AHL Grand Rapids Griffins

Griffins Prepare for Post-Christmas Gauntlet

December 24, 2002 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Grand Rapids Griffins News Release


Conference's Top Dog Faces Fight: The Griffins, whose four consecutive wins have allowed them to claim the top record in the AHL's Western Conference, face a less-than-merry challenge in the week following Christmas. After playing five times in 18 days from Dec. 8-25, Grand Rapids will face off five times in a span of only six days this Thursday through New Year's Eve. Four of those games will be contested at Van Andel Arena, where the Griffins have posted an 8-2-2-0 mark in their last 12 outings. The Griffins rose to the challenge the last time they played five times in six days, finishing with a perfect 5-0 record from Dec. 26-31, 2000.

Holiday Festivities: The Griffins will celebrate Boxing Day when they host Cincinnati this Thursday at 7:00 p.m. Fans are asked to bring boxed food items that will be donated to local charities and food pantries. A mysterious box will be displayed on a concourse table, and hints pertaining to its contents will be provided throughout the game. The first fan to successfully guess "what's in the box" will take it home. Finally, fans will don oversized boxing gloves and slug it out on-ice during the first intermission. On Saturday against Milwaukee (7:30 p.m.), the first 5,000 fans will receive mini foam hockey sticks, courtesy of WGRD. The Fox 17 Family Four Pack Night offers fans four tickets, four hot dogs, four soft drinks and two Griffins hats for just $44. Six Griffins players will sign autographs after the game, and fans who bring their own skates can hit the ice for 45 minutes in the Stouffer's Post-game Family Fun Skate. Finally, when the Griffins host Utah in the second game of a two-night home stand on New Year's Eve (7:00 p.m.), the first 5,000 fans will receive noisemakers, and there will be celebrations throughout the game as the clock strikes midnight in locations around the world. Another Stouffer's Family Fun Skate will follow the game.

Central Issues: Grand Rapids occupies first place in the Central Division standings at 17-7-4-2 (40 pts.), seven points ahead of Rochester and 11 atop Cincinnati. The Griffins' 0.667 winning percentage leads the Western Conference and places third behind only Hamilton and Manchester in the entire league.

Like Father, Like Son: The Griffins and parent Detroit Red Wings form the only AHL/NHL affiliation in which each member currently resides atop its division. Boston and Providence are each one point out of their division leads, while the Dallas/Utah and Minnesota/Houston pairings contain both a first and a second-place team.

The King Returns: Griffins player/assistant coach Derek King returned to the lineup last Friday against San Antonio, after missing 11 consecutive games due to a hamstring injury suffered on Nov. 22 versus the Rampage.

Exclusive Club: Defenseman Dave Van Drunen played in his 150th regular season game as a Griffin on Saturday, reaching a milestone attained by only eight other players in the franchise's seven seasons. This coming Saturday, Derek King (147 games) is set to become the tenth member of the group that includes Travis Richards (481), Michel Picard (239) and current coaches Danton Cole (190) and Todd Nelson (236).

Top Guns: Michel Picard, who has points in eight of his last nine games (5-3-8), recorded his 150th assist in a Griffins uniform on Friday night against San Antonio (Travis Richards stands second on the team's all-time list with 133 helpers). Picard then scored his 13th goal of the season on Saturday to give the Griffins a 1-0 win at Cleveland...Mark Mowers scored a pair of goals in Friday's 3-1 win over San Antonio, marking his third straight two-point game and giving him 13 goals on the season as well. He leads the Griffins with 11 multi-point efforts this season, including four in the last six games.

Road Warriors: With Saturday's 1-0 win at Cleveland, the Griffins improved their sparkling road record to 9-2-1-2. Dating back to last season, Grand Rapids is 12-2-1-2 (0.794) in its last 17 games away from Van Andel Arena.

Triumphant Return: Marc Lamothe returned to the Griffins' lineup last Friday after serving as the understudy to Curtis Joseph during four Red Wings games from Dec. 6-14. He made 31 stops against San Antonio that night in a 3-1 win, then denied all 30 shots he faced on Saturday for a 1-0 win at Cleveland. Lamothe, who earned a nomination for AHL Player of the Week for his performance (2-0-0, 0.50 GAA, 0.984% and one shutout), now ranks among the league's leaders with 12 wins (T1st), a 2.01 GAA (2nd), a 0.929 save percentage (2nd) and three shutouts (T2nd).

Patty Makes Motown Debut: Defenseman Patrick Boileau, recalled by Detroit on Dec. 14 due to an injury suffered by Mathieu Dandenault, has appeared in each of the Red Wings' last two games, posting a minus-one rating and two shots while averaging 9:23 of ice time. The eighth-year pro appeared in seven games with Washington from 1996-02, recording one assist and four penalty minutes.

Crime Doesn't Pay: With the score tied at 2-2 late in the second period of last Tuesday's game at Manitoba, the Griffins were awarded just the fourth penalty shot in their seven-year history. Bryan Adams converted the attempt against former Griffin Tyler Moss at 19:12, accounting for the game-winner in the eventual 4-2 final. Grand Rapids has capitalized on three of its opportunities all-time, with Toni Dahlman beating Utah's Wade Flaherty on Feb. 24, 2002, and Michel Picard besting Orlando's David Littman on Dec. 5, 1997.

Close Calls: Grand Rapids, which began the season by winning each of its first six games that was decided by a single goal, improved to 9-2-0-2 in tight affairs thanks to its 1-0 victory at Cleveland on Saturday.

Fast Starts: The Griffins have more than doubled their opponents' scoring output during the first period this season, owning a 29-13 margin. No other AHL team can claim that distinction.

