Ethan Del Mastro Called Up By Blackhawks

The Chicago Blackhawks have been making interesting call-ups from the Rockford IceHogs all season long.

So far, Frank Nazar, Nolan Allan, Colton Dach, and others have entered the lineup at various points. Some have stayed, and some have moved on.

On Thursday, the team announced it is calling up defenseman Ethan Del Mastro from Rockford. Craig Smith (back) will be sent to the IR retroactive to January 8th to make room for Del Mastro.

This will be Del Mastro's season debut at the NHL level and second career call-up. He played two games for Chicago in 2023-24. He didn't register any points from the back end in those two games but had 7 goals and 30 assists for 37 points in the AHL (69 games) that year.

This year with the IceHogs, he has played in 38 games where he has no goals and eight assists. The offensive numbers are down but he earned his call-up because of his ability to defend with overall upside in the offensive zone.

His first chance to play in the NHL this season is likely to come on Friday night when the Chicago Blackhawks take on the Tampa Bay Lightning at United Center.

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