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Blackhawks Recall Eight From Rockford

Eight Recalled
From chicagoblackhawks.com: (link)

Eight members of the AHL's Rockford IceHogs, including 2008 draft pick Shawn Lalonde
, were recalled Wednesday.

The Chicago Blackhawks have recalled forwards Kyle Beach, Jake Dowell and Jack Skille, defensemen Brian Connelly, Jassen Cullimore, Shawn Lalonde and Danny Richmond and goaltender Hannu Toivonen from the American Hockey League’s Rockford IceHogs.

Beach, 20, led Rockford with three postseason goals and was held scoreless in four regular-season tilts after being assigned to the club on April 2. Chicago’s first choice, 11th overall, in the 2008 National Hockey League Entry Draft, Beach led the Western Hockey League with 52 goals and tied for 11th with 86 points, both career highs, in 68 regular-season games with the Spokane Chiefs during his fifth junior campaign this year. The Vancouver, British Columbia, native ranked fifth in the WHL with a career-most 186 penalty minutes and finished fourth on the Chiefs with a career-best 34 assists and +22 plus/minus rating.

Skille, 22, tallied a goal and an assist in six games with the Blackhawks this season and has accrued eight points (5G, 3A) in 30 career games with Chicago over the last three years. The Blackhawks’ first choice, seventh overall in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, Skille ranked second on the IceHogs with a career-high 23 goals and third with a career-best 49 points in 63 regular-season games. The Madison, Wisconsin, native also dished out a career-most 26 assists during the regular season before being held scoreless in four playoff tilts.

Lalonde, 20, made his professional debut with Rockford this season appearing in eight regular-season games (G, A) and three postseason outings after being assigned to the squad on March 16. Chicago’s second choice, 68th overall, in the 2008 National Hockey League Entry Draft, Lalonde tied for fifth among Ontario Hockey League defensemen with 56 points (13G, 43A) in 58 regular-season games with the Belleville Bulls this season during his fourth junior campaign.

Dowell, 25, tallied two points (G, A) in three games with the Blackhawks this season and has registered three goals, five points and 17 penalty minutes in 23 career games with Chicago over the last three years. The Eau Claire, Wisconsin, native tallied 16 assists, 23 points and 96 penalty minutes in 78 regular-season contests with Rockford this season while serving as the team captain.

Cullimore, 37, collected six assists, eight points and 52 penalty minutes in 59 regular-season games with Rockford during his 17th professional season. A veteran of 776 career NHL regular-season games and a member of the 2004 Stanley Cup Champion Tampa Bay Lightning, Cullimore originally signed a professional tryout contract with the IceHogs on October 22, 2009.

Connelly, 23, led Rockford defensemen with 31 assists and ranked second with 35 points in 78 regular-season games during his first full professional season. The Bloomington, Minnesota, native led the IceHogs during the playoffs with three assists and tied for the team lead with three points in four contests.

Richmond, 25, re-joined the Blackhawks organization on March 1 via a trade with the St. Louis Blues and collected six assists and 31 penalty minutes in 15 regular-season tilts with Rockford. The Chicago native was a member of the Blackhawks organization for parts of three seasons (2005-08), which includes collecting two assists and 68 penalty minutes in 39 tilts with the NHL club. He also posted 15 assists, 16 points and 135 penalty minutes in 54 contests with the AHL’s Peoria Rivermen this season.

Toivonen, 25, also joined the Blackhawks organization on March 1 from St. Louis and notched a 1-4-0 record with a 3.44 goals-against average and a .883 save percentage in six regular-season appearances with the IceHogs. The Kalvola, Finland, native also notched an 11-11-3 record with a 2.73 goals-against average and a .906 save percentage in 26 games with Rivermen this season. He has appeared in 61 career NHL contests with the Boston Bruins (2005-07) and St. Louis (2007-08) registering an 18-24-10 record with a 3.37 goals against average and an .890 save percentage. Rockford finished fourth in the AHL’s Western Conference with 94 points and shared fourth with 44 regular-season wins, tied for a franchise record. The IceHogs reached the Calder Cup Playoffs for the third consecutive year before being eliminated, 4-games-to-0, by the Texas Stars in the West Division Semifinal.