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High On The Hog: Hot In Rockford

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The Rockford IceHogs seem to be peaking at the perfect time of the season. Winners of eight of their last ten games, the Hogs have assured themselves of the team’s first trip to the AHL postseason in five years.

The IceHogs have avoided lengthy slumps that have doomed past campaigns. The worst stretch of hockey for Rockford came from November 28 to January 19, when the team was 8-9-4-1 in 22 games.

The Hogs tend to jell in the spring and this season has been no exception. What has been the difference is the team’s 15-4-0-1start. With 41 wins this season with seven games to play, the AHL franchise high water mark of 44 victories (set in 80-game seasons in 2007-08 and 2009-10) is certainly within reach.

You can point to a lot of factors that have gotten Rockford to this point. Here are some players who have provided a recent jump in the step of the IceHogs.

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High On The Hog: Bring Out The Brooms

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The Rockford IceHogs broke a three-game losing streak with three wins in three weekend games. Some returning players played a big hand in a big win in Milwaukee Friday along with home triumphs Saturday and Sunday over two of the stronger teams in the AHL’s Western Conference.

The defense was outstanding for the weekend sweep. Rockford allowed just a single goal in each of the three games. The effort was enough to pull to within a point of Milwaukee for the Midwest Division lead.

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High On The Hog: Looking Up At Milwaukee

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Embedded image permalinkThe Rockford IceHogs were stripped of the lead in the AHL’s Midwest Division by the Milwaukee Admirals this past weekend. Rockford dropped both ends of a home-and-home with the Admirals and stirred up some bad blood to boot.

The IceHogs played both games without Brandon Mashinter, who was serving a two-game suspension by the AHL for an elbow to the head of Chicago’s Jani Hakanpaa January 31. The infraction was not penalized on the ice but was later drew the ire of the league. Mashinter returns to action as IceHogs forward Cody Bass begins serving a two-game suspension for leaving the bench to try and engage Milwaukee forward Michael Liambas Friday night.

The IceHogs and Ads nearly started a pre-game brawl of Slap Shot-proportions Saturday at the BMO center, with three bouts taking place during the game itself.

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High On The Hog: A Pair Of All-Stars

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Two Rockford IceHogs were selected to participate in the AHL All-Star Classic, which will be held in Utica January 25-26. T.J. Brennan and Joakim Nordstrom were selected to represent Rockford, who still maintain the lead in the AHL’s Midwest Division.

T.J. Brennan is on the Western Conference All-Stars for the second straight season. Brennan leads the Hogs with 29 points in 38 games. He’s also a plus-16 at this point.

Joakim Nordstrom, currently with the Blackhawks, also made the Western Conference team. Nordstrom, who is Rockford’s captain when he’s in town, has 13 points (8 G, 5 A) in the 17 games he has skated with the IceHogs.

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High On The Hog: To Kill A Penalty

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The Rockford IceHogs ran their road record to 10-4-0-1 this week. The AHL’s Midwest Division leaders beat the Admirals in Milwaukee for the second time in six days Wednesday night. Rockford then split a pair of games at Lake Erie over the weekend.

Heading into another week of travel, Rockford is piling up points away from the BMO Harris Bank Center. One big factor in this road surge has been a dominating penalty kill. Come to think of it, it’s been pretty darn good at home as well.

In 2013-14, the Hogs were an absolute joke when shorthanded. They were dead last in the AHL in this department with a 72.3 success rate. Here are some numbers that show the dramatic change from a season ago:

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High On The Hog: Here Come The Bears?

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The Rockford IceHogs had a week of highs and lows against division opponents. The Hogs turned in an impressive performance in Milwaukee before dropping less than stellar efforts at home against Grand Rapids and Lake Erie, the two bottom teams of the AHL’s Midwest Division.

If Rockford is content to do its best work on the road for the time being, this is a good stretch for them. The IceHogs play their next six games away from the BMO, starting Wednesday night in Milwaukee.

The Hogs are now 16-6-2-1 and lead the Midwest Divison with 35 points. That total also puts Rockford in a tie for the top seed in the Western Conference.

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High On The Hog: View From The Top

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The Rockford IceHogs were left a bit shorthanded for last weekend’s action. Adam Clendening, Joakim Nordstrom and Phillip Danault are all traveling with the Blackhawks. Mark McNeill and Michael Leighton are recovering from injuries. It wasn’t a stretch for you to believe the Hogs might take some lumps with three Midwest Division games in three days.

In this case, you’d be wrong.

Rockford ran the table this weekend, winning home games with Iowa and Milwaukee at the BMO Friday and Saturday before shutting out the Wolves in Chicago Sunday afternoon. With 29 points through 19 games, Rockford (14-4-0-1) is currently on top of the AHL.

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High On The Hog: Doin' The Shuffle

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The Rockford IceHogs saw an eight-game win streak come to an end in with two losses to the Milwaukee Admirals in the first two games of a three-game weekend. Rockford finished their first three-games in three-nights stretch of the season with a home win in front of a pseudo sell-out audience at the BMO Center Sunday.

With that win, Rockford reclaimed the top spot in the AHL’s Midwest Division. They remain in the second spot in the Western Conference standings with 23 points in 16 games.

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High On The Hog: Doin’ The Shuffle

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The Rockford IceHogs saw an eight-game win streak come to an end in with two losses to the Milwaukee Admirals in the first two games of a three-game weekend. Rockford finished their first three-games in three-nights stretch of the season with a home win in front of a pseudo sell-out audience at the BMO Center Sunday.

With that win, Rockford reclaimed the top spot in the AHL’s Midwest Division. They remain in the second spot in the Western Conference standings with 23 points in 16 games.