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AHL Grand Rapids Griffins

Griffins' Plate Full with Three Games in Four Nights

November 22, 2016 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Grand Rapids Griffins News Release


This Week's Games GRIFFINS at Milwaukee Admirals // Wed., Nov. 23 // 8 p.m. // UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 7:35 p.m. Watch: AHLLive.com Season Series: 1-0-0-0 Road, 1-0-0-0 Overall. Second of 12 meetings overall, second of six at UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena All-Time Series: 34-30-5-5-5 Road, 79-54-7-6-7 Overall NHL Affiliation: Nashville Predators Noteworthy: In the first meeting between the teams on Nov. 12 at Milwaukee, Grand Rapids used a trio of goals in the first period to stake an early 3-0 lead. After Milwaukee tied the game in the final minutes of regulation, Joe Hicketts delivered the game-winner in overtime as his first professional goal came 1:53 into the extra session.

Cleveland Monsters at GRIFFINS // Fri., Nov. 25 // 7 p.m. // Van Andel Arena GRIFFINS at Cleveland Monsters // Sat., Nov. 26 // 7 p.m. // Quicken Loans Arena Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 6:35 p.m. both nights Watch: AHLLive.com (both nights) and SportsTime Ohio (Sat.) Season Series: 2-0-0-0 Home, 0-0-0-0 Road, 2-0-0-0 Overall. Third and fourth of 12 meetings overall, third of six at Van Andel Arena, first of six at Quicken Loans Arena All-Time Series: 24-12-1-1 Home, 16-12-2-6 Road, 40-24-3-7 Overall NHL Affiliation: Columbus Blue Jackets Noteworthy: The Griffins have been involved in three shootouts over the last two seasons and all three have come against Cleveland. Grand Rapids' 5-4 shootout victory in the last meeting between the teams (Nov. 9) marked the team's first shootout since Jan. 9, 2016.

Last Week's Results Wed., Nov. 16 Texas Stars 3 at GRIFFINS 6 9-4-0-0 (18 points, 2nd Central Division) Fri., Nov. 18 Texas Stars 4 at GRIFFINS 3 9-5-0-0 (18 points, 2nd)

Opening Faceoff: Despite having their four-game winning streak snapped last Friday against Texas, the Grand Rapids Griffins have won six of their eight games in the month of November and are positioned second in the Central Division, fourth in the Western Conference and ninth in the AHL with a 9-5-0-0 record (0.643). This week, the Griffins travel to division-leading Milwaukee on Wednesday before a back-to-back home-and-home set against defending Calder Cup champion Cleveland commences on Friday at Van Andel Arena.

Last Week's Recap: The Griffins allowed a pair of shorthanded tallies but scored twice on the power play to earn their fourth straight victory, 6-3 over the Texas Stars at Van Andel Arena on Wednesday. Matt Lorito notched three points to lead the Griffins while Matthew Ford, who missed the season's first 12 games due to an injury, scored a goal in his Griffins debut. The last time Grand Rapids surrendered two shorthanded goals in a game came on Nov. 16, 2013 at Chicago. The only other time it happened at Van Andel Arena was on Oct. 27, 2006 versus Toronto, with one of them being scored into an empty net. On Friday, Grand Rapids built a 3-1 lead on the strength of three power play tallies before Texas stormed back with a trio of goals in the game's final 23 minutes to steal a 4-3 win. Friday's loss snapped a four-game winning streak this season, a 10-game winning streak against the Stars that dated back to the 2013-14 season and an eight-game home winning streak against Texas that went back to the 2012-13 season.

This Week's Promotions: Friday against Cleveland will be the 17th annual Teddy Bear Toss, benefiting Hug-A-Bears of Kent County. Fans are encouraged to bring new, store-tagged teddy bears and stuffed animals to throw onto the ice after the Griffins score their first goal. Fans can also enjoy $2 hot dogs and $2 domestic drafts from 6-8 p.m., while supplies last.

Lorito Named Player of the Week: The AHL announced on Monday that Griffins forward Matt Lorito has been selected as the CCM/AHL Player of the Week for the period ending Nov. 20, 2016. Lorito tallied two goals and four assists (2-4 - 6) as the Griffins split a two-game home set against the Texas Stars last week. Lorito had a goal and two assists on Wednesday night as Grand Rapids doubled up Texas, 6-3, then matched that effort in Friday's 4-3 loss to the Stars as he became the first Griffin to record consecutive three-point nights since Martin Frk did so last Dec. 19 and 26. Five (1-4 - 5) of Lorito's six points during the week came on the power play, as the Griffins went 5-for-13 (38.4%) with the man advantage in the two games. The 5-foot-9, 171-pound center has played in all 14 games this season and ranks among the AHL's leaders with 16 points (T5th), 10 power play points (T2nd) and eight power play assists (3rd). Lorito, the first Griffin this season to garner Player of the Week accolades, won the honor for the first time in his career.

