IceHogs and Admirals Meet for Screw City Showdown, Live Jersey Auction Night
April 8, 2023 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Rockford IceHogs News Release
Rockford, Ill. - The Rockford IceHogs will rebrand as the Screw City IceHogs tonight and tangle with the Milwaukee Admirals at the BMO Center at 7 p.m. on the back end of a home-and-home series. The IceHogs are 3-3-0-2 against the Admirals this season.
The Rockford IceHogs are proud to welcome the return of the Annual Live Jersey Auction presented by Insurance King. On Saturday against the Milwaukee Admirals, the team will rebrand as the Screw City IceHogs and wear unique Screw City jerseys to honor the industrial history of Rockford. The jerseys will be sold at a live auction following the game with all proceeds benefitting the IceHogs Community Fund. In addition, the first 1500 fans at the game will receive a Screw City hat courtesy of BMO.
2022-23 Season Records
Rockford: 32-26-5-4, 73 points (5th, Central Division)
Milwaukee: 39-23-4-2, 84 points (2nd, Central Division)
Players to Watch
Forward Rocco Grimaldi scored twice against the Admirals on Friday night and ranks eighth in the AHL among league scorers with 66 points (31G, 35A). Forward Brett Seney notched his 30th assist of the season against Milwaukee and ranks third among active Rockford skaters with 51 points.
Milwaukee's leading scorer forward Cole Schneider registered a multi-point night for his 24th goal and 24th assist of the season against the IceHogs on Friday night and leads the team 48 points. Forward John Leonard ranks second for the Admirals in scoring with 39 points after tallying his 15th goal of the season last night against Rockford.
Last Game Highlights
The IceHogs beat the Milwaukee Admirals 3-2 on Friday night at UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena. Rocco Grimaldi tallied twice in the first period, and Mike Hardman registered his fifth goal of the season in the second period. Arvid Soderblom turned away 28 of 30 Milwaukee shots to earn his 11th win of the season.
Rocco's Return to Milwaukee
Last night, Rocco Grimaldi scored two goals in the first period during his return to Milwaukee to face his former team. The forward posted 52 points (26G, 26A) in just 44 games last season with the Admirals in his second stint with the club. Grimaldi spent four seasons with the Nashville Predators' organization beginning in the 2018-19 season when he tabbed 11 points (4G, 7A) in 10 games with Milwaukee before moving up to Nashville. Last night's two-goal effort marked the sixth multi-goal performance of his season. Grimaldi is now up to 31 goals on the season which ties him for third in the AHL.
Back to Winning Ways
With the 3-2 victory last night in Milwaukee, the IceHogs picked up just their 17th regulation win of the season. Last night's victory also marked the first time that Rockford had won back-to-back games in regulation since Dec. 2 at Springfield and Dec. 3 at Hartford. After outshooting the Admirals 31-30 last night and the Grand Rapids Griffins 39-37 last Sunday, this two-game stretch also marked the first time that the IceHogs outshot their opponents in back-to-back games since Feb. 11 against Milwaukee and Feb. 15 against Grand Rapids.
Awesome Arvid
Goaltender Arvid Soderblom turned away 28 of Milwaukee's 30 shots last night in the 3-2 win. The backstop now has a 12-10-3-2 record, 3.01 goals-against average, and a .906 save percentage. Soderblom is 6-2-1-0 in his last nine starts and has a .937 in that span.
Shooting Gallery
While last night's game ended in 60 minutes, the previous two meetings between Rockford and Milwaukee both ended in shootout victories for the Admirals. The IceHogs have made it to overtime or a shootout 24 times this season, giving them the most extra time appearances in the league. The team record for the most overtime appearances is 26 set by the 2018-19 team. Rockford has converted just 13 times on 53 shootout attempts for the 24th best shootout percentage at .245, but the Hogs have the second-most shootout goals in the league at 13, just behind Milwaukee's 14. Rockford's conversion percentage is skewed by a 15-round shootout on Feb. 11 against Milwaukee in which the Hogs scored just twice, and an 11-round shootout on Mar. 4 against the Laval Rocket in which Rockford scored three times. The 15-round shootout on Feb. 11 that resulted in a 4-3 loss to the Admirals set a new IceHogs club record for the longest shootout. Rockford has the fifth-best team save percentage in shootouts this season at .769 led by Arvid Soderblom's .838 mark.
Postseason Tracker
The IceHogs rank 5th in the Central Division with 73 points. Despite a 32-26-5-4 record this season, Rockford has played 24 overtime contests and only has 17 wins in regulation. Trailing the Iowa Wild's 74 points, the Hogs' magic number to clinch a playoff berth is nine.
Tune In LIVE on the IceHogs Broadcast Network Presented by BMO
Watch and listen to every game this season on the IceHogs Broadcast Network presented by BMO! Listen from your favorite device, at home, or on the road at IceHogs.com and on the IceHogs app and watch LIVE on AHLTV and selected games on 23.3 Circle TV! Fans can also tune in on all of Mid-West Family's local stations including 104.9 The X, B103, 95.3 The Bull, and Rockford Greatest Hits 100.5 and featured on Rock River Current, the Stateline's premiere source for local events, news and culture.
2022-23 Head-to-Head Schedule (all times Central):
Wed., Nov. 2 vs. Milwaukee, 4-6 L Recap & Highlights
Fri., Nov. 25 vs. Milwaukee, 6-4 W Recap & Highlights
Sat., Nov. 26 at Milwaukee, 3-5 L Recap & Highlights
Wed., Dec. 7 vs. Milwaukee, 2-1 SOW Recap & Highlights
Fri., Jan. 27 at Milwaukee, 4-8 L Recap & Highlights
Fri., Feb. 10 at Milwaukee, 1-2 SOL Recap & Highlights
Sat., Feb. 11 vs. Milwaukee, 3-4 SOL Recap & Highlights
Fri., Apr. 7 at Milwaukee, 3-2 W Recap & Highlights
Sat., Apr. 8 vs. Milwaukee, 7:00 p.m.
Sun., Apr. 16 at Milwaukee, 5:00 p.m.
IceHogs vs. Admirals, All-Time
72-71-9-11
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