AHL Grand Rapids Griffins

Griffins Rally for 3-1 Win

Published on May 14, 2003 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Grand Rapids Griffins News Release


Grand Rapids, Mich. - The Grand Rapids Griffins may not have gotten mad after losing Game 1 of the Western Conference finals in overtime, but they did get even.

Derek King scored twice and Rob Collins notched the decisive tally on Tuesday as the Griffins rebounded with a 3-1 victory over the Houston Aeros in Game 2 of their best-of-seven series.

The series now shifts to Houston for a trio of games at the Compaq Center, beginning with Game 3 this Friday. Faceoff is set for 8:30 p.m. EDT.

Following its 3-2 victory on Monday, Houston maintained its momentum tonight by drawing first blood on a fortunate bounce 16:30 into the opening period. Jay Henderson's shot from the high slot flew wide left of the net and took a funny carom off the boards into the right circle. The winger rushed in to grab his own rebound and scored unassisted into a wide open net, giving the Aeros the lead at intermission.

Marc Lamothe, who made seven saves over the first 20 minutes, kept the Griffins within one goal with a stellar performance in the second stanza, turning away each of Houston's 11 shots. On the other end, Grand Rapids finally netted the equalizer on just its eighth shot of the night with 1:05 remaining in the period. Jason Williams won a draw in the left circle back to King, and the Griffins' all-time leading playoff scorer beat Johan Holmqvist through a screen for his third tally of the postseason.

The Griffins gained the upper hand during a power play early in the third period when, during a scramble in front of the Aeros' net, Collins found the puck in the slot and slammed it past Holmqvist at the 3:44 mark.

Grand Rapids, which had been out-gunned 19-8 over the first 40 minutes, turned the tables in the third, enjoying a commanding 14-4 advantage in shots. With an extra attacker on for the Aeros in the final minute, King forced a turnover, collected the puck and scored into the empty net from the right boards with 24 seconds left.

Lamothe made 22 saves on the night to improve to 8-2 on the postseason, as he allowed no more than one goal for the sixth time in 10 games. Holmqvist stopped 19 shots in falling to 8-3.

Discounting empty net goals, all eight of Grand Rapids playoff wins have been decided by a single goal. Tonight's victory was the fifth for the Griffins at home during the postseason, setting a new single-season franchise record.

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American Hockey League Stories from May 14, 2003


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