Week six brought about three games for the IceHogs. A mid-week contest saw the Rivermen make their way into town, and then there was a home-and-home with Houston to play.

Wednesday, November 14 vs. Peoria - For the first time at home and the second time this season, the IceHogs faced-off against the Rivermen. IceHogs center and captain Martin St. Pierre got the game started on the right foot for the home team with a shorthanded goal at 4:21. His shot came from the left circle and was an unassisted marker. Peoria tied the game up at 11:52 of the first period with a Jaden Schwartz tally from Mark Cundari and Phil McRae. With 3:47 left in the opening frame, T.J. Hensick gave the Rivs their first lead of the night after he finished on a two-on-one rush.

Hogs forward Brandon Bollig had a golden opportunity to tie the game back up at two at the very beginning of the second period. Rivs netminder Jake Allen was caught out of position and the cage was wide open, waiting for the puck to find the back of it. Bollig was able to get to the puck, got a backhanded shot off, but somehow missed. Hogs goalie Carter Hutton kept the game close while the Hogs were killing a penalty (what a shock). Rivs defenseman Taylor Chorney pinched in from the point and was left uncovered. He let a good shot go and Hutton was able to knock it down. Hogs forward Peter LeBlanc chipped in on the scoresheet while killing this penalty as he tallied the Hogs’ second shorthanded goal of the evening with a blast from the top of the left circle at 7:58 to tie the game at two. At 13:53, Derek Nesbitt got the lead back from Peoria with a knuckler from the left circle that got by Hutton high glove side.

There was an extremely frightening moment for the Hogs at the beginning of the third period. Winger Jeremy Morin was hit in the left circle of Peoria’s zone and landed very awkwardly on his knees. He was in a ton of pain and couldn’t put any pressure on his right knee/leg. He had to be helped off of the ice by LeBlanc and the trainer. Seemingly right after that, Brandon Saad tied the game up at three for the Hogs as he tapped home from the doorstep a Marcus Kruger pass at 5:16. A couple of minutes later, much to the relief of everyone in IceHogs nation, Morin was back on the ice from his scary looking injury. He didn’t take his first shift until after McRae put Peoria back in front with his first goal of the season at 9:58. But Morin answered his former Team USA teammate back at 14:54 as he put home a Ben Smith shot that was lying in behind Allen in the crease. The see-saw continued, but not in the Hogs’ favor. At 16:26, Anthony Peluso scored his fifth goal of the season to give Peoria the 5-4 lead and it stood as the game winner.

-Rockford outshot Peoria 44-25.

-The IceHogs couldn’t convert on any of their four power play opportunities, and the Rivermen scored on just one of their four man advantages.

-Jeremy Morin and Brandon Saad led the IceHogs as they each fired six shots on net.

-Some of the power play units that the IceHogs used were:

Ben Smith — Martin St. Pierre — Marcus Kruger

Adam Clendening — Brandon Pirri

Brandon Saad — Jeremy Morin — Kyle Beach

Nick Leddy — Shawn Lalonde

-Some of the penalty killers were:  Jeremy Morin, Jimmy Hayes, Joe Lavin, and Shawn Lalonde; Ben Smith, Peter LeBlanc, Ryan Stanton, and Nick Leddy; Peter LeBlanc, Jimmy Hayes, Shawn Lalonde, and Nick Leddy. When they were killing off a 5-on-3 power play for the Rivs, they used Marcus Kruger, Joe Lavin, and Ryan Stanton; Ben Smith, Joe Lavin, and Ryan Stanton.

-The three stars were: 1 — T.J. Hensick 2 — Martin St. Pierre 3 — Anthony Peluso

-The scratches were:  Brandon Svendsen (upper body), Andrew Shaw (suspended), Klas Dahlbeck (sick), Dylan Olsen, and Philippe Paradis (healthy).

-The lines and D pairs were:

Jeremy Morin — Brandon Pirri — Ben Smith

Brandon Saad — Martin St. Pierre — Marcus Kruger

Kyle Beach — Jimmy Hayes — Brandon Bollig

Rob Flick — Peter LeBlanc — Wade Brookbank

Nick Leddy — Ryan Stanton

Joe Lavin — Adam Clendening

Brett Lebda — Shawn Lalonde

Friday, November 16 vs. Houston - The atmosphere at the BMO Harris Bank Center was terrific for Los IceHogs night on Friday evening. Marcus Kruger almost got the IceHogs on the board right off the hop after Brandon Saad set him up with a behind-the-net pass, but the puck just missed finding Kruger’s stick as he drove to the front of the net. Jeremy Morin also had a chance early on to get the lead for his team after defenseman Nick Leddy kept the puck in the zone after a Ben Smith  rebound was kicked out to the high slot, but Aeros netminder Matt Hackett was able to make the save.

Hogs forward Kyle Beach tallied the first goal of the contest at the 54 second mark of the second period. His shot from below the right circle was able to beat Hackett for his fifth goal of the year. At 5:08, Smith gave Rockford a two goal lead with a shot from the left circle for his fourth marker of 2012-13. The Aeros lost one of their defensemen about midway through the period. Steven Kampfer went down due to what appeared to be a hit to the head by either Dylan Olsen or Shawn Lalonde (It was apparently Lalonde as he ended up receiving supplemental discipline on Monday). Kampfer was knocked out and had to be wheeled off the ice on a stretcher. There was no penalty on the play. Houston cut the Hogs’ lead to one with a goal from Nick Palmieri at 3:38 of the third period, but Rockford was able to hang on for the 2-1 victory.

-Rockford outshot Houston 24-23.

-The IceHogs couldn’t convert on their lone power play of the night. Meanwhile, they gave up nine power plays to the Aeros and they converted on one of them.

