Griffins Game #34 * Home Game #16 * AHL Game #503

Season Series: 1-2-0-0 Home Series: 0-1-0-0 Road Series: 1-1-0-0
All-Time Series: 85-63-2-6-3 All-Time Home Series: 42-28-2-4-2 All-Time Road Series: 43-35-0-2-1

Griffins vs. Wolves
Fourth of eight meetings overall, second of four at Van Andel Arena…Chicago has won the last two after Grand Rapids took the season opener...Both in the last 10 overall and at home against Chicago, the Griffins are 4-6-0-0…The Wolves have won the last three at Van Andel Arena...Evgeny Svechnikov (2-3—5 in 3 GP) leads Grand Rapids in the series…Both Chicago and Grand Rapids are 4-for-11 (36.4%) on the power play against each other…Grand Rapids has faced Chicago 159 times in the regular season, the second-most of any Griffins opponent (Milwaukee, 190)…Calvin Pickard and Garret Sparks were teammates with the Toronto Marlies in 2017-18 and helped them capture the Calder Cup after winning the regular season’s Harry Holmes Memorial Award, which is awarded to the AHL’s goaltending tandem with the lowest GAA (2.24)...Second-year head coach Ben Simon and Wolves’ third-year bench boss Rocky Thompson are both members of Todd Nelson’s coaching tree…Simon was an assistant under Nelson in Grand Rapids from 2015-18 and won the 2017 Calder Cup…Thompson served on Nelson’s staff in Oklahoma City from 2010-14 as an assistant…As part of his 11-year professional playing career, Simon registered 87 points (37-50—87) in 196 games with the Wolves from 2001-03 and 2004-05 and was a part of Chicago’s first Calder Cup title in 2002.

Last Time Out (Saturday): Griffins 3 at Admirals 2 - Recap
The Griffins collected their 100th regular season win against Milwaukee, their most against any foe...Turner Elson scored his fourth goal of the campaign with 1:58 remaining in regulation to snap Milwaukee’s nine-game home winning streak...Pat Nagle accumulated 23 saves and earned his first win in a Griffins uniform since Jan. 23, 2015 vs. Utica...Defenseman Blake Hillman made his Griffins debut...Chris Terry skated in his 600th AHL game and 100th as a Griffin...Grand Rapids outshot Milwaukee 34-25, finished 0-for-4 on the power play and 1-for-2 on the penalty kill.

Status Update
The Griffins round out the 2019 calendar year with a New Year’s Eve date against the Chicago Wolves. Grand Rapids opens 2020 with a four-game road trip that begins Friday in San Antonio. The Griffins will then enjoy an eight-game homestand from Jan. 10-25, which is the team’s longest since an eight-game stretch from Oct. 14-Nov. 4, 2006.

Ball Drop
With the exception of the 1999-00 season, Grand Rapids has hosted a game on New Year’s Eve every year since the franchise’s inception in 1996 as tonight marks the 23rd annual New Year’s Eve Celebration and the 20th consecutive calendar closer. The Griffins post an 11-9-1-1 (0.545) record on NYE and have won four consecutive, including last season’s 2-1 victory over Rockford. Today will be the third time Grand Rapids and Chicago have met to ring in the New Year (3-4 OTL in 2005, 4-1 W in 2000). The most lopsided game on NYE came during the 2008-09 season when Grand Rapids shut out Iowa 6-0 at Van Andel Arena. Including tonight, the Griffins have sold out seven consecutive NYE clashes.

Teenage Dream
From 2010-19, the franchise’s second full decade, Grand Rapids captured its first two Calder Cups (2017, 2013), won two division championships (2012-13, 2014-15), advanced to the Calder Cup Playoffs seven times, and collected a 403-281-37-45 regular season record (0.580). Of the 182 Griffins to play in the NHL, 74 came during this decade.

Net Nagle
Ninth-year pro Pat Nagle has started the last three games (1-1-1), the longest stretch of his AHL career. He has appeared in nine games for Grand Rapids since 2014-15 and his 23-save win last Saturday at Milwaukee was his first for the Griffins since Jan. 23, 2015 vs. Utica.

Tar-Oh!
Assigned by Detroit on Dec. 3, Taro Hirose has found the scoresheet in six of 10 games this month while posting a team-high nine points (4-5—9).

Rotating Roster
Including four goalies, the Griffins have used 37 players already before the halfway mark this season. Here is how the current usage stacks up to the final player counts in recent seasons: 2018-19 – 41 players, 2017-18 – 32, 2016-17 – 39, 2015-16 – 37 and 2014-15 – 39. Since the AHL’s season began on Oct. 4, the Red Wings have recalled or assigned a player from or to Grand Rapids a total of 62 times.

