AHL Grand Rapids Griffins

Griffins open ninth season Friday versus Cleveland

October 13, 2004 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Grand Rapids Griffins News Release


Let's Get it On: The Griffins will kick off the 2004-05 regular season this Friday, Oct. 15 by hosting the Cleveland Barons at 7:30 p.m. at Van Andel Arena. The first 5,000 fans through the gates for the Opening Night Celebration presented by Foremost Insurance will receive a pair of Foremost CheerStix, and everyone will get a Griffins magnetic schedule. Fans will enjoy a pre-game laser and pyrotechnics show, and world famous Lou "Simon Says" Goldstein will entertain the crowd during intermission. Grand Rapids, which begins its fourth season in the AHL and its ninth campaign overall, is gunning for its ninth consecutive opening night sellout (10,834). Approximately 500 tickets remain for Friday's contest.

Get Your Tickets: Individual tickets for all 2004-05 home games are on sale through Star Tickets Plus outlets (222-4000 or 800-585-3737), all West Michigan Meijer stores and The Zone, located on the west side of Van Andel Arena. They may also be purchased on-line at griffinshockey.com. Ticket prices are $5, $13 and $15 in the arena's upper bowl, and $17, $20 and $25 in the lower bowl.

At the Helm: Griffins general manager Bob McNamara begins his ninth season with the club, former Michigan State standout Danton Cole becomes the first head coach to return for a third season, and Greg Ireland starts his second campaign as an assistant coach. Last season, the trio led Grand Rapids to a 44-28-8-0 record, good for 96 points and a second place finish in the West Division behind eventual Calder Cup champion Milwaukee.

Leader of the Pack: During his first two seasons as the Griffins' coach, Danton Cole compiled an overall record of 92-50-16-2 (0.631) during the regular season and 10-9 (0.526) during the playoffs. With 160 games coached and 92 wins during the regular season, he is set to surpass the respective franchise records of 164 (Guy Charron, 1998-2000) and 95 (Bruce Cassidy, 2000-02) during the opening weeks of this season. Cole already ranks as the team's all-time playoff leader with 19 games coached and 10 wins (tied with Charron).

Game On, AHL Style: Due in part to the labor impasse, close to 200 former first- and second-round NHL Entry Draft picks are expected to begin the 2004-05 season in the AHL. They will compete under a variety of rules changes: employing a shootout to decide regular season games that are tied after overtime; permission of "tagging up" to negate offside plays; implementation of "no-touch" icing; widening the blue lines and center red line to 24 inches (from 12 inches); moving the goal line back to 11 feet from the end boards (from 13 feet); and a seven-week test, ending Nov. 28, restricting the areas where goaltenders may play the puck. The league's on-ice officials will also have a stricter interpretation of hooking and holding fouls against a puck carrier and of interference in the attacking zone. Additionally, the AHL's standard of supplementary discipline on acts where there is deliberate attempt or deliberate injury of an opponent will include more severe suspensions without pay.

Doin' Time: Darryl Bootland will miss Friday's opener while serving a one-game suspension imposed by the AHL for receiving a match penalty during the preseason game against Milwaukee on Oct. 8.

Detroit Exports: Seventeen Detroit Red Wings-contracted players are on the Griffins' 20-man roster, including forwards Darryl Bootland, Matt Ellis, Eric Himelfarb, Jiri Hudler, Todd Jackson, Tomas Kopecky, Eric Manlow, Nathan Robinson and Peter Vandermeer; defensemen Paul Ballantyne, Danny Groulx, Bryan Helmer, Niklas Kronwall, Brett Lebda and Derek Meech; and goaltenders Joey MacDonald and Drew MacIntyre.

Fresh Faces: Eric Himelfarb (OHL Kingston), Todd Jackson (HE Maine), Brett Lebda (CCHA Notre Dame), Drew MacIntyre (ECHL Toledo) and Derek Meech (WHL Red Deer) are AHL rookies, while veterans Bryan Helmer (NHL Phoenix/AHL Springfield), Eric Manlow (NHL NY Islanders/AHL Bridgeport) and Peter Vandermeer (AHL Philadelphia) were signed by the Red Wings as free agents during the summer.

Signed and Sealed: Three players on the current roster are under contract to the Griffins, including former Michigan Wolverine right wing Blake Sloan, defenseman Travis Richards, and center Kory Karlander (pro tryout).

Welcome Back: Fourteen current Griffins spent time with the team last season: forwards Darryl Bootland, Matt Ellis, Eric Himelfarb, Jiri Hudler, Kory Karlander, Tomas Kopecky, Nathan Robinson and Blake Sloan; defensemen Paul Ballantyne, Danny Groulx, Niklas Kronwall, Brett Lebda and Travis Richards; and goaltender Joey MacDonald.

For Starters: Grand Rapids is 6-2 all-time in season openers, including 3-2 at home. Overall, the team's record in home openers is 5-3, and its mark in road debuts is 6-2 (including five straight wins).

