
Griffins Rally Falls Short in 5-4 Loss at Milwaukee
November 16, 2008 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Grand Rapids Griffins News Release
MILWAUKEE - A furious second-period rally by the Grand Rapids Griffins fell just short against the Milwaukee Admirals in the Bradley Center on Sunday evening. The Griffins (8-3-2-1) fell behind 4-1 before scoring three goals in 57 seconds in the second period during a 5-4 loss to the Admirals (7-5-0-1).
Darren Haydar picked up his 300th professional assist while Jimmy Howard stopped 20 shots in between the pipes for the Griffins. Mark Dekanich saw 22 shots in net for the Admirals and stopped 18 in just more than 50 minutes of action.
The Admirals jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead on a goal by Triston Grant. Mark Matheson flicked a shot from the left point that Grant tipped in to give Milwaukee the first goal 32 seconds into the game. Antti Pihlstrom made it 2-0 in favor of the Admirals with a power play goal at the 16:25 mark of the first period. On an odd-man rush, Andreas Thuresson slid a pass to Pihlstrom on the left side and his wrist shot snuck under Howard's right arm. Just 2:34 after that goal, Cody Franson ripped a one-timer off a feed from Mike Santorelli to send the Admirals into the first intermission with a 3-0 lead.
The Griffins got on the board when Landon Wilson notched a power play goal 4:57 into the second period. Haydar launched a shot from the left point that caromed off the end-boards and right to Wilson. Wilson tucked the puck just inside the left post for his seventh goal of the season, bringing the Griffins to within two at 3-1.
Franson's second goal of the night re-established the three-goal lead for Milwaukee just 1:31 after Wilson's goal. Immediately following a penalty against the Griffins, the Admirals won a faceoff in the Griffins' zone and Franson's shot from the point beat Howard for a 4-1 Admirals lead.
The flurry of second period goals continued with three Grand Rapids goals in a span of 57 seconds. Garrett Stafford scored the first goal with his left-point shot at the 9:14 mark. Twenty-three seconds later, Ryan Oulahen put away a rebound with a diving backhander to make the score 4-3. Mattias Ritola tied the game 4-4 when he skated in from the left wing and played a backhand shot off the right goalpost with 9:49 remaining in the second.
Hugh Jessiman gave the Admirals a 5-4 lead by scoring the eventual game-winner with 6:29 left in the second. He converted on a backhand shot while on his knees with his back to the net for his second goal of the season.
American Hockey League Stories from November 16, 2008
- Crunch Down Penguins in Wilkes-Barre - Syracuse Crunch
- Admirals Get by Griffins 5-4 - Milwaukee Admirals
- Rivermen Come Up Short in Rockford - Peoria Rivermen
- IceHogs Beat Rivermen 4-1 at Home - Rockford IceHogs
- Wolf Pack Attacks Monsters, Win 5-3 - Connecticut Whale
- Rockford Beats Peoria 4-1 - Peoria Rivermen
- Griffins Rally Falls Short in 5-4 Loss at Milwaukee - Grand Rapids Griffins
- Houston Aeros Fall 3-2 to Bridgeport in First Shootout of the Season - Houston Aeros
- Third Period Come-Back and Four Shooters Going 4-for-4 in Shootout Helps Sound Tigers to Victory - Bridgeport Islanders
- Russell Nets Hat Trick In 5-2 Bulldogs Win - Hamilton Bulldogs
- Monsters Come Up Short Against Hartford - Cleveland Monsters
- Russell Nets Hat Trick in 5-2 Win - Hamilton Bulldogs
- P-Bruins Defeat Admirals 4-3 - Providence Bruins
- Falcons Blanked By Sharks 3-0 - Springfield Falcons
- Sharks Shut the Lights Off on Falcons Offense - Worcester Sharks
- Bounces Go the Other Way as Admirals Fall to Providence - Norfolk Admirals
- Peoria Grabs Pair of Aces - Peoria Rivermen
- Blues Recall Steve Regier from Peoria - Peoria Rivermen
- Worcester Sharks loan goaltender Kyle Jones to Phoenix - Worcester Sharks
- Aeros take on Sound Tigers at Toyota Center today at 4:05 p.m. - Houston Aeros
- B-Sens Add Two From Elmira - Binghamton Senators
- Falcons Host The Sharks On Sunday - Springfield Falcons
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