Despite outshooting the IceHogs 33-23 on the night, the Monsters still fell 2-1 in Rockford on Friday.  Justin Mercier scored the only Lake Erie goal and Tyler Weiman had 21 saves on 23 shots.  With Manitoba's win over Toronto, the Lake Erie loss drops them to six points out of the final playoff spot.  The team returns to Peoria on Saturday to wrap up a three-game trip.

Bryan Bickell put the IceHogs on the scoreboard first, scoring just 2:44 into the game.  He was assisted by Rob Klinkhammer and Shawn Lalonde, putting Rockford up 1-0 quickly.

That would be the only scoring for more than two full periods of play.  The IceHogs retained their one-goal lead until 8:45 of the third period when Evan Brophey finally scored, putting Rockford up 2-0.  Jake Dowell and Danny Bois were credited with the helpers on the play.

It looked as though IceHogs goalie Corey Crawford would get the shutout, until Monsters rookie Justin Mercier score with two-and-a-half minutes remaining.  His goal at 17:30 of the third was assisted by T.J. Hensick and Brian Willsie, and brought Lake Erie to within 2-1. 

With their assists on Friday, Hensick has recorded points in eight of the past 10 games and Willsie seven of the last nine.

Although the Monsters put up 13 shots in the third compared to just five from Rockford, the IceHogs would keep Lake Erie off the scoreboard for the rest of the period, escaping with the 2-1 win.

Lake Erie netminder Tyler Weiman posted 21 of 23 shots, while Crawford recorded 32 saves on 33 shots on goal.