IceHogs start a new chapter | TheAHL.com

Patrick WilliamsTheAHL.com Features Writer

Being an AHL team means rolling with the punches.

Last Thursday, the Rockford IceHogs lost their head coach Anders Sorensen to the parent Chicago Blackhawks, where he took over as interim head coach. It's the third time in a little more than six years that the IceHogs bench manager has been promoted in Chicago in the middle of the season, and Sorensen is next. Jeremy Colliton in 2018 again Derek King in 2021.

In the middle of it all are the IceHogs, who are on a six-game road trip and trying to find their place in the AHL's Central Division. The Hogs beat Lehigh Valley, 7-3, on Wednesday night in what would be Sorensen's last game with the team. They were preparing to face Hartford and Springfield at the weekend when their leadership was shaken by a coaching change made by another team in another league.

Rockford came into the season with high hopes for the Blackhawks' young offense, and while their 8-10-0-3 record left them in fifth place in the Central, those players made an impression.

The protector Kevin Korchinskitaken seventh overall by Chicago in the 2022 NHL Draft, arrived in Rockford this fall after spending his entire rookie season with the Blackhawks. Chicago wanted him in the AHL to get enough playing time and perfect his game.

Joining Korchinski on the IceHogs' blue line was the second overall pick in last June's NHL Draft, Artyom Levshunov. Levshunov, who turned 19 on October 28, spent one season at Michigan State University and was one of the best young athletes in the country; the AHL was the perfect place to get him some much-needed professional experience.

Forward Frank NazarThe 20-year-old, who is coming off a standout sophomore season at the University of Michigan, was selected 13th overall in the 2022 NHL Draft. He currently leads all AHL rookies with 11 goals and 24 points.

Connect with previous prospects Colton Dach, Cole Guttman, Gavin Hayes, Samuel Savoie again Landon Slaggert and blueliners Ethan Del Mastro (an AHL All-Star last season as a rookie) and Isaac Phillipsand the IceHogs have been an interesting addition to Chicago's ongoing rebuilding project. Captain Brett Seneyan NHL veteran Zach Sanford and former AHL MVP Gerry Mayhew provide information, and the second game of 2020 Drew Commesso and third-year pro Mitchell Weeks they have been holding the crease.

But player development is an uncertain game, especially in the situation. Rockford started 3-7-0-0, an early test of the young team's confidence. Since then they have collected points in eight out of 11 games (5-3-3-0). But the AHL program isn't waiting, and neither is the IceHogs' new interim coach Mark Eatonthe Blackhawks' assistant general manager who oversees player development, took over with his team 1,000 miles from home.

“We're trying to keep it as normal as possible,” Phillips told the broadcaster Dana Gray before Saturday's game at Springfield.

Rockford closes its road trip with a visit to Iowa on Wednesday, the first of six meetings between the fifth-ranked IceHogs and the sixth-ranked Wild in a 22-day span. Also missing are Korchinski and Commesso, who were sent back by the Blackhawks on Sunday. Still, the situation is an opportunity for everyone, including Eaton, a 15-year defending champion and former AHL All-Star who is getting his first opportunity to play a role off the bench.

“I'm looking forward to expanding my knowledge and perspective on the game and learning something new,” Eaton told Gray. “Accept the challenge – that's one of the things I see as expected in the team here, the mindset of growth.”

In the American Hockey League for two decades, TheAHL.com features writer Patrick Williams and currently covers the league for NHL.com and FloSports and is a regular contributor to SiriusXM NHL Network Radio. He was the recipient of the AHL's James H. Ellery Memorial Award for the league's top scorer in 2016.