ICEHOGS RECAP: A Weekend Split in Manitoba
Jansen Harkins battles for the puck with defender Isaak Phillips in front of goaltender Arvid Söderblom (Photo by Manitoba Moose via Flickr)
After an offseason that seemed to go on forever, the Rockford IceHogs were tossed head-first back into action. They kicked off their 2022-23 AHL season with a back-to-back weekend series in Manitoba against the Moose.
Last season, the Manitoba Moose were the closest team to the Chicago Wolves in the Central Division finishing second with 89 points and a .618 points percentage.
The Rockford IceHogs finished fourth with 79 points and a .549 points percentage.
But that was last year. Both teams had some changes to their roster, and anything can happen with a clean slate. Regardless, Manitoba is always a tough matchup for the IceHogs and they'd have to get rolling early to take some points from the weekend.
That didn't quite happen on Saturday as the IceHogs found themselves down 0-3 heading into the third period. But, during the second intermission the IceHogs flipped on their Pesky Piggies gear. They erased the deficit and tied it up before the ten minute mark of the final frame. In true chaotic hockey fashion, less than a minute after Lukas Reichel tied up the game, a puck went off of IceHogs defender, Adam Clendening's, skate and behind Arvid Söderblom. They, once again, needed to dig deep to try to tie the game up. With the goaltender pulled, Lukas Reichel threw the puck to the net. Luke Philp, IceHogs newcomer, perfectly redirected it into the net. To overtime, they went.
It took less than two minutes for the IceHogs to complete the miracle when Brett Seney, another IceHogs newcomer, sniped the puck short side on Arvid Holm to seal the victory for the Rockford IceHogs.
Before I jump into the recap of Sunday's matchup, here's the lineup that Anders Sörensen rolled out.
Game 2 Lineup
Dylan Sikura - Lukas Reichel - David Gust
Brett Seney - Luke Philp - Mike Hardman
Michal Teplý - Josiah Slavin - Buddy Robinson
Evan Barratt - Bobby Lynch - D.J. Busdeker
Isaak Phillips - Adam Clendening
Nicolas Beaudin - Jakub Galvas
Cliff Watson - Louis Crevier
Arvid Söderblom
Jaxson Stauber
Period 1
After Saturday's thrilling season opener, the IceHogs and Moose had to regroup quickly to be ready for a Sunday afternoon game. The two teams came into Sunday feeling very different about the previous day. The IceHogs had all of the positivity and momentum after coming back from a 0-3 deficit in the third period and winning 5-4 in overtime. For the Moose, that type of loss is a heartbreaker.
One thing is true for both clubs - it was only the first game of the season. Happiness or heartbreak, you have to move on quickly to focus on game two because no two games are the same.
That last point was highly evident in period one on Sunday.
The Rockford IceHogs started the game way more composed than we saw on Saturday. They were connecting passes, getting scoring chances, and looked like a more cohesive unit.
There were more penalties in the first period on Sunday (two penalties for both clubs) compared to Saturday (one penalty to the IceHogs), but that could be a result of the back-to-back or just the different flow of the game. The penalty kill and Arvid Söderblom stood tall and no harm was done. The defense as a whole was very strong for the visiting team with the IceHogs holding the Moose to only nine shots on goal in the opening frame.
When it comes to offense, thats where we saw the biggest difference between the first two games. Rockford's opening period of the season was a disaster. They only registered six shots in that one. That number itself isn't ideal, but more than that was their inability to properly use their teammates to get anything going. If we were rating the chemistry of the team, it would've been given a 0 out of 10.
On Sunday, the IceHogs registered fifteen shots on goal in the first period - matching Manitoba's opening frame total from the day before. It was clear which team came into Sunday with their heads held a bit higher.
Oskari Salminen, the 23 year old goaltender, had to be sharp in his first period of AHL hockey. And he was. Salminen made some huge stops for the Moose much like his partner Arvid Holm the day before. If one thing was certain, the IceHogs would have to just keep pressing and not get frustrated if they were going to beat the guardians of the crease.
It took them until the third period on Saturday, but they broke through. They had to hope they could do the same on Sunday.
