lankinen would make 31 saves on 33 shots faced in the game, seeing his record on the season move to 7-7-4 with a 2.47 GAA and a 0.911 save-percentage.
With the two losses, the IceHogs saw their season record against the Moose fall to 1-1-2 in the only four meetings with Manitoba this season. Rockford will again be off for the next five days before heading into a three games in three days stretch beginning on Friday. Iowa and San Antonio will meet on Tuesday night, while Milwaukee takes on Cleveland and Texas faces Manitoba on Wednesday before the IceHogs return to action.
Calder Cup Playoff Push
Coming away from Manitoba with just one point for the IceHogs, paired with two Texas Stars regulation wins puts a three-point gap between fourth and fifth-place in the Central Division. Rockford holds a point-percentage tie-breaker over the Admirals for the time being.
- Chicago Wolves (61 GP) – 36-18-7, 79 pts
- Grand Rapids Griffins (60 GP) – 33-17-10, 76 pts
- Iowa Wild (61 GP) – 31-18-13, 74 pts
- Texas Stars (62 GP) – 30-25-7, 67 pts
- Rockford IceHogs (61 GP) – 27-24-10, 64 pts
- Milwaukee Admirals (63 GP) – 25-24-14, 64 pts
- Manitoba Moose (60 GP) – 29-26-5, 63 pts
- San Antonio Rampage (61 GP) – 27-28-6, 60 pts
14 of the final 15 games for the IceHogs this season come against Central Division opponents. The IceHogs strength of schedule remaining comes against opponents with a .562 win-percentage combined, the lowest remaining strength of schedule of teams ranked fourth through eighth in the Central Division.
What’s Next?
The Rockford IceHogs are back in action this weekend as they prepare for a three games in three days stretch of play. On Friday, the IceHogs travel to take on the Grand Rapids Griffins. Puck drop at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids on Friday is scheduled for 6pm CT. Rockford holds a 5-3-0 record against the Griffins this season.
On Saturday, the IceHogs return home to host the Cleveland Monsters for the fourth and final meeting this season. Rockford and Cleveland matched up for three games over the first eight games of the season with Rockford coming away with a 0-3-0 record in those games. Puck drop at the BMO Harris Bank Center on Saturday is set for 6pm CT. This will be the only game over the final 15 contests for the IceHogs this season that will not be against a Central Division team.
Finally, on Sunday the IceHogs have a quick turnaround when they host the Texas Stars. One of the five teams battling for the last Calder Cup Playoff spot in the Central Division, the Stars have had the IceHogs’ number this season as Rockford holds a 1-2-2 record against Texas. Puck drop for Sunday’s St. Patrick’s Day game is set for 4pm CT.