Morning Chirps: Ryan Greene Advances to Frozen Four, IceHogs Rebound with Win

The Chicago Blackhawks had a busy day, signing two top prospects before holding practice. They will have an even younger lineup when they take on the struggling Utah Hockey Club this afternoon. We’ll have a full game preview after interim head coach Anders Sorensen meets the media at 12:30. The Rockford IceHogs bounced back with a big win last night, while there was plenty of postseason action featuring Blackhawks prospects.

Blackhawks Chirps

• Sam Rinzel and Oliver Moore made an impressive first impression on their first day with the team. They showed talent, confidence, and humility on and off the ice.
• Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times wrote that the inconsistency of Tyler Bertuzzi’s season is nothing out of the ordinary.
• Those of you who were hoping to see Ryan Greene turn pro this season are disappointed this morning. Greene had two primary assists, including one on the game-winner, in Boston University’s 3-2 overtime victory against Cornell. The Terriers will play the winner of today’s game between Penn State and UConn on April 10 at the Frozen Four. Aidan Thompson and Denver will play No. 1 Boston College at 6 pm tonight.

• In the OHL, Martin Misiak had a hat trick and an assist in the Erie Otters’ 9-5 win over the Saginaw Spirit. Defenseman Ty Henry was a plus-3 as the Otters grabbed a 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven series. Potential Blackhawks draft pick Michael Misa had two goals and an assist in the losing effort.

• AJ Spellacy scored a goal and recorded an assist in the Windsor Spitfire’s 7-1 blowout of the Soo Greyhounds, as they took a 2-0 lead in their series.
• On this date in 1969, Blackhawks blueliner Pat Stapleton tied an NHL single-game record by picking up six assists in a 9-5 win over the Detroit Red Wings. He also became the first defenseman in NHL history to have a 50-assist season.

IceHogs Chirps

• On Saturday afternoon, the AHL suspended IceHogs forward Aku Raty for two games for a boarding incident against the Manitoba Moose on Friday. Raty has a goal and four points in his eight games since being acquired from Utah on March 7.
• The IceHogs avenged Friday’s loss to the Moose by knocking them off 5-2 on Saturday. Five different players lit the lamp as Marcel Marcel, Kevin Lombardi, Gavin Hayes, Jalen Luypen, and Cole Guttman all scored goals. Hayes, Nolan Allan, Samuel Savoie, and Paul Ludwinski all had assists. Drew Commesso made 21 saves to earn his 15^th win of the season.

• The IceHogs are four points behind the Chicago Wolves for fourth place in the Central Division. They will play a home-and-home series against the Grand Rapids Griffins starting Friday night in Rockford.

NHL Chirps

• According to Robert Tiffin, Dallas Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen has resumed skating on his own. There has been no official update from the team on his timeline. With three weeks until the start of the playoffs, this is an encouraging sign for Dallas.
• With Nazem Kadri’s assist on Saturday night, he became the fifth member of the 2009 draft class to score 700 points. The other four players are John Tavares (1,107), Matt Duchene (882), Ryan O’Reilly (814), and Victor Hedman (785).
• Auston Matthews scored against the Los Angeles Kings last night, marking his ninth consecutive 30-goal season and surpassing Darryl Sittler for the most in Toronto Maple Leafs history.