Official site of the Rockford IceHogs
Proud Affiliate of the Chicago Blackhawks

HOGS FINISH STRONG IN WEEK 21, SWEEP WEEKEND

Ice Hogs Primary Logo
Rockford continues on franchise long 13 day road trip in Week 22

Week 21 Recap

With just two wins in 16 days entering a three-game weekend against the West Divisions’ top three teams, the outlook wasn’t very bright for the Rockford IceHogs. But three days later Rockford skated out of the Toyota Center with their third straight win, capping the weekend with a 3-2 victory over the Houston Aeros on the road to kick off a seven-game road swing.

Week 21 Results
Monday, Feb. 21: Peoria 6 vs. Rockford 3
Wednesday, Feb. 23: Rockford 3 at Chicago 4
Friday, Feb. 25: Rockford 4 at Peoria 2
Saturday, Feb. 26: Milwaukee 3 vs. Rockford 4 OT
Sunday, Feb. 27: Rockford 3 at Houston 2


Week 22 Schedule
Wednesday, Mar. 2 at Houston, 7:05 p.m.
Friday, Mar. 4 at Lake Erie, 6:30 p.m.
Saturday, Mar. 5 at Lake Erie, 6:30 p.m.

Bacon Bits:
-Jeff Taffe tied an IceHogs franchise record with a point in his 15-straight game on Sunday

-During his streak he has 10g-12a-22pts

-He matched Martin St. Pierre’s 15

-game stretch from 11/30/07-1/4/08 when he totaled 5g-17a-22pts during his point streak

-Rockford has won three straight games for the second time this season after winning just twice in their prior 16 contests

-Defenseman Garnet Exelby has points in three of his last four games totaling 1g-2a

-Rob Klinkhammer has goals in three-straight contests and shows 4g-1a over that time span

-Rockford has scored three or more goals in seven straight games, a season high

-Hannu Toivonen ended a personal five-game losing streak on Sunday dating back to 1/17/11 after making 36 saves in Rockford’s 3-2 win in Houston

-Winger Kyle Hagel has 185 PIMs on the campaign, the most in a single season by any IceHogs skater during the AHL era

-Hagel broke Kris Versteeg’s mark of 174 penalty minutes set in 2007-08

-Defenseman Brian Connelly chipped in three assists in Rockford’s 4-2 win in Peoria on Friday night

-Connelly’s 33 helpers on the campaign are tied for second in the AHL among defensemen


Hot Hog: Week 21
Jeff Taffe Left Wing
Winger Jeff Taffe tallied points in all five of Rockford’s contests in Week 21 to extend his AHL best and season-long point streak to 15 straight games. The veteran forward figured in on 41% of Rockford’s goals in Week 21. The Hastings, Minn. native began the week with goals in the Hogs first two games against Peoria and Chicago. Then, Taffe recorded his first multi-goal game of the season, including the game-winning marker, in Rockford’s 4-2 win at Peoria. Taffe also added an assist to go with the two goals, giving him his third three-point night of the season and an IceHogs best 10th multi-point game. The 30 year-old finished the week with an assist against Milwaukee on Saturday and a goal in the IceHogs 3-2 win on Sunday in Houston.

Upcoming Games:
Wednesday, Mar. 2 at Houston: The puck drops at 7:05 p.m. Rockford finishes up at the Toyota Center with their eighth and final game between the two clubs in 2010-11. The IceHogs are 3-3-0-1 against the Aeros on the season.

Friday, Mar. 4 at Lake Erie:
Game starts at 6:30 p.m. Rockford visits the Quicken Loans arena for the first time in 2010-11 to take on the Monsters in back-to-back nights. The IceHogs are 1-1-0-0 with the Monsters this season.

Saturday, Mar. 5 at Lake Erie: The puck gets on the ice at 6:30 p.m. Rockford again stays in Cleveland to take on the Monsters. This game marks the fourth of six meetings between the two teams this season.

No Bud Light Hog Talk Tonight:

No Bud Light Hog Talk this week at Swilligan’s Pub because of the team’s seven game road trip. Swillgan’s Pub is located in downtown Rockford at 200 North Church St. and fans can join Mike Peck or Matt Prefontaine as they chat hockey with IceHogs players and coaches. Hog Talk returns on Monday, March 14. Once again this season, all fans that show up at Hog Talk will have an opportunity to sign-up to win some great prizes courtesy of the IceHogs.

The IceHogs Broadcasting Network:

Rockford IceHogs fans can catch all of the IceHogs regular-and post-season games on the Hogs’ flagship radio station, Rockford’s Voice, WNTA-AM 1330 and 30 regular season games on ESPN Radio 1380-AM, WTJK. Fans can also watch and listen to the Hogs on the World Wide Web with AHL Live! Visit the IceHogs Web site (icehogs.com) and click on the “click here to watch the AHL Live” icon, and for just $7 you can catch all of the IceHogs action on your computer. Also, fans with Comcast Cable television in Rockford can tune in to Channel 57 for all the IceHogs hockey action at the MetroCentre this season. All Saturday home game will also be televised on My Network TV digital subchannel 17.2 along with Comcast and Charter Cable channel 16. The broadcast begins with the U.S. Cellular Pregame Show 30 minutes before the puck drops. Make sure to give your opinion during the Comcast Post-Game Call-In Show following each game at (815) 874-8255.

Tickets Now On Sale!

IceHogs individual game tickets are now on sale! Call (815) 968-5222 to reserve your seats for any IceHogs regular season game during the 2010-11 season. Tickets can also be purchased in person at the Rockford MetroCentre Box Office in downtown Rockford or on the Web at www.metrocentre.com. Tickets start at just $7.

.