Clamping Down: After leading the AHL in goals allowed (2.23) last season, the Griffins currently rank second in the league by surrendering just 2.27 goals per game. They've allowed only five goals during their current four-game winning streak.

League Leaders: Mark Mowers is tied for fourth in the AHL with 33 points (13-20-33), while Michel Picard is tied for tenth with 30 points (13-17-30)...Dave Van Drunen is tied for fourth overall and tied for second among defensemen with a plus-17 rating.

By the Numbers: Where the Griffins rank among the AHL's 28 teams in various statistical categories:
* Power Play: 24-for-187, 12.8% (24th)
* Penalty Killing: 144-for-172, 83.7% (T14th)
* Penalty Minutes: 17.9 avg. (25th)
* Goals For: 2.73 avg. (20th)
* Goals Against: 2.27 avg. (2nd)
* Shots For: 28.80 avg. (21st)
* Shots Against: 28.13 avg. (6th)
* Attendance: 6,637 avg. (6th)

Griffins Alumni Report: Rookie NHL head coach Bruce Cassidy's Washington Capitals are tied for third in the Southeast Division with an 15-16-3-0 record...Kip Miller is sixth on the Caps with 19 points (4-15-19), Ivan Ciernik has totaled seven points (2-6-8) in 13 appearances, and Jason Doig has two assists in seven games...Florida's Jani Hurme (3-3-5) has a 2.52 GAA and a 0.924 save percentage...Ottawa's Patrick Lalime (15-8-4) owns a 2.10 GAA and a 0.918 save percentage, while Martin Prusek (5-0-0) shows a 2.65 GAA and a 0.914%...Todd White is tied for third on the Sens with 26 points (10-16-26), Petr Schastlivy is 11th with 11 points (7-4-11), and Karel Rachunek has six assists in 12 games since rejoining the team.

Red Wings Update: The Griffins are in the first season of a five-year affiliation with the Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings. The Red Wings stand atop the NHL's Central Division with a 18-8-6-1 record, following their 3-2 win over the New York Rangers on Saturday. They'll visit Columbus tonight at 7:00 p.m.

This Week's Scouting Report

Thu., Dec. 26 vs. Cincinnati Mighty Ducks - Van Andel Arena - 7:00 p.m.

Fri., Dec. 27 at Cincinnati Mighty Ducks - Cincinnati Gardens - 7:35 p.m.

TV: None. Radio: WOOD 1300 AM/WHTC 1450 AM at 6:40 p.m. (Thu.) and 7:10 p.m. (Fri.). Season Series: 1-0-1-0 Overall, 0-0-1-0 Home, 1-0-0-0 Road. Third and fourth of eight meetings overall, second of four in Grand Rapids, second of four in Cincinnati. All-Time Series: 4-2-2-0 Overall, 2-0-2-0 Home, 2-2-0-0 Road. Cincinnati Affiliation: Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. Head Coach: Brad Shaw (1st season). Quack Me Up: Each of the first two meetings between these teams this season went to overtime...The Griffins have never lost to the Ducks at Van Andel Arena (2-0-2-0)...Cincinnati has won just two of its last 11 games (2-6-2-1)...Rookie Tony Martensson ranks eighth among AHL rookies and leads all Cincy scorers with 24 points (8-16-24)...Jean-Francois Damphousse (3.00) and Ilja Bryzgalov (3.08) share goaltending duties.

Sat., Dec. 28 vs. Milwaukee Admirals - Van Andel Arena - 7:30 p.m.

TV: None. Radio: WOOD 1300 AM/WHTC 1450 AM at 7:10 p.m. Season Series: 1-0-1-0 Overall, 1-0-1-0 Home. Third of six meetings overall, third and final in Grand Rapids. All-Time Series: AHL: 7-2-5-0 Overall, 5-1-2-0 Home. Total: 25-12-9-0 Overall, 16-4-2-0 Home. Milwaukee Affiliation: Nashville Predators. Head Coach: Peter Horachek (1st season). Smooth Sailing: The Griffins have won 16 of 22 games all-time against Milwaukee at home...The Ads posted an 8-1-4-1 record through their first 14 games. Beginning with their 3-2 loss at Grand Rapids on Nov. 16, they are just 3-9-2-2 in their last 16 outings...Milwaukee has lost two straight and four of its last five on the road...Rookie Darren Haydar ranks seventh in league scoring with 32 points (12-20-32)...Chris Madden owns a 2.93 GAA.

Mon., Dec. 30 vs. Utah Grizzlies - Van Andel Arena - 7:00 p.m.

Tue., Dec. 31 vs. Utah Grizzlies - Van Andel Arena - 7:00 p.m.

TV: None. Radio: WOOD 1300 AM (both nights)/WHTC 1450 AM (Tue. only) at 6:40 p.m. Season Series: 2-1-0-0 Overall, 1-1-0-0 Home. Fourth and fifth of 10 meetings overall, third and fourth of five in Grand Rapids. All-Time Series: AHL: 6-8-1-0 Overall, 3-5-0-0 Home. Total: 14-13-2-0 Overall, 10-5-0-0 Home. Utah Affiliation: Dallas Stars. Head Coach: Don Hay (2nd season). Grin and Bear It: Since going winless in seven Van Andel Arena visits from 1996-01, the Grizzlies have won five of eight games in Grand Rapids over the last two seasons...All three meetings between these teams this season have been decided by a single goal in regulation...The Grizzlies are winless in their last three overall (0-1-2-0) and their last four on the road (0-2-2-0)...John Erskine leads the league with 167 PIM...Jon Sim (9-18-27) and Corey Hirsch (2.86 GAA) lead Utah's attack.

Check out the Grand Rapids Griffins Statistics



American Hockey League Stories from December 24, 2002


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