The two teams that finished at the bottom of the Central Division standings in 2016-17 will meet for a spot in the AHL’s final four, as the Manitoba Moose take on the Rockford IceHogs in the Central Division final.  The third seed Moose are coming off a hard fought 3-2 series win over the defending Calder Cup champion Grand Rapids Griffins, while the fourth in the Central IceHogs swept the number one seed Chicago Wolves 3-0 in the first round.

November 28 @ Rockford: Moose 8 – 1 IceHogs

February 2 @ Rockford: Moose 4 – 3 IceHogs (OT)

March 26 @ Manitoba: Moose 2 – 4 IceHogs

March 28 @ Manitoba: Moose 3 – 4 IceHogs

Manitoba: F Brendan Lemieux – 4 GP, 2 G, 4 A, 6 PTS

Rockford: D Adam Clendening – 3 GP, 1 G, 5 A, 6 PTS

Manitoba: Michael Hutchinson: 2 GP, 1-1-0, 5 GA, .934 SV%

Eric Comrie: 1 GP, 1-0-0, 3 GA, .925 SV%

Jamie Phillips: 1 GP, 0-1-0, 4 GA, .862 SV%

Rockford: Collin Dellia: 2 GP, 1-0-1, 6 GA, .929 SV%

Jeff Glass: 2 GP, 1-1-0, 11 GA, .817 SV%

The Moose won a hard-fought battle against the archrival Grand Rapids Griffins 3 games to 2.  The Moose won game 1 of the series at home on the back of a great goaltending performance by Eric Comrie.  However, when the Moose were blown out 5-1 in Game 2, and Comrie was pulled after 2 periods, it appeared that the Moose were going to be in tough, having to win 2 of the next 3 in Grand Rapids.  The Moose would find a way in the final 3 games, outscoring the Griffins 11-4 in games 3 and 5 combined to win the series 3-2.  The Moose were led in the series by F Chase De Leo, who had 2 goals and 7 points in the 5 games.  F Brendan Lemieux, F Mike Sgarbossa, and D Cameron Schilling each added 2 goals in the series.  G Eric Comrie played all but 1 period in the first round, posting a 3-2 record with a 2.82 GAA and a .922 SV%.

The IceHogs swept the Central Division champion Chicago Wolves 3-0 in the 1^st round.  The IceHogs stole home ice advantage in Game 1, winning 2-1 at Allstate Arena, before dominating Game 2 at home 5-2.  Game 3 could really be considered two games, with F Victor Edsjell scoring 57:22 into overtime to win Game 3 4-3 in Chicago.  The IceHogs were led in round 1 by F Chris DiDomenico, who had 2 goals and 5 points in the 3 games.  Edsjell also added 2 goals in the series, while D Adam Clendening posted 4 assists and 5 points in the series.  G Collin Dellia started all 3 games in the series, posting a 3-0 record with a 1.52 GAA and a .949 SV%.

In the regular season, the Moose had the league’s 2nd best powerplay at 20.8%, while the IceHogs had the league’s worst penalty kill at 77.4%.  However in round 1, the Moose had the 2nd worst powerplay in the AHL at 13.3%, while the IceHogs had the league’s 4th best penalty kill at 85.7%.  In the head-to-head matchups this season, the Moose powerplay went 30.8% on 13 opportunities.  A good powerplay will help the Moose towards a victory.

The IceHogs have not played since April 26^th, while the Moose had to battle through a 5-game series in round 1.  The emotional high from round 1 will have to carry over into the start of round 2 for the Moose to have a good chance in this series.  I think rust will play a factor early in the series, and the Moose will be able to keep the train rolling.  Moose in 6 games.