Over the weekend, the Rockford IceHogs faced a difficult task with three games in three straight days against teams they have struggled against all season. Coming into the weekend in seventh-place in the AHL Central Division, the IceHogs were able to win all three games, including a Sunday matchup over the Texas Stars to move all the way up to fourth-place in the Division. With 70 points, the IceHogs hold a one-point advantage over Texas for the final Central Division spot in the Calder Cup Playoff picture.
IceHogs Three-Game Win Streak Propels Them Back Into The Playoffs
With the Calder Cup Playoff push coming into the final stretch, the IceHogs came into the weekend in seventh-place in the Division, but right in the middle of a five-team race for the fourth spot in the Central and final spot in the Division for the Calder Cup Playoffs. They faced the Grand Rapids Griffins, Cleveland Monsters, and Texas Stars in three consecutive days for their final three-in-three stretch of the season. Behind stellar goaltending and timely goal-scoring, Rockford came away with wins in all three games and moved into fourth in the Central Division.
Rockford IceHogs goaltender Collin Delia makes a save against the Cleveland Monsters. (Courtesy: Rockford IceHogs)
Anton Forsberg led the IceHogs on Friday night in Grand Rapids with an incredible 46-save effort in a 3-2 win on the road. Rockford was out-shot 48-20 in the game, but was able to kill-off all four Grand Rapids powerplays and benefited from goals by Andreas Martinsen, Luke Johnson, and Graham Knott to earn a 3-2 win.
Anton Forsberg = 46 saves
Joni Tuulola = 1 game-saving save pic.twitter.com/YPgihrCoJo— Rockford IceHogs (@goicehogs) March 16, 2019
Not to be forgotten, Joni Tuulola made a goal-line save late in the third period to keep the IceHogs lead alive as they held on for the final 83 seconds of action. The win was Forsberg’s 13th on the season and his fourth 40+ save effort of the season, with 46 saves being his second-highest total of the year.
Following that performance on Friday, the IceHogs turned to Collin Delia in net for Saturday night’s contest against the Cleveland Monsters. Having lost all three previous games against Cleveland this season in regulation, Rockford desperately needed to earn some points, any points, against the Monsters. Behind Delia’s 33-save effort, the IceHogs were able to come away with their second 3-2 win in as many days, coming in overtime at home against Cleveland.
Delia earned his ninth win of the season, benefiting from an overtime game-winner from Peter Holland. Holland, along with Blake Hillman and Victor Ejdsell found the back of the net for the IceHogs in the 3-2 OT win, Holland’s game-winner was his 24th goal of the season and his fourth as a member of the IceHogs. Holland ranks tied for sixth in the AHL with 56 points this season.
Rockford IceHogs goaltender Anton Forsberg makes a save against the Texas Stars. (Courtesy: Rockford IceHogs)
Finally on Sunday, the marquee matchup of the weekend saw the IceHogs hosting the Texas Stars. At puck drop on Sunday, the IceHogs ranked fifth in the Central Division with 68 points and the Stars ranked fourth with 69 points. Rockford went with Forsberg in net and yet again, he would back-stop the IceHogs to another one-goal win. Rockford ranks second in the AHL with 20 wins decided by one-goal.
Making 34 saves on 35 shots faced, Forsberg earned his 14th win of the season, with goal-scoring help from Andreas Martinsen and Alexandre Fortin. Forsberg’s 34-save effort, added with his 46-save effort on Friday improved his overall record this season to 14-11-2, with a 2.50 GAA and a 0.924 save-percentage. Forsberg leads the AHL in save-percentage this season for qualified goalies (minimum 1,200 minutes played) while Delia leads the AHL in save-percentage (0.930) for all goalies who have played at least 20 games.
The IceHogs as a team, lead the AHL in save-percentage with a 0.918-percentage thanks to Forsberg, Delia, and Kevin Lankinen this season. Riding goaltending into the Calder Cup Playoffs might end up being the formula for this IceHogs team down the stretch. They still rank last in the AHL in goals per game (2.4) and have the 30th ranked powerplay (15.0%) in the league. While the addition of Holland and his new-found chemistry with Jordan Schroeder (17 points in last 18 games) has been a positive for Rockford, their overall goal-production still needs to improve if they are to solidify their standing and make the Calder Cup Playoffs.
Calder Cup Playoff Race
Earning all six points available over the weekend, the IceHogs jumped from seventh in the Central Division to fourth, with a one-point lead over the Texas Stars in fifth-place. Rockford’s final 12 games of the season will all come against Divisional opponents.
- Chicago Wolves (63 GP) – 37-19-7, 81 pts
- Grand Rapids Griffins (62) – 34-18-10, 78 pts
- Iowa Wild (63 GP) – 33-18-12, 78 pts
- Rockford IceHogs (64 GP) – 30-24-10, 70 pts
- Texas Stars (65 GP) – 31-27-7, 69 pts
- Milwaukee Admirals (65 GP) – 26-24-15, 67 pts
- Manitoba Moose (63 GP) – 30-27- 6, 66 pts
- San Antonio Rampage (64 GP) – 27-31-6, 60 pts
While catching the Wild and Griffins is still mathematically in reach, the IceHogs find themselves more realistically at the top of a five-team race for the fourth spot in the Central Division, holding a game in hand over the two closest teams to them in the standings.
Roster Updates
Over the last few weeks, the IceHogs have made a few moves and additions to their roster as the season comes to a close. A reminder, The-Rink collaborated on a feature for which NCAA/Juniors players could make their way into the IceHogs/Blackhawks system in the coming days, find that work here.
The IceHogs signed NCAA free agent Dylan McLaughlin out of Canisius College this week. McLaughlin played four years at Canisius, scoring 147 points in 152 games. In 2018, McLaughlin was named a Top-10 Finalist for the Hobey Baker award, along with Dylan Sikura, and was also named the Atlantic Hockey Association Player of the Year with 48 points in 37 games in his Junior season.
Rockford IceHogs forward Dylan McLaughlin. (Courtesy: Rockford IceHogs)
Following a 40-point Senior season, McLaughlin signed an AHL deal with the IceHogs and played in all three games this weekend.
The IceHogs also made a defensive addition this week, signing Indy Fuel defenseman Dmitry Osipov to a professional tryout contract on Friday. Osipov played four seasons in the WHL with the Vancouver Giants and Brandon Wheat Kings, skating in 270 games with 41 points. In 2017-18, Osipov played 11 AHL games with the Chicago Wolves and 33 games with the Quad City Mallards in the ECHL.
With the Indy Fuel in the ECHL this season, Osipov has 13 points in 62 games and is a minus-2. At six-foot-four and over 220-pounds, Osipov provides a big-body, physical presence on the back-end for Rockford.
What’s Next?
The Rockford IceHogs are back in action on Wednesday night as they host the Division-leading Chicago Wolves. Puck drop on Wednesday is set for 7pm CT at the BMO Harris Bank Center. The IceHogs hold a 5-4-1 record over the Wolves this season and have just two games remaining against their Illinois Lottery Cup Rivals, the final game will close the month of March on March 31 in Rockford.