[truebluefan]

Hogs fall 2-1 in extra session to PrairieThunder

Bloomington, Ill.- A new year doesn't mean different results for the Rockford IceHogs in the shootout. The IceHogs dropped a 2-1 shootout decision to the Bloomington PrairieThunder at the U.S. Cellular Coliseum on Thursday night. Goaltenders Frederic Cloutier and Jeff Reynaert kept the offenses at bay with solid performances between the pipes and Bloomington ended a nine-game winless streak.

In the shootout Bloomington received goals from B.J. Gaustad in the first round and Tyler Rennette in the fourth to vault them to the win. Hogs winger Mike Doyle scored the only Rockford goal in the shootout and it came in round three.

After a scoreless first period, Doyle put Rockford on the board with a power-play goal at 2:27. Set up by winger Jason Notermann, Doyle took advantage of Reynaert leaning the wrong way for his seventh goal of the season. Bloomington tied the while short-handed with a tally from winger Alex Goupil at12:39 for his team leading 11th goal of the season.

Cloutier made 23 saves and was tagged with his first shootout loss of the season while Reynaert turned away 18 Rockford shots to earn the win. Rockford finished the contest 1-for-6 on the power play and the Thunder finished 0-for-5.

Next Home Game: Friday, Jan. 5 vs. Bloomington PrairieThunder. The puck drops at 7:30 p.m. The Hogs play their first game at the MetroCentre in 2007 and open a season long five-game homestand. The game also marks the final of three straight against Bloomington. The first 1,000 fans will receive IceHogs Poster #4 courtesy of Pepsi, Medicine Man, Johnson Press and the Rockford Register Star.

Saturday, Jan. 6 vs. Kalamazoo Wings. Game time is 7:05 p.m. The Hogs and Wings mix it up once again at the MetroCentre. The first 1,000 fans to the game will receive an IceHogs Stadium Blanket from Lonnie's Carpet Max.

 

[truebluefan]

PrairieThunder snaps losing streak

Tyler Rennette's goal in a shootout with Rockford snapped the Bloomington PrairieThunder's nine-game losing streak Thursday night with a 2-1 decision before 3,289 people at U.S. Cellular Coliseum in a Western Conference contest in United Hockey League action.

The victory moved Bloomington's record to 9-22-2 ahead of tonight's 7:30 contest at Rockford in the rubber game of a three-game series. The triumph also moved the PrairieThunder's record to 3-2 in shootouts and was the team's first at home against the IceHogs in five games.

Rockford took a 1-0 lead in the second period on a power play goal by Mike Doyle with 17:23 remaining. He was assisted by Jason Notermann and Nathan Lutz.

Bloomington's Alex Goupil tied the game at the 7:21 mark on his second short-handed goal of the season. The unassisted goal gave Goupil at least one point in six of the last seven games and pushed his season total to 11.

Neither team scored in the third period as Bloomington held a 5-4 shot advantage.

In the shootout, B.J. Gaustad, the first Bloomington shooter, scored for a 1-0 advantage after Rockdford's Kaleb Betts had misfired. Neither of team's second and third shooters scored.

Doyle then tied the shootout before Rennette's goal gave Bloomington the lead. PrairieThunder goalie Jeff Reynaert stopped Notermann's potential shootout-tying attempt to ice the victory.

Reynaert snapped a personal six-game losing streak by stopping 18 of 19 shots. The PrairieThunder also survived six of seven Rockford power plays. Rockford, whose record dropped to 16-14-2, was outshot, 25-19.