The Rockford IceHogs were winless in two preseason games while waiting for their National Hockey League affiliate, the Chicago Blackhawks, to set their roster and send more players down to the American Hockey League.
The IceHogs fell 3-1 to the Chicago Wolves (St. Louis Blues) at the BMO Harris Bank Center on Oct. 2 with Garret Ross scoring the lone goal. The next night, they traveled north and fell again 3-1 to the Milwaukee Admirals (Nashville Predators) with Alex Broadhurst scoring the lone Rockford goal.
The IceHogs host Milwaukee on Saturday to open their regular-season with a 7 p.m. puck drop.
Forwards
Cody Bass, Alex Broadhurst, Matt Carey, Phillip Danault, Pierre-Cedric Labrie, Drew LeBlanc, Ryan Hartman, Matt Carey, Mark McNeill, Joakim Nordstrom, Peter Regin, Dennis Rasumussen, Ryan Schnell, Garret Ross and Teuvo Teravainen.
Carey, Hartman, Rasmussen and Teravainen will be in their first AHL season while Broadhurst, Danault, LeBlanc, McNeill, Nordstrom and Ross will be in their second-year. Regin and Teravainen are the two forwards that draw the most interest with both of them seeing time in NHL games last season and poised to breakout on the scene anytime. Jamie Wise packed his bags for ECHL Indianapolis on Tuesday to trim Rockford’s roster and Schnell, who also has an AHL contract, is the likely candidate to join him if rehab stints are needed for Brandon Mashinter and Kris Versteeg.
Defense
T.J. Brennan, Adam Clendening, Klas Dahlbeck, Dillon Fournier, Steven Johns, Zack Miskovic, Ville Pokka and Viktor Svedberg.
The biggest addition to this group is Brennan, who won the 2013-14 AHL’s Eddie Shore Award for the league’s best defenseman after scoring 72 points (25 G, 47 A) with the Toronto Marlies. Brennan and Pokka were both acquired from the New York Islanders in the trade for Nick Leddy on Oct. 4. Brennan and Clendening were both AHL First All-Star Team selections last season. The two will anchor the top two lines with left-handed shooters Brennan and Dahlbeck taking the top line and right-handers Clendening and Steven Johns the second.
Goaltenders
Scott Darling and Michael Leighton
Kent Simpson is now gone after being shipped to the Islanders in the Leddy trade and Mac Carruth was sent down to Indianapolis. Carruth posted a 2-2-1 record with a .880 save-percentage and 3.36 goals-against average in seven games with Rockford last season. Darling and Leighton will split time between the pipes with Leighton seeing a little more time as he will need to be ready for a potential call-up to Chicago. Leighton has posted a 2.34 goals-against average and a .918 save-percentage in 354 AHL games.
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