Staff Report

ROCKFORD – Fans will have another opportunity to watch local product Josh McArdle skate with the Rockford IceHogs.

Rockford announced Thursday that it has signed McArdle and Dmitry Osipov to one-year AHL contracts that run through the 2019-20 season.

McArdle, 25, split his first full professional season between Rockford and the ECHL’s Indy Fuel in 2018-19. He opened the campaign with Indy and combined for one goal, five assists and 25 penalty minutes over 33 total ECHL games. He skated in eight of the Fuel’s first nine contests before earning a promotion to the IceHogs on Nov. 3. McArdle then made his AHL debut the following night at Iowa to become the first alumnus of Rockford’s Youth Hockey Program to play with his hometown IceHogs. He finished the year with one goal and two assists in 19 AHL contests with the Hogs, including netting his first career AHL tally on Feb. 6 vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

McArdle has now totaled eight points (1g, 7a) in 43 career ECHL games over the last two seasons between Worcester (2017-18) and Indy (2018-19), and three points (1g, 2a) in 19 AHL contests with Rockford.

Prior to beginning his pro career, McArdle skated with Brown University for four seasons from 2014-18. The blueliner served as team captain during his senior season, earned Honorable Mention All-Ivy honors as an alternate captain during his junior year and completed his tenure with the Bears ranked eighth all-time in school history in games played by a defenseman. He posted 25 points (4g, 21a) in 120 games through his collegiate career.

Osipov, 22, spent the majority of the 2018-19 season with Indy, notching 13 points (1g, 12a) and 48 PIMs in 66 ECHL games. He was named the Fuel’s Defenseman of the Year after finishing second among team blueliners in both PIMs and games played, and posting Indy’s longest ironman streak of the season. Osipov skated in 62 consecutive games with the Fuel from Opening Night through March 15 during his streak, only ending his run when he signed a PTO with Rockford on March 16. He then chipped in two assists with 13 PIMs over eight AHL contests for the Hogs.

The Moscow native originally made his pro debut in 2017-18 with a season split between the ECHL’s Quad City Mallards and AHL’s Chicago Wolves. He tallied five points (1g, 4a) in 33 ECHL games that year, highlighted by his first pro goal on March 24 at Tulsa, and notched one helper in his 11 AHL games with Chicago.

Overall, Osipov has collected 18 points (2g, 16a) in 99 career ECHL games and three assists in 19 career AHL contests. The defenseman also boasts a +6 rating thus far in his AHL career, skating to an even-or-better plus/minus rating in 18 of 19 games.