Patrick WilliamsFeatures Writer for TheAHL.com
More than a year of planning is about to turn into execution for the Rockford IceHogs.
The 2026 AHL All-Star Classic presented by BMO is set for Tuesday and Wednesday. Hours, weeks and months of work mostly behind the Rockford front office, and next week will be time to go.
BMO Center ice has a new look, with artwork and advertising in the area for the All-Star event. It is yet another task that should have been checked off the organization’s to-do list. Next weekend, it’s back to the regular season as the Milwaukee Admirals come to town for two home games.
36 home days and the day-to-day business of managing a hockey team combined with preparing to welcome fans, players, coaches, managers and others from across the AHL. Helping organize it was the IceHogs president of the business Ryan Snider once Mike Peckgroup vice president of marketing, content and operations.
Peck estimates that preparing for the AHL All-Star Classic has made up about 75 percent of the front office’s workload since the end of December, though that didn’t come as a surprise.
“We knew going in,” Peck continued, “and people had told us before the whole process, ‘Hey, just so you know, it’s going to take a lot of time.’ And it happened, but it was a very good process. It’s been great working with the league office and we’re excited to have people from around the AHL come to Rockford.”
Snider sees the event coming to Rockford as critical on two fronts. It boosts businesses and the economy of Rockford, especially come mid-February. It’s also a chance to show off the BMO Center.
Snider said more than 800 hotel nights have been booked. Local restaurants and businesses will also have guests from the other 31 AHL markets and other locations. Given Rockford’s proximity to several Central Division neighbors, there will be plenty of visiting fans from Rockford’s rivals. This year marks the first appearance of the AHL All-Star Classic in the American Midwest since the Grand Rapids Griffins hosted it in 2004. With a major air hub like Chicago a long way away, direct travel from across the AHL map is also an option for many fans from further afield.
“It’s a city that really deserves it,” explained Peck. “There’s everything you could want here. We have the best local restaurants, so you’re going to get great food. There’s a lot of luxury around this town.”
When those fans arrive, they’ll see that more than $30 million in renovations have gone into renovating the BMO Center. The building opened in 1981, it is not at all similar to its predecessor. Among the improvements are a new scoreboard and sound system, LED ribbon boards, digital dash boards, improvements to the building’s office space and club areas, a new bar and a renovated exterior. It’s a very different building than the one the IceHogs occupied when they joined the AHL in 2007.
Before the AHL All-Star Skills competition on Tuesday, fans can head to the after party outside the arena. Free and open to the public, the winter-themed event will feature several activities and food options for fans.
“I think the fans are going to be blown away,” Peck said. “I know I’m very happy to show off our building.”
For IceHogs fans, there are long-term goals in maintaining and expanding the most important part of any hockey team’s business, its season ticket base. The team included the event in season ticket packages.
“We wanted all of our season ticket members to have access to those tickets,” Snider emphasized, “and it was really successful for us. We moved a large number of tickets to our season ticket database.”
There is also the fragility of public pride. It can be hard to gauge, but Snider says he can hear it in Rockford.
“It’s one of those things where the Rockford community can have an event that they can be proud of,” said Snider, “that they’re able to attract a national event, that we put our name in the hat against other markets that are out there, and the league puts their trust in us to really make it their most important event every year.
“That says a lot about Rockford. And that’s one of the main reasons we wanted to host this event. It’s really about community pride, bringing something special to this community that they can be proud of, that they can promote to the world with a game that’s broadcast across North America on NHL Network and TSN and regionally here on CHSN.
“It’s going to highlight our area, and I think that’s something our market should be proud of.”
From remodeling to strengthening and growing the fan base to hosting and now the long process of taking that vision and making it a reality, Rockford’s front office is on the verge. There is still more work to be done, but the IceHogs and their city will be able to have an event to remember long after it is over.
“It’s been a lot of work,” said Peck, “but we know it will pay off in the end.”
In the American Hockey League for two decades, TheAHL.com features writer Patrick Williams and currently covers the league for NHL.com and FloSports and is a regular contributor to SiriusXM NHL Network Radio. He was the recipient of the AHL’s James H. Ellery Memorial Award for the league’s top scorer in 2016.
