Good news for the Rockford IceHogs this morning, as the team announced three players would be coming out of various protocols. Forward Lukas Reichel and goaltender Arvid Söderblom have been removed from concussion protocol, while forward Dylan McLaughlin has been removed from COVID protocol.
IceHogs Medical Update:
FW Lukas Reichel and G Arvid Soderblom have been removed from concussion protocol
FW Dylan McLaughlin is removed from COVID-19 protocolhttps://t.co/69TCdb1XAl pic.twitter.com/RgocHnA2uP
— Rockford IceHogs (@goicehogs) December 14, 2021
Reichel had been away from the IceHogs since November 28 after suffering a concussion against the Milwaukee Admirals. He was the team’s leading point-producer at that point in the season and still holds the top spot now, with 12 points in 15 games played. Reichel still has the team lead for goals, tied with Alex Nylander with seven.
The timing of the concussion was terrible for Reichel, not that there is ever a good time to have a concussion. While being in concussion protocol, Germany was forced to leave Reichel off of their roster heading to the upcoming World Junior Championships in Canada. Reichel also missed last year’s tournament due to a positive COVID test result.
Reichel was left off of Germany's #WJC roster, likely due to his concussion status, but will hopefully be available to the IceHogs again soon as he has resumed skating recently. https://t.co/0r5eLJw5mI
— Mario Tirabassi (@Mario_Tirabassi) December 14, 2021
The IceHogs will enjoy getting all three players back in the lineup soon. Söderblom has played well in net this season, despite facing 37.5 shots per game, the most per game of any AHL goalie to play eight or more games this season. Söderblom holds a 4-4-0 record with a .917 save percentage and a 3.16 GAA. McLaughlin has nine points in 15 games this season and is fourth on the team among skaters with at least ten games played, with 0.60 points per game pace. He had seven points over his last seven games and had a four-game point-streak going before landing in COVID protocol.