Tune-up Tales: Following a 3-0 scrimmage win over the Cleveland Barons on Oct. 5, the Griffins posted a 0-2 mark during their official preseason schedule, dropping a 2-0 decision at Chicago on Oct. 7 and a 3-1 count at Milwaukee on Oct. 8.

Tell Me What It Takes: Four players and coaches for the Griffins have won major championships in North America at the pro, college or major junior level, including head coach Danton Cole (2002 UHL Colonial Cup – Muskegon, 1995 NHL Stanley Cup - New Jersey, 1986 NCAA - Michigan State), Bryan Helmer (1995 AHL Calder Cup – Albany), Derek Meech (2001 CHL Memorial Cup – Red Deer), and Blake Sloan (1999 Stanley Cup – Dallas, 1996 NCAA – Michigan).

Do You Feel a Draft?: Eleven of the Griffins' 20 players were once selected in the NHL Entry Draft, from Niklas Kronwall (#29 overall by Detroit in 2000) to Darryl Bootland (#252 by Colorado in 2000).

NHL Experience: Eight Griffins have combined to play 523 games in the National Hockey League: Blake Sloan (290), Bryan Helmer (134), Eric Manlow (37), Darryl Bootland (22), Niklas Kronwall (20), Jiri Hudler (12), Nathan Robinson (5) and Travis Richards (3). By way of comparison, the 2003-04 Griffins began the season with nine players who had combined for 2,068 NHL contests.

Veteran Roll Call: Excluding goaltenders, AHL clubs may not dress more than five skaters with more than 260 games of experience in the NHL, AHL, IHL or Europe. The Griffins' designated veterans are Kory Karlander, Eric Manlow, Travis Richards, Blake Sloan and Peter Vandermeer. Bryan Helmer, who has played more than 450 games in the AHL (552), qualifies as an exempt player and does not count against the veteran limit.

One For the Ages: The average age of the Griffins is 25 years, one year younger than the 2003-04 squad. Travis Richards (34 years, six months) leads the way as one of only three players over the age of 30, while Derek Meech (20 years, five months) is the youngest. Nine players have yet to reach their 23rd birthdays, while another four are younger than 24.

International Flavor: The Griffins' roster includes three players who were born overseas in Jiri Hudler (Czech Republic), Tomas Kopecky (Slovakia) and Niklas Kronwall (Sweden). Thirteen Griffins hail from Canada, led by seven Ontario natives, while four Americans fill out the roster, including a pair of Illinoisans (Brett Lebda and Blake Sloan).

Where Are They Now: Ten players from last year's playoff roster now find themselves in other locales, most notably Hugo Boisvert (Duisburg, Germany), Derek King (retired), Marc Lamothe (Yaroslavl, Russia), Kevin Miller (unsigned free agent), Jeff Nelson (UHL Muskegon) and Michel Picard (unsigned free agent).

This Week's Scouting Report

Fri., Oct. 15 vs. Cleveland Barons – Van Andel Arena – 7:30 p.m.

TV: None. Radio: WOOD 1300 AM at 6:50 p.m. Season Series: First of eight meetings overall, first of four in Grand Rapids. All-Time Series: 8-6-0-0 Overall, 5-2-0-0 Home. 2003-04 Series: 2-2-0-0 Overall, 2-0-0-0 Home. NHL Affiliation: San Jose Sharks. Head Coach: Roy Sommer (4th season). Spy Glass: Christian Ehrhoff and Marcel Goc skated for Germany at the 2004 World Cup...Ehrhoff appeared in 41 games for San Jose last season, contributing 12 points (1-11—12)...Defensemen Garrett Stafford and Mark Carkner are both suspended by the AHL...The Barons lost their top three scorers from last season...Nolan Schaefer led Cleveland in 2003-04 with 14 wins, a 2.34 GAA and a 0.925 save percentage.

Sat., Oct. 16 at Chicago Wolves – Allstate Arena – 8 p.m.

TV: None locally. Radio: WOOD 1300 AM at 7:40 p.m. Season Series: First of 10 meetings overall, first of five in Rosemont. All-Time Series: 31-18-4-1 Overall, 15-12-0-1 Road. 2003-04 Series: 6-4-0-0 Overall, 2-3-0-0 Road. NHL Affiliation: Atlanta Thrashers. Head Coach: John Anderson (8th season). Wolf Tracks: The Griffins get their first shot at redemption after being swept by the Wolves in the 2004 West Division semifinals...AHL All-Star Kari Lehtonen, who would otherwise be competing for the starting job in Atlanta, is back in goal for Chicago...Former Houston Aero Travis Roche strengthens an already solid blueline...Steve Maltais returns for his eleventh season in burgundy and gold.

This Week's Games – Start of 2004-05 Regular Season

Fri., Oct. 15 Cleveland Barons at GRIFFINS 7:30 p.m. WOOD 1300 AM

Sat., Oct. 16 GRIFFINS at Chicago Wolves 8 p.m. WOOD 1300 AM

Check out the Grand Rapids Griffins Statistics



American Hockey League Stories from October 13, 2004


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