San Diego, CA- The Rockford IceHogs (19-31-2-2) head to southern California for a two-game set against the San Diego Gulls (24-17-8-4) beginning tonight at 9 p.m. CT. Rockford split the first series with the Gulls in Rockford in late February. 

The Matchup:

All Time Series: 2-5-1-0

Season Series: 1-1-0-0

Last Time Out: Rockford came out victorious the last time they faced the Gulls back at the BMO Center. San Diego opened the scoring in the middle period before defenseman Andrew Perrot got Rockford on the board halfway through the second. The teams would swap scoring chances but remained tied late into the final frame. Brett Seney would score the go-ahead and eventual game-wining goal at 17:35 of the third. Owen Flores would earn First Star honors, stopping 24/25 shots faced to secure the 2-1 Rockford win. 

Team Leaders: 

San Diego:

 Points- Sasha Pastujov- 38 points 

 Goals- Justin Bailey- 18G 

 Assists- Matthew Phillips- 28A

Rockford:

 Points- Brett Seney- 40 points 

 Goals- Nick Lardis- 17G

 Assists- Brett Seney- 29A

Three Things to Know:

Hi Kevin: The Chicago Blackhawks reassigned defenseman Kevin Korchinski to Rockford Thursday afternoon. Korchinski, 21, leads Rockford blueliners with 23 points (2G, 21A) through 45 games this season. The Saskatoon native has one assist in four games with the Blackhawks this season. The third-year pro has nine power play (1G, 8A) which is tied with forward Nick Lardis. Korchinski has the most multi-point games among Rockford defensemen with five different multi-point games. 

Out of Division: The IceHogs will play their final two out of division games for the 2025-26 season this weekend in California. The Hogs are 2-8 against out of division opponents with games against the Colorado Eagles, Hershey Bears and San Diego Gulls. The first two games with Rockford and San Diego have been decided by a goal in 5-4 and 2-1 finals. Rockford last hit the California coast in late December 2023 with a split against San Diego. The Hogs fell 2-1 in the first contest before taking a 3-2 overtime victory to earn a split inside Pechenga Arena. 

Special Teams: For the second time this season, the IceHogs did not surrender a power play opportunity in their Wednesday night contest against Grand Rapids. Rockford ranks third with 207 times shorthanded, trailing the Laval Rocket and Bakersfield Condors. The IceHogs' penalty kill sits at 80.7% on the season but only 50% in the first two meetings with San Diego. Both the IceHogs and Gulls enter the weekend with eight short-handed goals which is tied for second most in the AHL. 

2025-26 Matchups:

The IceHogs open up their weekend series with San Diego tonight at 9 p.m. The Hogs will return to the BMO Center Friday, March 13 against the Chicago Wolves for a $2 beer night presented by Bud Light. Tickets are available at  icehogs.com.