FIVE MORE JOIN THE FOLD

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Detroit Red Wings on Sunday assigned four more forwards to the Grand Rapids Griffins, including Justin Abdelkader, Cory Emmerton, Jan Mursak and Mattias Ritola. In addition, Grand Rapids announced that it has received NHL veteran forward Landon Wilson on loan from the Dallas Stars, swelling the Griffins' preseason roster to 20 with several Red Wings cuts still looming in the coming days.

The Griffins will hold their first practice in the Grand Rapids area under the tutelage of new head coach Curt Fraser this Tuesday, Oct. 7 at 11 a.m. at Griff's IceHouse, when they’ll ramp up preparations for the season opener in Cleveland this Saturday, Oct. 11 against the Lake Erie Monsters.

After playing their first three games on the road, the Griffins will make their 2008-09 Van Andel Arena debut on Saturday, Oct. 25 against the Hamilton Bulldogs at 7 p.m. Single-game tickets for all 40 home games are now on sale at all Star Tickets outlets, including the Zone and Meijer stores, or online, while group, full-season and mini-plan ticket packages are available by calling the Griffins at (616) 774-4585.