Griffins Continue Four-Game Road Trip
AHL Grand Rapids Griffins

Griffins Continue Four-Game Road Trip

Published on February 3, 2026 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Grand Rapids Griffins News Release


Grand Rapids Griffins vs. the Charlotte Checkers
Grand Rapids Griffins vs. the Charlotte Checkers
(Grand Rapids Griffins, Credit: Nicolas Carrillo)

This Week's Games

GRIFFINS (33-6-2-1) at Milwaukee Admirals (19-18-2-2) // Tue., Feb. 3 // 8 p.m. EST // Panther Arena

Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM & 1300 AM at 7:45 p.m. EST

Watch: AHLTV on FloHockey

Season Series: 4-0-2-0 Overall, 1-0-1-0 Road. Seventh of 12 meetings overall, third of six at Panther Arena

All-Time Series: 121-87-7-11-8 Overall, 54-47-5-7-5 Road

NHL Affiliation: Nashville Predators

Noteworthy: Milwaukee is one of two teams (Chicago) to defeat the Griffins twice this season, although both have been in overtime. Grand Rapids has shut out the Admirals in the previous two meetings and in three of the six games this season.

GRIFFINS at Charlotte Checkers (25-14-3-0) // Fri., Feb. 6 // 7 p.m. // Bojangles Coliseum

GRIFFINS at Charlotte Checkers // Sat., Feb. 7 // 6 p.m. // Bojangles Coliseum

Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM & 1300 AM at 6:45 p.m. on Friday and 5:45 p.m. on Saturday

Watch: AHLTV on FloHockey

Season Series: 1-1-0-0 Overall, 0-0-0-0 Road. Third and fourth of four meetings overall, first and second of two at Bojangles Coliseum

All-Time Series: 19-18-0-1 Overall, 10-7-0-1 Road

NHL Affiliation: Florida Panthers

Noteworthy: The Griffins will travel to Charlotte for the first time since Dec. 18, 2016. The Checkers were the first team to defeat Grand Rapids in regulation this season, doing so in a 2-1 victory on Nov. 21 at Van Andel Arena.

Record Setters: Below is a list of team and league records that the Griffins have either set or tied this season.

- Best record in AHL history through 25 games (23-1-0-1, 47 pts.), 30 games (27-1-1-1, 56 pts.) and 40 games (32-5-2-1, 67 pts.), while tying for the best start through 35 games (29-3-2-1, 61 pts.)

- Reached the 60-point mark in just 32 games, three games faster than any team in AHL history

- AHL record 17-game road points streak from Oct. 10-Jan. 23 (15-0-1-1)

- Tied franchise-record 15-game winning streak from Nov. 22-Dec. 27, which also tied for sixth-longest in AHL history

- Tied franchise-record 19-game points streak from Nov. 22-Jan. 7 (18-0-1-0)

- Franchise-record start with an 8-0 record and was the league's last undefeated team for first time since 2000-01 IHL season

- Started 6-0 at home for first time since 2009-10 (8-0)

- Franchise record for largest margin of victory (9) on Nov. 25 at Texas (10-1 W)

- Franchise record for fewest shots in a game (10) on Jan. 17 versus Milwaukee

Steady the Ship: Despite dropping six of the last 10 games, the Griffins have continued their league-record start with a 33-6-2-1 ledger and 69 points through 42 games. Grand Rapids surpassed the 2005-06 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (31-5-3-1, 66 pts.) for the best start in AHL history through 40 games. Grand Rapids also reached 60 points three games faster than any team in the AHL's 90-year history (2005-06, W-B/Scranton, 29-3-2-1, 61 pts. in 35 games). The team saw its franchise-record tying 15-game win streak from Nov. 22-Dec. 27 come to an end in overtime on Dec. 31, which also tied for the sixth-longest run in AHL history. In addition, the Griffins' 19-game point streak from Nov. 22-Jan. 7 (18-0-1-0) ended on Jan. 9, which tied for the longest run in franchise history. The Griffins are 16-1-1-1 on the road and 17-5-1-0 at home. The 17-game points streak on the road from Oct. 10-Jan. 23 (15-0-1-1) set a new AHL record, eclipsing the 2010-11 Milwaukee Admirals' 16-game run (10-0-4-2). Grand Rapids ranks first in the AHL in points (69), has a 17-point cushion over Chicago for first place in the Central Division, and is 33 points up on a playoff spot.

What's The Password?: The Griffins' defense remains the best in the AHL, as it ranks first with 1.93 goals allowed per contest. Providence is the closest to Grand Rapids with 2.02 goals allowed per game. Grand Rapids posted its seventh shutout of the season on Jan. 21 against Milwaukee, which are the most since the team registered eight in 2016-17. The Griffins shut out their opponent in two straight games from Jan. 17-21 in addition to posting consecutive shutouts from Dec. 21-27. Prior to this season, the last time Grand Rapids logged two straight shutouts was Feb. 15-17, 2018. The Griffins have allowed more than two goals just nine times in their last 36 games and have averaged 3.00 goals allowed in their last five outings. In fact, the team has allowed more than two goals just 11 times all season (26.2%). In addition, the team's penalty kill is first in the AHL at 85.8%. In net, Sebastian Cossa sports a 1.99 GAA with a .927 save percentage, while rookie netminder Michal Postava possesses a 1.63 GAA and a .940 save percentage. Grand Rapids also has four of the top seven plus-minus ratings among defensemen. The Griffins have four defensemen who have played at least 100 games in the NHL in Erik Gustafsson (517) (currently with Detroit), Justin Holl (396), Ian Mitchell (110), and William Lagesson (107), totaling 1,130 appearances.

