Griffins Split Weekend Series with 3-2 Loss Against Moose

November 26, 2023 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Grand Rapids Griffins News Release

Manitoba Moose's Henri Nikkanen battles Grand Rapids Griffins' Austin Czarnik
(Grand Rapids Griffins, Credit: Mark Newman)

Taro Hirose, Austin Czarnik and Jonatan Berggren led the way for the Griffins in the loss. Hirose's assist on Czarnik's goal puts him at 150 helpers and 200 points as a pro. It also extended his assist streak to four games, the longest by any Griffin this season. Czarnik's goal signified the longest point streak by a Griffin in the campaign so far (3-2-5 in 4 GP) while Berggren's tally grants him the longest goal streak by a Griffin this season (3-2-5 in 3 GP).

Over midway through the opening frame, Czarnik slipped the puck behind Oskari Salminen from the goal line to put the Griffins on the board first at 11:52. In the twilight of the first period, Chaz Lucius backhanded a rebound from the bottom of the left circle that sailed over a diving Michael Hutchinson to tie the game at 1-1 with 3:32 remaining in the period.

Entering the second frame, the Griffins held a 5-on-3 man-advantage. On the ensuing powerplay, Czarnik nearly scored two separate times, but both shots ricocheted off the post. The Moose found themselves a go-ahead power-play goal when a pass hit Nikita Chibrikov's stick and was immediately rocketed into the net from the crease at 10:37. Three minutes after Manitoba's last goal, Wyatt Bongiovanni sniped the puck into the top-left corner of the net from the right face-off dot for a 3-1 Moose lead with 6:23 left in the middle stanza.

Early in the third period, Berggren fired a laser from the right circle, which beat Salminen up high to cut the Griffins' deficit to one at 3:22. With Hutchinson pulled with 1:25 remaining, the Griffins sent several shots to the net, including one shot by Czarnik that hit the post for the third time in the contest. Manitoba held off the Griffins' attack to defeat them 3-2.

Notes:

- Brogan Rafferty's point streak (0-3-3) ended at three games.

- Czarnik (3-2-5) and Hirose (2-5-7) extended their point streaks to four games while Simon Edvinsson (0-5--5) extended his to three games.

- Tim Gettinger skated in his 250th AHL game.

- Entering the weekend, Manitoba held the number one ranked powerplay in the AHL. The Griffins were near perfect on the penalty kill, going 6-for-7 in the weekend series.

Box Score

Manitoba 1 2 0 - 3

Grand Rapids 1 0 1 - 2

1st Period-1, Grand Rapids, Czarnik 3 (Berggren, Hirose), 11:52. 2, Manitoba, Lucius 2 (Bongiovanni, Capobianco), 16:28. Penalties-Ford Mb (hooking), 1:31; Edvinsson Gr (tripping), 2:00; Lombardi Gr (tripping), 4:35; Capobianco Mb (cross-checking), 13:22; Jones Mb (unsportsmanlike conduct, tripping), 18:32; Viel Mb (hooking), 19:49.

2nd Period-3, Manitoba, Chibrikov 8 (Lambert, Capobianco), 10:37 (PP). 4, Manitoba, Bongiovanni 4 (Lucius, Capobianco), 13:37. Penalties-Hanas Gr (holding the stick), 10:21; served by Lambert Mb (too many men - bench minor), 19:41.

3rd Period-5, Grand Rapids, Berggren 4 (Hirose, Edvinsson), 3:22. Penalties-Mazur Gr (roughing), 11:49; Sautner Mb (roughing), 19:47; Gettinger Gr (roughing), 19:47.

Shots on Goal-Manitoba 6-13-2-21. Grand Rapids 13-7-11-31.

Power Play Opportunities-Manitoba 1 / 4; Grand Rapids 0 / 6.

Goalies-Manitoba, Salminen 2-3-0 (31 shots-29 saves). Grand Rapids, Hutchinson 3-5-0 (21 shots-18 saves).

A-5,726

Three Stars

1. MB Bongiovanni (goal, assist); 2. GR Berggren (goal, assist); 3. MB Kyle Capobianco (three assists)

Record / Next Game

Grand Rapids: 5-8-1-1 (12 pts.) / Wed., Nov. 29 vs. Milwaukee 7 p.m.

Manitoba: 7-8-0-0 (14 pts.) / Fri., Dec. 1 vs. Chicago 7 p.m. CST

Manitoba Moose's Henri Nikkanen battles Grand Rapids Griffins' Austin Czarnik (Mark Newman)

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