Players to Watch: Rockford vs. Texas (2/26/22)

The Rockford IceHogs are back in action tonight for game two of three this weekend. The Texas Stars are visiting the Forest City, and the IceHogs look to bounce back from a Friday night defeat.  

Friday’s contest in Iowa went down in heartbreaking fashion. The IceHogs got out to a great start. They seemed to be controlling the play until, who else, Joseph Cramarossa threw a weak wrister from the half wall toward Arvid Söderblom. It found its way into the back of the net because the former IceHog just always finds a way to score when they go head-to-head. The most unfortunate thing was the goal coming only 3:07 into the game. So the IceHogs only controlled play…for about three minutes. It’s better than no minutes?

Heading into the third period, the IceHogs were down 3-1, the lone goal coming from Michal Teplý. It was looking grim. But, in swooped Josiah Slavin to put another goal on the board for Rockford early in the third. 

Then Iowa scored again. ugh.

Slavin was determined to put in an honest effort. With just under two minutes remaining, he scored a shorthanded goal to get the IceHogs back within one. It was his sixth goal of the season and his third shorthanded goal! With Chris Wilkie gone, someone had to step up into the Shorthanded King role. 

Alas, the comeback never fully came to fruition, and the IceHogs fell 4-3. I told you this Wild team always gives the Piggies fits. 

Sigh. 

We must look forward, and that starts with a Saturday night meeting with the Texas Stars. 

Texas at Rockford

There’s some good news and some bad news for Rockford heading into tonight’s contest. We’ll start with the bad. Isaak Phillips and Josiah Slavin were recalled to the Chicago Blackhawks this morning. So, they won’t have Slavin to try to claw them back into a game if they fall behind. And they won’t have the always-steady Phillips on the blue line. It’s great news for those two, just not so much for the Piggies. 

The good news is they also received some reinforcements from the big club, and they’re definitely going to give the team a boost. The Blackhawks sent Lukas Reichel and Jakub Galvas back to Rockford. They should be more than enough to fill the holes left by Slavin and Phillips. 

So, where are these two teams sitting in the Central?

Through 44 games, the Texas Stars have a record of 17-18-5-4. That’s good for 43 points and seventh of seven teams in the Central. They’re 5-3-1-1 in their last four games, but 4-0-0-1 in their last 10. So, they’re starting to heat up. That could be a challenge for this IceHogs team who were on a hot streak themselves…until they very much weren’t. 

Through 44 games, the IceHogs have a record of 21-19-3-1. That’s good for 46 points and fourth in the Central. Thankfully, they didn’t drop in the standings after last night’s loss, but they need to get back in the win column ASAP or they will start falling. Both the Grand Rapids Griffins and Iowa Wild, fifth and sixth respectively, have more points than the IceHogs but have also played more games. Rockford is 5-5-0-0 in their last 10. That four-game win streak seems like it was in the very distant past. Being 0-3-0-0 in their last few will do that…  

How about we take a look at goal differential?

• Through 44 games, the Texas Stars have allowed 148 goals while scoring 134 goals for a DIFF of -14. 
• Through 44 games, the Rockford IceHogs have allowed 134 goals while scoring 123 for a DIFF of -11. 

So, we know where the teams currently sit. Now, here are your players to watch!

Lukas Reichel

Lukas Reichel has just returned from his stint in Chicago; I would assume he gets back into the lineup tonight. The IceHogs are going to need him to get on the score sheet in a big way. He probably wants to pick up some points, as well. In the NHL, he’s still looking for that elusive first point. Getting the scoring machine churning again with the IceHogs will get that confidence back up. Scoring points in the AHL hasn’t been a problem for the kid. He’s a point-per-game player with 14 goals and 19 assists in 33 games.

Michal Teplý

After struggling to put points on the board in his first AHL season, Michal Teplý has been Mr. Reliable for the IceHogs. He scored Rockford’s first goal last night and has steadily gotten better as he gets more experience. The IceHogs have the least amount of goals in the Central Division; it’s going to take a team effort to turn that around. Teplý seems to have gotten the message with eight goals and six assists. Hopefully that continues.

Wyatt Kalynuk

Speaking of lack of goals, Wyatt Kalynuk went from having a hot stick to being absolutely ice cold. He has five goals and seven assists in 25 games this season, but only one goal and 1one assist in his last ten games. That’s usually not the end of the world for a defenseman, but he is relied on for offense and sees power play time. Coincidence that the power play is also running ice cold as of late? 

There are your three to keep an eye on. Since I’m generous, here are the point leaders for both squads. 

Rockford IceHogs

1. Lukas Reichel: 33 Games Played, 14 Goals, 19 Assists, 33 Points
2. Dylan McLaughlin: 37 Games Played, 6 Goals, 19 Assists, 25 Points
3. Ian Mitchell: 37 Games Played, 8 Goals, 14 Assists, 22 Points
4. Alec Regula: 25 Games Played, 2 Goal, 15 Assists, 17 Points
5. Evan Barratt: 38 Games Played, 6 Goals, 9 Assists, 15 Points
6. Andrei Altybarmakian: 39 Games Played, 3 Goals, 12 Assists, 15 Points
7. D.J. Busdeker: 39 Games Played, 3 Goals, 12 Assists, 15 Points
8. Michal Teplý: 35 Games Played, 8 Goals, 6 Assists, 14 Points
9. Mike Hardman: 17 Games Played, 8 Goals, 5 Assists, 13 Points
10. Brett Connolly: 18 Games Played, 6 Goals, 7 Assists, 13 Points

Goalies:

• Collin Delia: 18 Games Played, 9-7-2, 2.82 GAA, .911 SV%
• Arvid Söderblom: 18 Games Played, 9-8-1, 2.65 GAA, .922 SV%

Iowa Wild

1. Curtis McKenzie: 44 Games Played, 15 Goals, 19 Assists, 34 Points
2. Joel L’Esperance: 35 Games Played, 16 Goals, 16 Assists, 32 Points
3. Anthony Louis: 39 Games Played, 14 Goals, 18 Assists, 32 Points
4. Ty Dellandrea: 40 Games Played, 12 Goals, 16 Assists, 28 Points
5. Ben Gleason: 42 Games Played, 5 Goals, 22 Assists, 27 Points
6. Riley Damiani: 30 Games Played, 7 Goals, 14 Assists, 12 Points
7. Oskar Back: 43 Games Played, 6 Goals, 13 Assists, 19 Points
8. Fredrik Karlstrom: 42 Games Played, 10 Goals, 8 Assists, 18 Points
9. Riley Tufte: 37 Games Played, 10 Goals, 7 Assists, 17 Points
10. Ryan Shea: 38 Games Played, 1 Goals, 14 Assists, 15 Points

Goalies:

• Anton Khudobin: 6 Games Played, 2-4-0, 2.55 GAA, .903 SV%
• Matt Jurusik (w/ TX): 11 Games Played, 6-1-2, 2.73 GAA, .915 SV%
• Adam Scheel: 17 Games Played, 4-5-5, 3.15 GAA, .897 SV%

The puck drops Friday night at 6:00 pm CST!