Hawks' Alec Regula: 'I feel like I'm playing my best hockey' originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
With GM Kyle Davidson declaring a rebuild, there's nothing more important to the organization moving forward than replenishing the prospect pool. Just as important is making sure the players in the pipeline right now are taking that next step in their development.
One of the players that's doing so is 6-foot-4, 218-pound defenseman Alec Regula, who was recalled by Chicago on Tuesday. He ranks second among Rockford defensemen in assists (21) and points (25), and has a +6 rating.
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"He gets better, he gets better all the time," interim head coach Derek King said. "Even when he came up with us the one time and goes back down, he takes that game and what he’s learned here, the pace, and he continues to build on that down there. All the reports I have, when I talk to Anders, is he’s one of the top D."
Regula, 21, has been playing big minutes for the IceHogs and in all situations, whether it's manning the first power-play unit, anchoring the second penalty-kill unit or logging top-four ice time during 5-on-5 action. He also has some underrated offensive skill to his game, which was on display during Rockford's 4-2 win over Tucson on Saturday.
"I ended up getting it on the red line there and just going across, went into the blue line, kind of saw an opening and just made a move and went in," Regula said of the goal. "I was lucky to get it to go in there. I think I have that kind of offense in my game. I feel like I've had a lot of chances this year to score and I haven't been scoring as much as I'd like. To get a couple goals this past weekend felt really good. I feel really happy with how I've been playing."
It's unclear how long Regula will be with the Blackhawks for, but expect him to be back with Rockford at some point. The IceHogs have nine games left and are starting to pull away with the No. 4 seed in the Central after going on a 10-2-1 run in their last 13 games.
"We're playing really well," Regula said. "It's good. It's a good vibe down there right now. We're having fun and getting down to it. We're really excited."
In fact, it was a little bit of a bittersweet moment for Regula to get called up by the Blackhawks for that reason alone.
"I'm super happy to get another chance, another game to play," Regula said. "But, I mean, I'm excited to go back down there, which is kind of ... I don't think I'd ever really say that, really. I've been down there most of the year. We're really excited for the playoffs. I think it'll be good to get back down there whenever I do and keep that ball rolling."
Regula was mainly talking about the team when he said "keep that ball rolling," but it probably applies to him as an individual as well. He believes "everything" is clicking in his game right now, and he wants to continue building on that so it can translate to the NHL level one day.
"Throughout the year, I've had parts of my game that feel good and others that don't and it's kind of been up and down a little bit," Regula said. "But I think right now, I feel like I'm playing my best hockey and I feel real good about it."
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