Fast Facts: Moose vs Rockford – Dec 20

The Manitoba Moose (14-10-2-0) meet the Rockford IceHogs (11-13-2-1) on Saturday afternoon.  The Moose had a modest two-game win streak snapped by the Iowa Wild, falling 6-0 on Dec. 14. They are 6-4-0-0 in their past 10 games. Rockford also had a two-game streak end when they dropped a 1-0 decision to the Grand Rapids Griffins on Dec. 13.

Tickets are available for this afternoon's game at moosehockey.com/tickets. Coverage of today's matchup gets going at 1:45 p.m. CT on CJOB.com, the Winnipeg Jets App and AHLTV on FloHockey. Action at Canada Life Centre begins at 2 p.m. CT.

Home for the Holidays

The Moose are down to their final two games before the holiday break, with nine days between games (Dec. 21 against the Rockford IceHogs, and Dec. 31 versus the Abbotsford Canucks). Through 26 games this season, the Moose stand in third in the Central with a 14-10-2-0, giving them the 14th-best points percentage across the league, and the 11th most regulation and overtime wins of any AHL team. Manitoba has played 20 of their first 26 games against Central Division foes, putting together a 10-8-2-0 record in those games. Thus far, the Moose hold a 2-0-0-0 record against the IceHogs, and are 4-1-1-0 against the Chicago Wolves. At Canada Life Centre, the Moose are 6-5-1-0.

Vitelli Comes Home

Reece Vitelli returned to his hometown on Friday morning, when he was recalled by the Moose from the ECHL’s Savannah Ghost Pirates. The 24-year-old has skated in eight games with Manitoba this season, adding 13 more with the Ghost Pirates. Vitelli has seven points (3G, 4A) in the ECHL this season. Vitelli has 44 games of AHL experience under his belt, 23 of which have come in antlers. In his career, he has five points (2G, 3A).

Three is the Magic Number

Three has been the magic number for the Moose so far in 2025-26. When Manitoba has scored three or more goals, they hold a 12-0-1-0 record. The overtime loss came in the early stages of the season, with a 4-3 loss back on Oct. 25 against the Chicago Wolves. The Moose have scored four and five goals on three occasions respectively, and reached six on Dec. 12 against the Iowa Wild, all of which resulted in wins. On home ice, Manitoba is undefeated when scoring three or more goals, accounting for five victories.

Gus Bus Goes Meep Meep

David Gustafsson has been cruising for the Moose of late, scoring five points, all of which are assists, over his past four games. On the campaign, the Tingsryd, Sweden native has registered five multi-point games, including his most recent contest on Dec. 12, amassing 16 points (4G, 12A) in 24 games in 2025-26. He played his 100th AHL game on Nov. 12. Through his 112 games to date, he has scored 75 points (28G, 47A). Gustafsson was a second-round pick by the Winnipeg Jets in the 2018 NHL Draft.

Who's Trending?

Danny Zhilkin has had a strong start to the campaign, picking up 10 points (5G, 5A) through the first 26 games, matching a career-high in the category, which he set in 53 games in 2024-25. In his 123 career AHL games, he has 27 points (10G, 17A). The Moscow, Russia native was a third-round pick by the Winnipeg Jets in the 2022 NHL Draft.