On Wednesday afternoon, the American Hockey League announced the regular season schedules for all 31 teams. The Rockford IceHogs open the season on October 5 against the Cleveland Monsters and their home opener is October 13 against the Texas Stars.
AHL Releases Rockford IceHogs 2018-19 Schedule
The Rockford IceHogs look to follow-up last season’s historic run with another successful campaign in the 2018-19 AHL season. The IceHogs begin their 12th year in the American Hockey League on the road, taking on former Central Division foes, the Cleveland Monsters, who now play in the AHL’s North Division in the Eastern Conference. After back-to-back road games against the Monsters, the IceHogs host the Texas Stars on October 13 for their home opener at the BMO Harris Bank center.
The full 2018-19 IceHogs AHL schedule can be found below:
Rockford closes the season with four of their final five games coming on the road, all against Central Division opponents. The IceHogs will close the 2018-19 season with a home game on April 14 against the rival Milwaukee Admirals.
Take a look in-depth at the IceHogs schedule with the Rockford broadcast team of Mike Peck and Joseph Zakrzewski:
Take a tour of the first half of the #IceHogs 2018-19 regular season schedule with broadcasters Mike Peck and @JoeyZRadio!
The full schedule can be viewed on https://t.co/FHLGZDbsrA 👀 pic.twitter.com/M0F7whkjdb
— Rockford IceHogs (@goicehogs) July 11, 2018
Part Two:
Verse 2! Broadcasters Mike Peck and @JoeyZRadio break down the stretch run of the #IceHogs 2018-19 schedule! pic.twitter.com/NDklT3ppnQ
— Rockford IceHogs (@goicehogs) July 11, 2018
Games To Watch In 2018-19
With the full schedule released, here are a few games to keep and eye on next season.
October 13 – Texas Stars at Rockford IceHogs
The IceHogs open the season against the same team that ended their 2018 Calder Cup Playoffs run. The Texas Stars and IceHogs fought a hard six-game series in the Western Conference Finals last season that ultimately saw Texas move on to the Calder Cup Final before falling to the Toronto Marlies. Rockford will be looking for a bit of revenge early on against the defending Western Conference champions.
October 19 – Rockford IceHogs at Tucson Roadrunners
The IceHogs travel to Arizona to take on the Tucson Roadrunners for the first time in franchise history early in the season. The Road Runners came into existence in the 2016-17 season in the AHL and face the IceHogs four times during the 2018-19 season.The first time that the Road Runners come to the BMO Harris Bank Center is on February 8.
December 31 – Rockford IceHogs at Grand Rapids Griffins
The IceHogs will ring in the New Year on the road this season as they will be in Grand Rapids taking on Central Division foe the Griffins. Last season, the IceHogs were off on New Year’s Eve, with a road game in Chicago the night before.
March 17 through April 14 – 13-Game Division Stretch
The IceHogs play their final 13 games of the 2018-19 season against Central Division opponents. Included in that 13-game stretch are five contests against the Milwaukee Admirals and playing four of the final five games of the season on the road. Last year, the final stretch of the season was crucial to the IceHogs qualifying for the Calder Cup Playoffs and next season is setting up to be just as critical.