As I wrote yesterday, the Monday game between the Rockford IceHogs and the Milwaukee Admirals was a bit ugly, with sixteen penalties totally 46 minutes. The biggest penalty was charged to Ryan Hartman, who followed his 2 minute unsportsmanlike conduct penalty with a 10 minute match for a check to the head. That put his season total at 69 minutes.
Like a real pro, Hartman stood tall in the post-game media session. He took responsibility and talked about candidly his play. While he definitely needs to cut down drastically on his penalties, I give Hartman credit for owning up to everything and speaking to the press professionally. In the same situation, other players might have ducked the media.
After such a game and facing the same team right after Christmas, I will be keeping an eye on Hartman. It will be interesting to see how the Admirals play him. Does he have a target on his back? Will teams start to prod him into penalties? How will he respond to all of it.
All is good right now, because the IceHogs are riding high in first place. Hartman knows he needs to cut down on his penalties to be effective and to not put his team in short-handed situations. Going forward, Hartman is one to watch.
I encourage everyone to watch Hartman and the whole team. Stay tuned for more coverage on Johngy's Beat. More importantly, get out to a game. The IceHogs are playing great. Check out IceHogs.com for more info, updates and news.
(Post game media session video courtesy of IceHogs.com)
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