Griffins Game #65 * Road Game #31 * AHL Game #988

Season Series: 5-5-1-0 Home Series: 3-2-1-0 Road Series: 2-3-0-0
All-Time Series: 107-73-7-8-8 All-Time Home Series: 57-35-2-3-3 All-Time Road Series: 50-38-5-5-5

Griffins at Admirals
Twelfth of 12 meetings overall, sixth of six at Panther Arena…Grand Rapids is 22-13-2-1 in the last five seasons against Milwaukee...Grand Rapids is 10-11-1-0 in the last 22 overall against the Admirals…After beginning the season series 5-1-1-0, Grand Rapids has dropped the past four contests against the Admirals, having been outscored 17-4...Milwaukee has shut out the Griffins in two of the past three meetings...Dating back to the 2015-16 season, the Griffins are 15-11-0-0 against Milwaukee at Panther Arena with a plus-five scoring margin (87-82)…The Admirals come into the contest with a 4-4--0-2 record in their past 10 contests and possess a 16-10-3-1 ledger at home this year...The Griffins are 13-14-2-1 on foreign ice this season...Six of the 11 match ups this season have been decided by three or more goals, with an average of 6.27 goals scored in each contest...Grand Rapids has faced Milwaukee more than any other opponent in the regular season – 204th meeting tonight – and the Griffins’ 107 victories against the Admirals are the most against any foe…Milwaukee is tied for second in the league with a power play conversion rate of 23.7% while the Griffins come in at 28th at 15.0%. The Admirals’ penalty kill is tied for 21st in the AHL at 79.5%, and Grand Rapids ranks 28th at 75.6%...Taro Hirose (4-6—10) and Riley Barber (6-3—9) lead the Griffins against Milwaukee...Head coach Ben Simon skated in 18 games with the Admirals during the 2003-04 campaign and finished with four points (1-3—4).

Last Time Out
Texas’ Ben Gleason’s two-goal night helped lift the Stars over the Griffins 3-2 on Saturday at Van Andel Arena. After dropping the eighth and final meeting, Grand Rapids ended the season series 3-4-1-0 against Texas. Turner Elson notched his team-leading 19^th goal of the campaign while Riley Barber recorded his fifth tally in the last six contests. Barber also extended his point streak to six games (5-2—7). Six of the eight games played between Texas and Grand Rapids this season were decided by one goal. Since being reassigned to Grand Rapids on March 2, Barber has notched 15 points (7-8—15) in as many games. Dominik Shine saw his career-high seven-game point streak (7-3—10) come to an end. During a first-intermission ceremony, the Griffins raised Jeff Hoggan’s #10 to the rafters. Hoggan became just the third player in franchise history to have his jersey retired, joining #24 of Travis Richards and #7 of Michel Picard.

Roster Shake Up
- March 29, 2022—G Victor Brattstrom recalled by Detroit
- March 30, 2022—F Hayden Verbeek recalled by Grand Rapids; F Trenton Bliss and F Drew Worrad signed by Grand Rapids
- March 31, 2022—F Alexis D’Aoust released from PTO; G Victor Brattstrom reassigned by Detroit
- April 2, 2022—F Kyle Criscuolo recalled by Detroit

Rollercoaster Ride
After beginning the season series with a 5-1-1-0 record, the Griffins have dropped the past four games against Milwaukee. In fact, Grand Rapids has been shut out in two of the last three outings with the Admirals and has been outscored 17-4 over the last four clashes. Before this four-game skid, the Griffins were 8-1-1-0 (0.850) against the Admirals in the prior 10 contests with a plus-12 scoring margin (38-26). Milwaukee is Grand Rapids’ most frequent opponent with the 204th all-time meeting coming on Sunday. The Griffins are 107-73-7-8-8 (0.584) all-time against the Admirals.

This Date in Griffins History
2006: Two Griffins receive league honors as the AHL names Jimmy Howard the Goaltender of the Month and Donald MacLean is awarded the Milestone of the Month for March. Howard posted a perfect 11-0 record with a 1.80 goals against average and a 0.936 save percentage, while MacLean was recognized for reaching the 50-goal plateau.

