AHL Cleveland Monsters

Monsters Fall in Grand Rapids, 4-1

December 5, 2015 - American Hockey League (AHL)
Cleveland Monsters News Release


GRAND RAPIDS, MI - In the fourth of 12 meetings between the two teams this season, Cleveland's Lake Erie Monsters outshot the Grand Rapids Griffins 42-17 on Saturday at Van Andel Arena, but were defeated by a final score of 4-1. With the loss, the Monsters fell to 13-6-1-2 overall this season and with a .659 points percentage, currently sit alone in third place in the AHL's Central Division standings.

The Griffins claimed a 1-0 lead early in the first period on Saturday as Andreas Athanasiou tapped home his sixth goal of the season at 5:03 on a breakaway pass from Anthony Mantha. In the middle frame, Grand Rapids extended their lead to 2-0 when Eric Tangradi redirected an Xavier Ouellet point shot for his eighth tally of the season at 1:14.

The Monsters cut the Griffins' lead to 2-1 when Dean Kukan wired home his third marker of the year at 8:16, an unassisted even-strength tally that beat Grand Rapids net-minder Tom McCollum high to the stick side. Tangradi added a breakaway score at 14:58 and an empty-net goal at 19:44 to notch a hat trick and deliver the Griffins a 4-1 victory and the team's eighth consecutive win.

McCollum earned the victory in net for Grand Rapids thanks to a 41-save performance while Lake Erie's Joonas Korpisalo made 13 saves in defeat for the Monsters.

Next up for the Monsters, it's a Friday clash vs. the Chicago Wolves with full coverage underway from The Q at 7:00 pm on SportsTime Ohio and ESPN 850 WKNR.

Tickets for every Monsters home game start at just $10 and are on sale now! Full and partial season ticket memberships are also available and provide you with the best seat locations, custom member benefits and the lowest ticket prices. Group outing and birthday bash packages for 10 or more people are also on sale now. All tickets can be purchased by visiting LakeErieMonsters.com, calling (216) 420-0000, visiting The Q Box Office or any Northern Ohio Discount Drug Mart. Be sure to follow the Monsters on Twitter @monstershockey, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/lakeeriemonsters, and on Instagram at www.instagram.com/monstershockey.

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