AHL Rockford IceHogs

Hogs Rekindle Rivalry with Peoria

Published on February 15, 2012 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Rockford IceHogs News Release


Rockford, Ill.- After facing the Peoria Rivermen nine times in their first 33 games in 2011-12, the Rockford IceHogs take on their Midwest Division rivals for the first time in a month-and-a-half at the BMO Harris Bank Center at 7:05 p.m. Tonight's game is another Illinois Lottery Cup matchup.

Fans can take advantage of Taco Bell Dollar Days tonight, including $1 beers, hot dogs, soft drinks and companion tickets. Also tonight, the first 1,500 fans 21-and-older to the game will pick up an Illinois Lottery scratch off ticket.

For tickets call (815) 968-5222, on-line through icehogs.com or at the BMO Harris Bank Center Box Office.

To listen to tonight's game, tune into 100.5 NTA FM, 1330 AM WNTA, 1380 AM WTJK or on-line at nta.fm. The game can be viewed on Comcast Cable channel-57 or on the Web through AHLlive.com.

Eight points separate the IceHogs and Rivermen in the standings, the same point difference holding Rockford out of the final playoff spot in the AHL's Western Conference with 26 games left on the regular season slate.

The two teams haven't met since Dec. 31 in Peoria when the Rivermen skated away with a 3-2 win. Through nine games in the teams' 12-game regular season set, Rockford is 3-5-1-0 against Peoria this season, including 1-3-0-0 at the BMO Harris Bank Center.

Following a hot January, Rockford has cooled off in February, losing three of the month's first four games. Tonight's game marks the end of a four-game homestand for Rockford before the team opens up a three-game road swing Friday in Toronto.

T.J. Hensick continues to pace Peoria in scoring and is third in the AHL with 62 points, including 18g-44a. The center has 11 points against Rockford, one behind Adam Cracknell (5g-7a-12pts) who leads the Rivermen against the IceHogs.

Next Home Game: Saturday, Feb. 25 vs. Milwaukee Admirals. Game time is slated for 7:05 p.m. Rockford returns home to face the Admirals at the BMO Harris Bank Center. The first 1,500 fans to the game will receive an IceHogs Sock Monkey courtesy of BMO Harris Bank.

Below are some Bacon Bits for tonight's games:

Nice to See You Again: After playing each other nine times in Rockford's first 33 games in 2011-12, tonight's game is the first in 17 contests. Including tonight, the IceHogs and Rivermen faceoff three more times this season. The Midwest Division rivals last played on Dec. 31 in Peoria. Rockford has a 3-5-1-0 record against the Rivermen on the campaign, including 1-3-0-0 at the BMO Harris Bank Center.

Big Jimmy Producing for Hogs: Winger Jimmy Hayes is riding a five-game point streak with the IceHogs dating back to Dec. 26, totaling 3g-3a-6pts. Hayes earned his first NHL call-up on Dec. 29 and spent 13 games with the Chicago Blackhawks, netting seven points (4g-3a). Since returning to Rockford on Jan. 28, the winger has 2g-3a in four contests going back to Feb. 3.

Petey Climbing in Points:"ˆCenter Peter LeBlanc has points in four-straight games (1g-5a) and in six of his last seven contests going back to Jan. 26, accumulating 5g-5a. LeBlanc now has 31 points, including 16g-15a, in 46 games to surpass his rookie point production of 12g-18a-30pts in 57 games a season ago. He ranks second in scoring for Rockford behind Brandon Pirri, who has 45 points (19g-26a).

Power Play Stays Hot: Rockford's power play has tallied a goal in a season-high six-straight games dating back to Jan. 27, going 8-29 (27.6%). During that six-game stretch, the IceHogs have raised their power play from 15.8% to 17.3% and now rank 17th in the league on the PP. The six-game streak is the longest since a six game power-play scoring streak last season from Dec. 8 to Dec. 18 when the IceHogs went 7-32 (21.9%).

Salak Solid in Net:"ˆGoalie Alexander Salak made his first appearance since Dec. 2 on Friday and went 1-0-0-0 with a .977 save percentage and a 0.66 goals against average over the weekend. Salak is now 4-6-0-0, with a 2.73 GAA"ˆand a .904 SPCT this season. Conversely, after going 7-1-1 with a .934 SPCT and a 1.86 GAA in January, Carter Hutton is 0-3-0 with a .814 SPCT and a 5.33 GAA in three February appearances.

Racking up the PIMs:"ˆWinger Brandon Bollig was whistled for 17 penalty minutes in last Saturday's contest against the Wolves, and is now fourth in the AHL with 149 PIMs on the season. Bollig also leads all IceHogs skaters in penalty minutes, and has 56 more PIMs than the next closest Rockford player, Jeremy Morin, who has 93. Bollig's 254 career PIMs with Rockford rank him third on the IceHogs modern era PIMs list, 27 behind Kyle Hagel for second.

Comebacks Hard to Come By:"ˆWhen trailing after two periods, the IceHogs are 4-19-1-1 this season, but none of the wins have come on home ice. Rockford has a record of 0-11-0-0 when losing after 40 minutes at the BMO Harris Bank Center, while they are 4-8-1-1 on the road.

A Bit Short on Goals:"ˆRockford hasn't scored more than three goals in a game in 14 straight contests dating back to Jan. 7. Rockford, however, is 8-5-0-1 during those 14 games. Overall, the IceHogs are 13-23-0-2 when scoring three goals or less in 2011-12.

Check out the Rockford IceHogs Statistics

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American Hockey League Stories from February 15, 2012


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