Monsters Fall Short in 5-2 Loss to Griffins
Published on March 20, 2021 under American Hockey League (AHL)
Cleveland Monsters News Release
CLEVELAND - The Cleveland Monsters fell to the Grand Rapids Griffins 5-2 on Saturday evening at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. With the loss, the Monsters are now 4-4-1-0 and are currently in fourth place in the AHL's Central Division standings.
The Monsters scored first for the eighth time out of nine games played this season after Dillon Simpson notched the lone tally of the opening frame at 11:01 assisted by Nathan Gerbe and Trey Fix-Wolansky. Grand Rapids began the second period with a goal 51 seconds in from Givani Smith, but Wyatt Newpower regained the 2-1 lead for Cleveland with his first professional goal off feeds from Tyler Angle and Kole Sherwood. The Griffins brought a 3-2 lead into the final intermission after Smith scored his second goal of the night at 10:20 and Chase Pearson notched a tally at 15:27 to close out the middle frame. Grand Rapids secured the win after Pearson scored again at 5:23 and Riley Barber added an empty-net goal at 18:33 of the third period bringing the final score to 5-2.
Cleveland's Brad Thiessen made 31 saves in defeat while Grand Rapids' Pat Nagle stopped 24 shots in victory.
The Monsters begin a three-game homestand against the Texas Stars on Thursday, March 25, with a 7:00 p.m. puck drop at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. Follow the games with full coverage on FOX Sports 1350AM 'The Gambler', AHLTV and the Monsters Hockey Network.
Stay up to date on all Monsters news with the Monsters Mobile App presented by University Hospitals available to download at the Apple Store or Google Play Store. Be sure to follow the Monsters on Twitter @monstershockey, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/monstershockey, and on Instagram @monstershockey.
Scoring:
1st 2nd 3rd OT SO Final
CLE 1 1 0 - - 2
GR 0 3 2 - - 5
Shots/Special Teams:
Shots PP PK PIM
CLE 25 0/2 0/0 5 min / 1 inf
GR 33 0/0 2/2 9 min / 3 inf
Goaltenders:
Goaltender Outcome Saves GA Record
CLE Thiessen L 31 4 1-3-1
GR Nagle W 24 2 4-2-0
Cleveland Record: 4-4-1-0, 4th Central Division
Grand Rapids Record: 7-3-2-0, 2nd Central Division
American Hockey League Stories from March 20, 2021
- Smith and Pearson Power 5-2 Win at Cleveland - Grand Rapids Griffins
- Monsters Fall Short in 5-2 Loss to Griffins - Cleveland Monsters
- Reign Outscored by Bakersfield - Ontario Reign
- Barracuda Outdone by Knights, 5-2 - San Jose Barracuda
- Mahura Reassigned to Gulls - San Diego Gulls
- Silver Knights Shine with Fans in the Building, 5-2 - Henderson Silver Knights
- Late Push Falls Short as Heat Drop Matinee against Laval - Stockton Heat
- P-Bruins Continue to Lead Division, Defeat Hartford Wolf Pack, 6-1 - Providence Bruins
- Providence Cruises past Wolf Pack, 6-1 - Hartford Wolf Pack
- Heat Look to Even Series with Rocket Saturday - Stockton Heat
- Game Day Build-Up: Senators vs Marlies March 20th - Belleville Senators
- Game Preview: Condors Host Ontario at 3 p.m. Live on 23ABC - Bakersfield Condors
- Game #15 San Diego at Tucson - Tucson Roadrunners
- Marlies Fall Short against Belleville - Toronto Marlies
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