Traffic Jam
The Griffins concluded their season-high five-game road trip last week with a 1-3-1-0 record. It was not a kind trip for Grand Rapids, as it was outscored 25-13. However, after beginning the trip 0-3, the Griffins secured three out of four points in the final two outings. Grand Rapids went on a four-game trip earlier in the season and finished with a 2-2 mark. The Griffins are 13-14-2-1 this season away from West Michigan while they are 14-15-4-1 at home. Grand Rapids will play eight of its remaining 12 games on foreign ice.

Not the Same March
The Griffins have had a remarkable stretch of success during the month of March throughout their 26 seasons. Grand Rapids earned a winning record in March for 13 straight years, in large part by going 0.500 or better on the road during each of those months and despite playing 62% of its games on the road. However, that streak ended this season, as the Griffins finished 5-7-1-0 this season in March. All time, the Griffins have only had a losing March record four times in 26 years. The last time Grand Rapids suffered a losing record in March was back in 2008. Things that were also happening in March of 2008: Jimmy Howard was playing his third of four full seasons in Grand Rapids; Ben Simon was an alternate captain for the Springfield Falcons, 2.5 years from starting his coaching career; Donovan Sebrango was six years old; President George W. Bush was serving his final year in the White House; and the Red Wings were three months from winning their most recent Stanley Cup.

Shine Bright
Dominik Shine recorded a career-high seven-game point streak (7-3—10) from March 16-27 and has tallied a goal in six of his last eight outings. Before this run, the Detroit, native registered just one tally and four assists in his previous 28 games. Shine scored in four straight games from March 22-27, which is a new career-high goal streak. The 28-year-old has set career-best numbers in goals (13), assists (14), points (27), penalty minutes (121) and shots (99) this campaign with 12 games remaining.

Welcome to the Barber Shop
Riley Barber has been on a tear as of late, with points in six straight games (5-2—7). Since being reassigned by Detroit on March 2, Barber has notched 15 points (7-8—15) in as many games, including four multi-point outings. The Pittsburgh, Pa., native ranks fourth on the roster with 34 points (15-19—34) in 38 games. Last season, Barber paced the Griffins with 34 points (20-14—34) in 32 contests and finished second in the league with 20 goals. Through 70 games with the Griffins, the 28-year-old veteran has 68 points (35-33—68) and 40 penalty minutes.

Race to the Top
Jonatan Berggren has cracked the Griffins’ top-10 rookie single-season scoring list, as he currently places eighth with 45 points (15-30—45) in 57 games. Berggren has logged two points in three of his last six games, with one goal and six helpers during the run. The Uppsala, Sweden, native is tied for sixth among rookies with his 45 points, while his 30 assists are tied for fourth. Berggren is tied for third among rookies with five game-winning goals. Berggren is on pace for 53 points, which would place fourth in Griffins’ rookie single-season scoring history.

Rarified Air
Brian Lashoff’s 568 games played for the Griffins ranks first among active AHL players who have spent their entire AHL career with the same club and fifth in league history among one-team players. Of the players ahead of him on that list, the most recent – and, coincidentally, the record-holder – last played during the 1970-71 season (Bill Needham of the Cleveland Barons, 981 games played). Lashoff overtook Pete Backor (Pittsburgh Hornets 1945-54) for the No. 5 spot on Jan. 14 against Manitoba and is now two games behind No. 4 Paul Larivee (Providence Reds 1952-62). Lashoff is still 87 games away from breaking the Griffins’ all-time games played record, held by Travis Richards with 655 games (1995-2006).

AHL Leaderboard Tracker
Jonatan Berggren—45 points (15-30—45) are tied for sixth among first-year players, 30 assists are tied for fourth among rookies, five game-winning goals are tied for third among rookies
Jared McIsaac—23 points (5-18—23) are tied for sixth among rookie defensemen
Ryan Murphy—11 goals rank third among defensemen
Calvin Pickard—2.58 goals against average is tied for 12th, 0.918 save percentage is tied for ninth, 21 wins place fifth, 2534:30 minutes played ranks third
Dominik Shine—121 penalty minutes are tied for fourth

Milestones
Riley Barber appeared in his 350th game in the AHL on March 26 at Bakersfield. Jon Martin skated in his 250th AHL game on March 25 at Bakersfield. Other upcoming milestones include:
Kyle Criscuolo—One game from 300 in the AHL
Jan Drozg—Three goals from 50 as a pro, two games from 150 as a pro
Turner Elson—Two goals from 100 as a pro
Tyler Spezia—Four goals from 50 as a pro

Photo by Milwaukee Admirals