END OF 1: 0-0
SOG: 15-9 IceHogs
Period 2
Starting the second period on the power play, the IceHogs had the chance to grab the lead and continue controlling the game. They couldn't score on the remaining time, but they did get another chance on the man advantage 4:03 into the middle frame when Ashton Sautner sent the puck flying over the glass.
In a severely unfortunate development, the Moose got the better scoring chances during that penalty while shorthanded. Söderblom was up to the task, but it set the tone for the rest of the period.
The dominant IceHogs team we saw in the first period apparently forgot to come out of the room for the middle frame. They weren't too concerned with helping out their goaltender, and Söderblom had to make some massive saves to keep the game scoreless.
Until . . .
GOAL: Jansen Harkins - Evan Polei
With Declan Chisholm sitting in the box for high-sticking Brett Seney, Evan Polei picked off a Lukas Reichel pass and the puck ended up on Jansen Harkins's stick. He flew down the right wing and banged a shot off the far post and in behind Arvid Söderblom. Not ideal.
Söderblom was forced to stop another Harkins one-on-one chance immediately after the penalty expired. Arvid got the better of that attempt, but the IceHogs were tagged with a Too Many Men penalty on the play.
So, with 28 seconds to play in the period, the IceHogs were back to the penalty kill.
No harm done to finish off the period. The IceHogs would once again go into the second intermission without a goal on the board, facing the task of a comeback.
END OF 2: 1-0 Manitoba
SOG: 22-19 IceHogs
Period 3
The third period was the IceHogs' best friend in Saturday's game. They erased a 0-3 deficit and tied it up a second time after a puck off of Clendening's skate put them down 4-3.
On Sunday, they were only down 1-0 going into the final frame. Much easier of a hill to climb!
They even were gifted a power play early (2:27) into the period as Simon Lundmark was sent off for holding. Then they were gifted a second one 8:50 into the period when Brad Lambert was sent off for holding. But, as we saw in game one, the IceHogs don't want gifts from the Moose and they failed to score. On both.
And then the game took a very dramatic turn . . .
GOAL: Brad Lambert - Declan Chisholm
As Brad Lambert was coming out of the penalty box, Declan Chisholm hit him with the perfect breakaway pass. The 18 year old rookie threw his wrists up toward the ceiling and roofed the puck over Söderblom's glove - scoring his first North American professional goal.
A first AHL goal is a big enough deal, but it also put the IceHogs in a 0-2 hole with less than half the period to play.
And then . . .
GOAL: Kevin Stenlund - Ville Heinola, Declan Chisholm
Just short of two minutes after Brad Lambert dug the Piggies' hole a bit deeper, Kevin Stenlund ripped a shot from the right circle beating Söderblom low to the stick side.
Sigh.
Once again, the IceHogs were down 3-0 to the Manitoba Moose. But, they didn't have a full period to attempt the comeback this time. And, it appeared that their offense had gone completely MIA. The shooting gallery of 15 shots in the first period was a distant memory. With 2:29 remaining in the game, they hadn't even doubled that total.
GOAL: Evan Polei - Simon Lundmark, Cole Maier
The IceHogs couldn't score, but the Moose sure could. There was absolutely nothing that Arvid Söderblom could do on that one, though. He was on the bench.
Immediately after the Rockford goaltender took a seat in favor of the extra attacker, the Moose were able to get the puck and bury it into the empty net. That also buried any hope the IceHogs had to come back in the game.
FINAL: 4-0 Manitoba
SOG: 32-31 Rockford
Even with the weekend split, the Moose came out on top. Saturday's contest going to overtime means they earned one point despite the loss - giving them at 3-of-4 possible points on the weekend. The IceHogs losing in regulation means they only earned 2-of-4 possible points.
The good news? These were only the first two games of the season. The IceHogs have 70 more games to play in the regular season. There were many positive and negative points to take away from this weekend that the coaching staff can make note of and work on with the team during the extended time off before their home opener on Saturday, October 22. That's when they have their first meeting with I-90 rival, the Chicago Wolves. You know the IceHogs want to be ready for that one.