The Rockford IceHogs will host their annual live jersey auction this Saturday taking on the Iowa Wild. This year's jersey pays tribute to the Rockford Icemen high school hockey team with blue jerseys that feature green and white trim and the “Old Man Winter” Icemen logo. 

The Icemen captured 16 Combined Division High School League state championships in Illinois, including 15 consecutive titles. Tim Mattila served as head coach and shaped youth hockey culture in Rockford up to the high school ranks. 

“The key with youth hockey is you need to start when you are five to eight years old if you really want to play competitive hockey,” said Mattila. “It’s all about the youth programs to make your high school teams better and then your high school teams to make your pro teams better.” 

Fans will have a chance to bid on their favorite player's jersey as players will enter the ice one at a time while a live auctioneer will start the bidding for each player. The auction benefits the the IceHogs community fund and has generated over $1.3 million over 24 seasons. A portion of the proceeds from this year's auction will benefit the Rockford Hockey Club. 

“One of our primary missions as an organization is to support our community and make Rockford proud, and one of the ways we do that is to support local hockey and grow the game,” IceHogs President of Business Operations, Ryan Snider said. 

The IceHogs Community Fund has proudly awarded over $160,000 over the last four years to support Rockford Hockey Club and Rockford Park District youth hockey initiatives.

Rockford will host the Iowa Wild Saturday, April 4 for their annual live jersey auction. Tickets for this Saturday's game are available at icehogs.com.