AHL Grand Rapids Griffins

Griffins Show 11 Wins In Last 12 Games

Published on November 23, 2009 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Grand Rapids Griffins News Release


Much to be Thankful For: The Griffins have won nine of 10 home games this season and 11 of their last 12 contests overall. Although they are tied with Abbotsford for fourth place in the North Division - just one point behind third-place Manitoba and two behind second-place Hamilton - they've played six fewer games than both the Heat and the Moose and two fewer than the Bulldogs. Grand Rapids' 0.706 winning percentage is actually the second-highest in the division (behind Rochester's 0.853), third-highest in the Western Conference and fourth-highest in the AHL.

It's Raining Cats and Dogs and Teddy Bears: This Friday's game versus Rockford features the Griffins' popular, annual Teddy Bear Toss for 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. Noah's Ark will sell teddy bears on the concourse for just $10, one dollar of which will be donated to Hug-a-Bears. In addition, fans willing to donate their hair to Locks of Love in a ceremony during one of the intermissions are still needed and will be accepted all week leading up to the game. All participants will receive a free hair makeover courtesy of Douglas J Aveda Institute. Call (616) 774-4585 ext. 3047 to participate. Other promotions on Friday include Dollar Beers and Dollar Dogs from 6-8 p.m. (while supplies last), College Night presented by McFadden's, the D-ZONE presented by WGRD 97.9 FM, and a post-game skate on the Van Andel Arena ice.

Fill 'Er Up: The Griffins have tied a franchise record for goals scored in consecutive road games with 14, thanks to Saturday's 6-3 win at Toronto and their 8-6 victory at Lake Erie on Nov. 8. The record was established by the 2005-06 squad (Feb. 3-16, 2006) that captured the AHL's regular season championship.

Nice While it Lasted: Friday's 4-1 win over Texas marked the Griffins' 10th home contest in a span of 11 games (Oct. 23-Nov. 20), a run during which they posted a 10-1 record. Saturday's 6-3 win at Toronto, meanwhile, began a stretch of four-of-five on the road.

AHL Player of the Week Nominee: Left wing Tomas Tatar earned the Griffins' nomination for the Reebok/AHL Player of the Week award on Monday by registering five points (1-4-5) and a plus-three rating in two games last week. After chipping in two assists in Friday's 4-1 win over Texas, including one on Patrick Rissmiller's game-winning power play goal, he posted three points (1-2-3) in Saturday's 6-3 victory at Toronto. The AHL's youngest player now has points in three of the last four games (1-5-6), including the first two multi-point efforts of his career, and Tatar's plus-seven rating is tied for third on the club and stands first among Griffins rookies.

Who's Hot?: Daniel Larsson has set a personal best with seven consecutive wins, posting a 1.84 goals against average, a 0.940 save percentage (203-216) and one shutout during a streak that began Oct. 23...Since going scoreless in his first game with Grand Rapids on Oct. 23, Patrick Rissmiller has registered points in eight of 11 contests (4-6-10), including his first two multi-point games with the Griffins over the weekend...Jakub Kindl's three-assist effort on Saturday tied his career high for points set on Dec. 21, 2008 at Rochester, while Evan McGrath's two goals tied his AHL high achieved three times before...Mattias Ritola has points in five of the last eight contests (3-3-6)...Jeremy Williams owns a three-game point streak (1-4-5) and has points in six of the last seven outings (5-5-10)...Doug Janik had a three-game point streak (1-4-5) snapped on Saturday.

Welcome Back: Defenseman Sebastien Piche rejoined the Griffins today after spending a two-game weekend stint with the ECHL's Toledo Walleye. He contributed a pair of assists and finished with a plus-two rating.

We Go to Extremes: The Griffins rank among the AHL's best in goals scored per game (tied for second at 3.53), overall power play (third at 24.7%), road power play (third at 21.9%) and home power play (fourth at 26.4%), but troll the depths in both overall penalty killing (28th at 75.9%) and road penalty killing (29th at 64.9%).

The Loneliest Number: Grand Rapids is the only AHL club with a perfect record in overtime and the shootout (3-0 combined), and it remains the only team that has neither scored nor surrendered a shorthanded goal.

Late-Bloomers: The Griffins have been outscored by seven goals during the first period (10-17) this season, but they own advantages of nine goals during the second (27-18) and seven goals during the third (20-13).

Milestones: Andy Delmore is one point away from 400 for his pro career...Jeremy Williams, who appeared in his 300th pro game on Saturday, needs one more goal for 100 in the AHL, one more assist for 100 as a pro, three more assists for 100 in the AHL, and four more points for 200 in the AHL.

Scouting Report

Wed., Nov. 25 at Chicago Wolves (10-8-0-1) - Allstate Arena - 8 p.m. TV: Comcast Channel 100 (Chicago) at 8 p.m. Radio: WOOD 1300 AM at 7:35 p.m. Web Casts: Video web cast at AHLLive.com, free audio available through griffinshockey.com. All-Time Series: 45-29-2-3-2 Overall, 22-18-0-1-0 Road. Season Series: 1-0-0-0 Overall, 0-0-0-0 Road. Second of six meetings overall, first of three in Rosemont. NHL Affiliation: Atlanta Thrashers. Head Coach: Don Lever (1st season). Notes: The Wolves are 9-3-0-1 since Don Lever and Ron Wilson assumed the coaching duties, with one of those losses coming in 5-4 fashion at the hands of the Griffins on Nov. 6...Former Griffin Drew MacIntyre (2004-06) owns a 2.36 GAA and a 0.922 save percentage, while Chris Chelios (2008-09) ranks fifth among AHL defensemen with a plus-11 rating...The Wolves rank sixth in the league in penalty killing (88.6%) but 24th in power play (12.0%)...Chicago has scored six shorthanded goals but has yet to allow one...The Wolves have surrendered an AHL-low eight goals in the third period.

Fri., Nov. 27 vs. Rockford IceHogs (9-10-2-1) - Van Andel Arena - 7 p.m. Radio: WOOD 1300 AM at 6:35 p.m. Web Casts: Video web cast at AHLLive.com, free audio available through griffinshockey.com. All-Time Series: 4-2-1-1 Overall, 3-1-0-0 Home. Season Series: First of eight meetings overall, first of four in Grand Rapids. NHL Affiliation: Chicago Blackhawks. Head Coach: Bill Peters (2nd season). Notes: Former Griffin Mark Cullen (2007-08) is tied for 13th in AHL scoring and leads the IceHogs with nine goals, 10 assists, 19 points and four power play goals...Rockford is just 3-7-1-1 on the road this season.

Sat., Nov. 28 at Peoria Rivermen (9-7-1-2) - Carver Arena - 8 p.m. Radio: WOOD 1300 AM at 7:35 p.m. Web Casts: Video web cast at AHLLive.com, free audio available through griffinshockey.com. All-Time Series: 12-11-1-1 Overall, 7-6-0-0 Road. Season Series: 1-0-0-0 Overall, 1-0-0-0 Road. Second of eight meetings overall, second of four in Peoria. NHL Affiliation: St. Louis Blues. Head Coach: Davis Payne (2nd season). Notes: The Griffins kicked off the season with a 3-1 win in Peoria on Oct. 3...The Rivermen are a healthy 7-3-1-0 on home ice...Lars Eller (3-10-13) is tied for ninth in scoring among AHL rookies...Jonas Junland's six goals tie for second among league blueliners...Peoria's power play ranks sixth in the AHL (21.7%).

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American Hockey League Stories from November 23, 2009


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