-Kyle Beach, Jeremy Morin, Brandon Pirri, and Ben Smith each registered three shots on goal.

-Some of the power play units that were used were:

Ben Smith — Martin St. Pierre — Marcus Kruger

Adam Clendening — Brandon Pirri

Brandon Saad — Jimmy Hayes — Jeremy Morin

Nick Leddy — Shawn Lalonde

-Some of the penalty killers that were used were:  Martin St. Pierre, Ben Smith, Ryan Stanton, and Nick Leddy; Jeremy Morin, Peter LeBlanc, Shawn Lalonde, and Dylan Olsen; Jimmy Hayes, Marcus Kruger, Klas Dahlbeck, and Ryan Stanton; Brandon Saad, Martin St. Pierre, Dylan Olsen, and Shawn Lalonde; Peter LeBlanc, Ben Smith, Ryan Stanton, and Klas Dahlbeck; Marcus Kruger, Jeremy Morin, Nick Leddy, and Shawn Lalonde; while killing off an Aeros 5-on-3 power play, Peter LeBlanc, Brandon Bollig, and Dylan Olsen were used.

-The three stars were:  1 — Ben Smith 2 — Ryan Stanton 3 — Nick Palmieri

-The scratches were:  Brandon Svendsen (upper body), Andrew Shaw (suspended), Philippe Paradis, Joe Lavin, and Brett Lebda (healthy).

-The lines and D pairs were:

Jeremy Morin — Brandon Pirri — Ben Smith

Marcus Kruger — Martin St. Pierre — Brandon Saad

Kyle Beach — Jimmy Hayes — Brandon Bollig

Rob Flick — Peter LeBlanc — Wade Brookbank

Nick Leddy — Ryan Stanton

Dylan Olsen — Shawn Lalonde

Klas Dahlbeck — Adam Clendening

Carter Hutton was in net.

Sunday, November 18 at Houston (in Minnesota) - Instead of a roadie down to Houston to face the Aeros, both the Aeros and the IceHogs headed up to Minneapolis to square off at the Xcel Energy Center, home to the parent club of the Aeros:  the Minnesota Wild. The baby Wild got themselves on the board first with a goal from Justin Fontaine at 12:35 of the first period. Houston right winger Johan Larsson extended the lead to 2-0 for the Aeros as he got one by IceHogs goalie Carter Hutton at 5:12 of the second period.  IceHogs forward Ben Smith cut the lead to one at 9:21 of the third with a power play goal for his fifth tally of the season. It was assisted by rookie defenseman Adam Clendening and center and captain Martin St. Pierre. This started a crazy sequence of events. 40 seconds after Smith’s goal, Larsson gave the Aeros their two goal lead back with a shorthanded goal after a Clendening turnover. Clendening got that goal back for Rockford 52 seconds later as he tallied a power play goal to make it 3-2. But the Aeros would be able to hold on for the win and split the home-and-home series with the Hogs.

-Rockford outshot Houston 36-21.

-The IceHogs went 2-for-4 on the power play and the Aeros went 1-for-4.

-IceHogs forward Brandon Saad led Rockford with eight shots on goal Sunday evening. Jeremy Morin and Ben Smith each fired five shots on target.

-The three stars were:  1 — Johan Larsson 2 — Matt Hackett 3 — Charlie Coyle

-The attendance at Xcel Energy Center was announced as 11,175.

-The scratches were:  Brandon Svendsen (upper body), Andrew Shaw (suspended), Philippe Paradis, Joe Lavin, and Brett Lebda (healthy).

-The lines and D pairs were:

Jeremy Morin — Brandon Pirri — Ben Smith

Marcus Kruger — Martin St. Pierre — Brandon Saad

Kyle Beach — Jimmy Hayes — Brandon Bollig

Rob Flick –Peter LeBlanc — Wade Brookbank

Nick Leddy — Ryan Stanton

Dylan Olsen — Shawn Lalonde

Klas Dahlbeck — Adam Clendening

Tidbits

-Defenseman Shawn Lalonde was suspended for three games on Monday as a result of his illegal check to the head of Aeros defenseman Steven Kampfer.

-Hog Talk is at District Bar and Grill in Rockford every Monday night from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. Next Monday’s guests will be assistant coach Ben Simon, forward Peter LeBlanc, and defenseman Brett Lebda. The show will be televised on channel 23.2 in Rockford from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday night.

-Forward Andrew Shaw will return from his suspension Friday in Lake Erie, which was the team he originally earned the suspension against. Defenseman Shawn Lalonde will return from his suspension on Tuesday, November 27 against Texas.

-Defenseman Ryan Stanton leads the IceHogs in plus/minus ratings with a +5. Brett Lebda has the worst plus/minus rating on the team with a -8.

-Centers Brandon Pirri (6 G, 7A) and Martin St. Pierre (3 G, 10 A) are tied for leading scorer on the team with 13 points.

-Check out this video by Blackhawks TV about the IceHogs’ home opener.

-Wednesday, November 21st, is forward Jimmy Hayes‘ 23rd birthday.

-The IceHogs currently sit in 13th place in the Western Conference standings with a record of 6-8-0-1 (13 points). They’re technically tied for tenth in points with Texas, Milwaukee, and Peoria. They are four points behind 8th place Houston, who has a record of 7-6-1-2 (17 points). In the Midwest Division, the Hogs are in last (put technically tied for third in points with Milwaukee and Peoria). They are five points behind division leading Grand Rapids, who has a record of 8-4-1-1 (18 points).

Upcoming Games

Wednesday, November 21 vs. Peoria at 7:05 p.m.

Friday, November 23 at Lake Erie at 6:30 p.m.

Saturday, November 24 at Lake Erie at 6:30 p.m.

Tuesday, November 27 vs. Texas at 7:05 p.m.