Dec. 16, 2022

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - The Grand Rapids Griffins dropped their second-consecutive game to the Hartford Wolf Pack in a 6-4 contest on Friday at Van Andel Arena.

Kyle Criscuolo starred for the Griffins, recording a goal and an assist on Friday. Criscuolo has three goals in his last five contests and seven total points in his last 10 outings (3-4–7). Taro Hirose (1-1–2), Chase Pearson (0-2–2) and Joel L’Esperance (0-2–2) also all ended the night with two points in the loss.

Ryan Carpenter notched his first AHL tally since April 11, 2017 at 7:07 in the opening period, firing a shot from the crease past the left side of Jussi Olkinuora to give the early lead to the Wolf Pack. After receiving Tyler Spezia’s pass, Criscuolo dropped the puck off to Dominik Shine trailing behind him and the Detroit, Mich., native rifled the puck from the slot behind Louis Domingue to knot it up at 1-1 with 2:16 left in the stanza.

Both teams traded blows in the middle frame, beginning with Alex Chiasson at 2:57. After registering a shot on goal seconds before, Pearson and Hirose found Chiasson again for another opportunity that the Canadian tucked inside the left post to score. Lauri Pajuniemi tied it back up at 6:27, skating around the goal and sending the biscuit behind Olkinuora from the left circle to make it 2-2.

Hartford recaptured the lead at 9:39 with Carpenter notching his second of the night from the goalmouth. Just 44 seconds later, L’Esperance’s shot from the top of the left circle was tipped-in by Criscuolo’s stick to tie it at three apiece heading into the third.

Former Griffin Turner Elson flung a shot into the top-shelf at 6:32 in the final period to take a 4-3 advantage. Gustav Rydahl tacked-on the game winner on a power-play with 59 seconds left, but Hirose brought it back within a tally with seven seconds to go by launching the puck into the top-left of the cage. However, Zac Jones’ empty-net goal right before time expired sealed the deal for the Wolf Pack’s victory in Grand Rapids.

Notes
- Chiasson played in his 700th game as a pro on Friday and lit the lamp in the second frame.
- Spezia also got on the ice for his 150th game as a Griffin during the matchup, nabbing an apple in the fixture.

Box Score
Hartford 1 2 3 - 6
Grand Rapids 1 2 1 - 4

1st Period-1, Hartford, Carpenter 1 (Rueschhoff, Jones), 7:07. 2, Grand Rapids, Shine 5 (Criscuolo, Spezia), 17:44. Penalties-Rydahl Hfd (slashing), 10:48.

2nd Period-3, Grand Rapids, Chiasson 2 (Pearson, Hirose), 2:57. 4, Hartford, Pajuniemi 6 6:27. 5, Hartford, Carpenter 2 (DiGiacinto, Rempe), 9:39. 6, Grand Rapids, Criscuolo 4 (L’Esperance, Edvinsson), 10:23. Penalties-Rueschhoff Hfd (diving/embellishment), 1:05; Edvinsson Gr (interference), 1:05; Cuylle Hfd (roughing), 4:28; Spezia Gr (roughing), 4:28; Bliss Gr (holding), 7:04; Robertson Hfd (interference), 11:12.

3rd Period-7, Hartford, Elson 4 (Carpenter, Rueschhoff), 6:32. 8, Hartford, Rydahl 3 (Robertson), 19:01. 9, Grand Rapids, Hirose 7 (Pearson, L’Esperance), 19:53. 10, Hartford, Jones 1 19:59 (EN). Penalties-Giuttari Hfd (interference), 8:46; Robertson Hfd (tripping), 13:40; Chiasson Gr (slashing), 16:57.

Shots on Goal-Hartford 8-6-10-24. Grand Rapids 12-7-17-36.
Power Play Opportunities-Hartford 0 / 2; Grand Rapids 0 / 4.}
Goalies-Hartford, Domingue 7-5-3 (36 shots-32 saves). Grand Rapids, Olkinuora 5-6-0 (23 shots-18 saves).
A-6,904

Three Stars
1. HFD Carpenter (two goals, assist); 2. GR Criscuolo (goal, assist); 3. HFD Elson (goal).

Record / Next Game
Grand Rapids: 10-13-1-0 (21 pts.) / Sat., Dec. 17 at Chicago 8 p.m. EST
Hartford: 9-10-1-4 (23 pts.) / Sat., Dec. 17 at Rockford 8 p.m. EST

Photo by Nicolas Carrillo/Griffins