Week 10 Report: Hogs Hop to Third Place

BACON BITS

Rockford won two of three games last week, pushing its win streak to a season high-tying four straight games before snapping the streak with a loss to the Admirals. The IceHogs are now 11-4-0-1 over their last 16 games dating to Oct. 30. Only Manitoba (12), Tucson (12) and Milwaukee (15) have more wins than Rockford since Oct. 30.

The IceHogs roster featured eight transactions over the last week. Reassigned by Chicago: Forward Anton Wedin; Recalled by Chicago: Forwards Matthew Highmore and Dylan Sikura, defenseman Adam Boqvist; Recalled from Indy: Forwards Dylan McLaughlin and Mathew Thompson, defenseman Dmitry Osipov; Signed to a PTO: Ben Youds.

The Hogs also notched a season high-tying five-game home winning streak following their victory over Manitoba on Tuesday. Despite snapping that streak Saturday against Milwaukee, Rockford has won nine of its last 11 home games since Oct. 18. The IceHogs are now 9-4-0-0 at home this season with their nine home wins tied for the third-most of any team in the AHL in 2019-20.

The IceHogs held Milwaukee's top-ranked power-play unit to 0-for-1 on the man-advantage Saturday. Rockford has now killed 12 of the last 13 opposing power plays dating to Nov. 30.

Brandon Hagel has scored goals in three of the last five games and recorded points in 10 of his last 16 contests since Oct 30. Hagel is first on the team with seven goals over that stretch and second in overall scoring with 11 points in those 16 games. He is the only rookie in the Western Conference to not go pointless in back-to-back games since Oct. 30.

Collin Delia bounced back from a two-game skid to win each of his two starts last week. He turned aside 65 of 68 shots while finishing the week with a 2-0-0 record, 1.44 GAA and .956 save percentage. In snapping his two-game skid, Delia has now only once dropped more than two straight games in regulation through 63 career AHL outings.

Captain Tyler Sikura matched a season-high three-game point streak with an assist in three straight games. The forward has notched points in 14 of 23 games and is just three points shy of last season's point total from 50 games.

UPCOMING GAMES

Tuesday, Dec. 10 | Rockford vs. Milwaukee (7 p.m.) The IceHogs host their final home game for a stretch of 10 days when they take on the Admirals at 7 p.m. The contest is a Taco Tuesday and fans can purchase a $15 package at icehogs.com to receive one game ticket, two tacos and a 12 oz. margarita.

Friday, Dec. 13 | Rockford at Belleville (6 p.m.) Rockford travels to Belleville for the team's first ever matchup against the Senators. The IceHogs and Sens will meet twice this year, with a game at the BMO on Jan. 20.

Sunday, Dec. 15 | Rockford at Toronto (3 p.m.) The IceHogs travel to Toronto for their first road game against the Marlies since the 2014-15 season. Rockford is 1-0-0-0 in the series this year with a 3-1 win in Rockford on Nov. 6.