Griffins in Jolly Mood after 3-1 Win
December 20, 2002 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Grand Rapids Griffins News Release
Grand Rapids, Mich. - On an evening highlighted by Michel Picard's record 150th assist in a Grand Rapids uniform, the Griffins earned their third straight victory in 3-1 fashion over the San Antonio Rampage on Friday night at Van Andel Arena.
Mark Mowers notched a pair of goals and Marc Lamothe made 31 saves in his return from the Detroit Red Wings, enabling Grand Rapids (16-7-4-2) to increase its lead atop the Central Division to nine points over both Rochester and Cincinnati.
The Griffins will close out their pre-Christmas schedule with a rare 12:35 p.m. start at Gund Arena versus the Cleveland Barons on Saturday.
Ryan Barnes was the undisputed star of a feisty first period. Following a rousing fight with San Antonio's Joey Tetarenko just three and a half minutes into the game, Barnes later made a pretty play to set-up the only goal of the frame. He dropped a pass to Mowers, who walked in on Chris Mason, deked and slid the puck between the netminder's pads at 12:57. Picard also earned his milestone assist on the play.
The Rampage pulled even during a power play at 3:43 of the second period. Jim Campbell, brother of Grand Rapids defenseman Ed, sent a pass from the left point to former Griffin Jamie Rivers, whose one-timer from just inside the blueline beat Lamothe top shelf.
Mowers scored what proved to be the game-winner at 8:12 of the third, one-timing a shot from the right circle. Tomas Kopecky notched an insurance tally during a power play with 7:38 remaining, slamming home a pass from Stacy Roest on the doorstep.
The Griffins improved to 8-2-2-0 in their last 12 home games, while San Antonio fell to 11-12-5-2 overall and 2-10-3-2 away from the SBC Center. Mason, who was a regular visitor to Van Andel Arena as a member of the Milwaukee Admirals from 1998-2002, saw his personal record in Grand Rapids drop to 1-10-1 despite 29 saves.
Grand Rapids received an early Christmas present in the return of Derek King, who had missed the previous 11 games with a hamstring injury suffered against San Antonio on Nov. 22.
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