Isaac Phillips was hanging out all summer when he got a call from the Blackhawks’ developmental goalkeeping coach, Peter Aubrey.
“He said, ‘Do you know anything about Mitchell Weeks? I was watching him in the OHL,'” Phillips recalls. “I said: ‘Yeah, I know a thing or two. He’s my best friend.'” And about an hour later, [Rockford IceHogs president of hockey operations and GM] I got a call from Marc Bernard and he said, “Maybe I’ll offer him a contract.” It’s kind of crazy. ”
On June 9, IceHogs officially signed a two-year AHL contract with Weeks and reunited with childhood best friend Phillips. The two grew up off the street from each other in Barry, Ontario, and their bond has only grown stronger over time.
“We’re pretty much neighbors,” said Weeks, who had a 37-save shutout in Sunday’s 5-0 win over the Minnesota Wild at the 2022 Tom Carver’s Prospect Showcase. When we were hanging out, I walked to his house for about two minutes. I walked there and came back. It’s very close.
“I’m at the top, then downhill, and there’s a set of lights, and he’s around the corner,” Phillips said. I don’t even have to drive to it.”
Despite being neighbors, it wasn’t Brock that Phillips and Weeks first met.
“We were really small,” Weeks said. “Our parents knew each other because they grew up with my dad and his dad. They used to go to beer league hockey tournaments or something. I remember being with him. I’ve known him for a long time.”
Since then, Phillips and Weeks have been almost literally attached at the waist. I play professional hockey with Ice Hogs.
“It’s wild,” Weeks said. “I don’t know what the odds are. We obviously played minors together and grew up in the same town, but then when we were both drafted to Sudbury and signed to Rockford, I was Said: “No way, I’m just chasing this guy everywhere” Super cool. “
Only one box needs to be checked at this point. That would ideally be at his NHL game with the Blackhawks.
“This is a good opportunity for us,” Phillips said. It’s going to be a good few years for our family as well, because I think things are going up in ..”
“I definitely thought about it,” Weeks said. “It’s great, especially when it’s like our parents would drive down together and go up in the stands. It would be pretty cool to play an NHL game with him.”
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