Slowed Down a Smidge: Grand Rapids was shut out for the first time this season on Jan. 9 against Texas and has been held to under three goals in seven of the last 10 games. The Griffins now have 12 goals in their last five contests (2.40 per game) and finished January with 32 goals (2.46 per game). At the start of January, the Griffins averaged 3.93 goals per game. Grand Rapids has dropped to second in the AHL with 3.48 goals per game. This is the first time since Nov. 1 that the Griffins have not led the AHL in goals per game. The team has outscored its opponents 146-81 and is 24-0 when scoring the game's first goal. The Griffins have outscored their opponents 67-41 at home, while possessing a 79-40 advantage on the road. Grand Rapids has its largest scoring margin against its opponents in the third period (60-28). In addition to ranking second in goals, the Griffins place 11th in shots per game (29.2). John Leonard leads the team and ranks second in the AHL with 26 goals, while Eduards Tralmaks ranks second on the roster with 17 and Sheldon Dries and Dominik Shine tie for third with 15.

Leaders of the Pack: The Griffins have led the Central Division for the entire season, and are 17 points above second-place Chicago and 33 points up on a playoff spot. Grand Rapids is 26-5-2-1 against its division rivals and has outscored them 119-69, suffering its first regulation defeat against the division on Jan. 9 against Texas. Last season, it took the Griffins 52 games to reach 26 wins against the division (26-22-3-1) compared to 34 games this season. Twenty-two of the remaining 30 games for Grand Rapids will be against the Central Division (73.3%). The Griffins will see the most games against the Milwaukee Admirals (6) followed by the Rockford IceHogs (5).

Shine On, Captain: Dominik Shine posted two points (1-1-2) in his return to the ice last Saturday after being sidelined for seven of the previous nine games from Jan. 9-30 due to rehabbing an injury. The captain ranks among the team leaders in points (29, T2nd), goals (15, T3rd), assists (14, T4th) and plus-minus rating (+16, T6th). On Dec. 7 at Toronto, Shine became just the third player in franchise history to reach 500 games with the team, scoring a goal in the process. He is in his 10th season with Grand Rapids, becoming just the third player in team history to reach the milestone (Brian Lashoff 14, Travis Richards 10). On the all-time regular-season franchise leaderboard, Shine ranks third in games played (512), fourth in goals (90), seventh in assists (123), fourth in points (213), fifth in penalty minutes (583), tied for fifth in shorthanded goals (6), tied for fourth in game-winners (14), tied for first in unassisted goals (10), and third in shots (872).

The Lombardi Trophy: Last Saturday in Chicago, Amadeus Lombardi tied his career high with three points (1-2-3). This marked the second time he's posted three points this season and was his fourth multi-point outing of the campaign. The third-year pro was sidelined for 20 straight games from Nov. 22-Jan. 9 due to rehabbing an injury. Since his return on Jan. 13, Lombardi has six points (2-4-6) in nine games. Last season, the Aurora, Ontario, native, logged a career-high 40 points (19-21-40) in 44 games with the Griffins. With Grand Rapids since the spring of 2023, Lombardi has 87 points (29-58-87) in 138 outings. He was the 113th overall pick by the Detroit Red Wings in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft.

AHL Leaderboard Tracker:

Michael Brandsegg-Nygard-Tied for third in game-winners (5), tied for ninth among rookies in assists (16), tied for 14th among rookies in points (24), third among rookies in plus-minus (+16), tied for 10th among rookies in shots (83), first among rookies in game-winners (5)

Sebastian Cossa-Second in GAA (1.99), second in save percentage (.927), first in shutouts (4), tied for first in wins (18)

Sheldon Dries-Tied for 11th in power-play goals (6)

x Erik Gustafsson-Tied for 10th in plus-minus (+18), tied for 12th among defensemen in assists (18), tied for third among defensemen in plus-minus (+18), tied for seventh among defensemen in power-play goals (2)

Justin Holl-Tied for 10th in plus-minus (+18), tied for third among defensemen in plus-minus (+18)

Alex Kannok Leipert-Tied for third in shorthanded assists (2), tied for second among defensemen in shorthanded assists (2)

William Lagesson-Fifth in plus-minus (+23), second among defensemen in plus-minus (+23)

John Leonard-Second in goals (26), tied for 11th in points (40), tied for second in shorthanded goals (3), tied for 11th in shots (112), first in game-winners (8)

Ian Mitchell-Tied for 10th among defensemen in plus-minus (+16)

Eduards Tralmaks-Ninth in plus-minus (+21)

Antti Tuomisto-Tied for 10th in plus-minus (+18), tied for 12th among defensemen in goals (6), tied for third among defensemen in plus-minus (+18)

William Wallinder-Tied for 13th among defensemen in plus-minus (+15)

Check out the Grand Rapids Griffins Statistics

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Images from this story

Grand Rapids Griffins vs. the Charlotte Checkers
Grand Rapids Griffins vs. the Charlotte Checkers
(Nicolas Carrillo)		   



American Hockey League Stories from February 3, 2026


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