Three in Detroit: Tyler Bertuzzi and Anthony Mantha remain on recall with the Detroit Red Wings along with play-by-play announcer Bob Kaser. Bertuzzi became the 157th Griffins alumnus to play in the NHL after he debuted with the Red Wings during Detroit's 3-2 shootout win at Philadelphia on Nov. 8. He has appeared in four games, recording a minus-one rating and two shots while averaging 9:42 of ice time. Mantha scored his first goal of the season last Sunday against Calgary and has two points (1-1 - 2) in four games with Detroit. Kaser is set to call his sixth straight Red Wings game on Wednesday when Detroit visits Buffalo. Kaser is serving as a fill-in for Ken Kal, who remains out with an illness. The "Voice of the Griffins" since 2000 and a 38-year veteran of hockey play-by-play, Kaser called the first NHL game of his distinguished career on Nov. 10 when the Red Wings defeated the Vancouver Canucks 3-1 at Joe Louis Arena.

Specialty Teams: After allowing a Charlotte power play goal in the first period of a loss on Oct. 29, the Griffins have not allowed an opponent power play goal since, going 26-for-26 while on the penalty kill over the last 23 consecutive periods. For perspective, the record for consecutive opponent power plays killed is 45, which was set Nov. 15, 2003-Dec. 10, 2003. On Oct. 30, the Griffins' penalty kill ranked 24th on the circuit with a 76.9% (20-for-26), but fast forward three weeks later, and the Griffins are tied for fifth at 87.5% (42-for-48). On the flip side, Grand Rapids has a power play goal in each of the last five games and is 9-for-27 (33.3%) during that stretch. Overall, the Griffins place fifth in the power play at 24.2% and are one of two teams (Tucson) to rank in the top five in both special teams categories. Grand Rapids is 8-1 this season when notching a power play tally.

Showing Discipline: The Griffins are the least penalized team in the league, averaging just 8.50 penalty minutes per contest. Grand Rapids has committed 52 minors and three majors for 119 total PIM.

Captain's 300: Captain Nathan Paetsch played in his 300th game as a Griffin last Friday against Texas. A 2013 Calder Cup champion with Grand Rapids, Paetsch is the ninth player in franchise history to appear in 300 or more contests and the second this season (Mitch Callahan, Oct. 14 vs. Chicago). Paetsch is the fastest defenseman in franchise history to accumulate 100 points as a Griffin and in his career has totaled 130 points (20-110 - 130), which places second all time among Grand Rapids blueliners behind Travis Richards (56-182 - 238).

Current Streaks: Matt Lorito has 10 points in eight games this month (5-5 - 10)...Colin Campbell has seven points (4-3 - 7) in the last eight games and is tied for fifth on the team in scoring...Ben Street has points in six of the last seven (2-5 - 7)...Mitch Callahan has points in four of the last five (1-4 - 5)...Martin Frk has points in each of the last three (2-2 - 4).

Rare November Home Loss: Last Friday's loss to the Texas Stars was just Grand Rapids' sixth loss at Van Andel Arena in November during the last five seasons, as the Griffins show a remarkable 21-6-0-0 (0.778) record at home since 2012-13. The Griffins took a 3-2 lead into the third period before succumbing 4-3, marking the first loss at home when leading after two periods since Oct. 16, 2015 versus San Antonio (led 2-1 entering third, lost 3-2).

Novembers to Remember: In recent years, November has shown to be a particularly fruitful month for the Griffins as they are a combined 37-13-1-1 (0.731) in the calendar's 11th month since the 2012-13 season.

Just Like Old Times: After missing the first 12 games of the year due to an injury, ninth-year pro Matthew Ford scored a goal in his Griffins debut last Wednesday. Despite being a first-year Griffin, Ford is familiar with head coach Todd Nelson after both spent time in Oklahoma City. Nelson coached the AHL's Barons from 2010-14 before being named interim head coach of the Edmonton Oilers on Dec. 15, 2014, and Ford played for OKC from 2013-15. In 95 games under Nelson's direction, Ford accounted for 63 points (33-30 - 63).

Coreau Climbs Charts: Fourth-year pro Jared Coreau continues to move up the franchise's ladder in a number of all-time goaltending categories. Compare where his numbers currently stack up and how close he is to the next benchmark: Career Stat

Check out the Grand Rapids Griffins Statistics

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American Hockey League Stories from November 22, 2016


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