Red Wings Report
There have been 12 players who have played for both Detroit and Grand Rapids this season – Madison Bowey, Dennis Cholowski, Jonathan Ericsson, Jimmy Howard (conditioning), Joe Hicketts, Taro Hirose, Brian Lashoff, Dylan McIlrath, Calvin Pickard, Givani Smith, Evgeny Svechnikov and Filip Zadina.

Lights Out
Despite Milwaukee scoring on the man-advantage in back-to-back games last weekend, Grand Rapids’ penalty killers have gone 45 for its last 48 (93.8%) since the third period at Chicago on Nov. 27. In fact, from the third period on Dec. 4 to the second period on Dec. 27, the Griffins fended off 32 consecutive penalties. On Nov. 28, the Griffins sat 30th in the league in penalty killing and have since climbed into 16th.

Time to Tango
Signed to a one-year contract by Grand Rapids 90 minutes prior to the opening faceoff against Rockford on Dec. 6, Eric Tangradi has seven points (5-2—7) in his first seven outings during his return to a Griffins uniform. His seven points are second on the team in the month and his current three-game goal streak ties for the longest by a Griffin in 2019-20. A 2017 Calder Cup champion with Grand Rapids, Tangradi ranks among the team’s all-time leaders with 171 points (9th), 81 goals (5th), 23 PPG (T8th), 14 GWG (4th), three OT goals (T3rd) and nine unassisted goals (3rd) in 207 games since 2015-16. Tangradi posted nine points (5-4—9) in 22 games for Astana Barys of the KHL this season and spent the 2018-19 campaign in the New Jersey organization.

Ford Named Playing Captain
The AHL announced on Dec. 18 that Matthew Ford will serve as one of the two playing captains for the 2020 AHL All-Star Classic, to be held January 26-27 in Ontario, Calif. Hershey Bears forward Matt Moulson was also selected. A SoCal native, Ford is in his third season as the Griffins’ captain, fourth in Grand Rapids and 12th in the AHL. He becomes the fourth Griffin to be chosen as a playing captain for an AHL All-Star Classic, joining Jeff Hoggan (2016, West), Kip Miller (2007, PlanetUSA) and Travis Richards (2004, PlanetUSA).

Seider, Veleno at WJC
Moritz Seider and Joe Veleno are representing their respective countries at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship. Through Dec. 30, Seider has four assists in three games as captain of Germany and Veleno shows one assist in two games for Canada. This marks the second consecutive year a player has left the Griffins mid-season to compete in the World Junior Championship after Filip Zadina represented the Czech Republic at the 2019 event. Tomas Tatar also suited up for Slovakia during his rookie campaign with Grand Rapids in 2009-10.

Griffins in General
Grand Rapids is in the franchise’s 24th overall season of play, 19th as a member of the American Hockey League and 18th as the primary affiliate of the 11-time Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings…Grand Rapids is 978-672-27-60-114 (0.583) in the regular season since 1996-97 to go along with 17 playoff appearances, seven division titles and two Calder Cups (2017, 2013)…The Griffins have earned 40 or more wins and accumulated 90 or more points in six of the last seven seasons…Grand Rapids has qualified for the Calder Cup Playoffs in a franchise-record seven consecutive seasons and advanced to at least the second round on five occasions…The Griffins’ 8-5 season-opening win at Chicago on Oct. 5 marked the club’s 750th win in the AHL…Grand Rapids’ 318 regular season wins since the 2012-13 campaign tie Providence for third, behind Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s 321 and Toronto’s 336 while the Griffins’ 691 points in that span are fourth, trailing Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (695), Providence (703) and Toronto (728)…Since the affiliation began in 2002-03, 92 Griffins have gone on to play for the Red Wings.

This Date in Griffins History
2003: Despite a 1-0 loss to Utah, the Griffins finish calendar year 2003 with a 48-23-8-0 record (0.658), the best mark of the AHL’s 28 teams.
2010: Joey MacDonald makes a season-high 43 saves to best Toronto rookie Ben Scrivens’ 40 stops, enabling the Griffins to complete their dramatic comeback from a late 1-0 deficit. After Francis Pare scores with just 1:37 left in regulation to put Grand Rapids on the board, the Griffins think they have won the game on another Pare goal from close range with just a half second left in overtime, with the entire bench and even MacDonald joining in a pile-up celebration behind the Toronto goal. But the roar of the sold-out crowd is belatedly snuffed out by a linesman’s ruling that the puck came to Pare on a hand pass from Jamie Tardif. Undaunted, the Griffins then take the shootout 3-1 to secure the win.
2013: One night after Toronto spoils Grand Rapids’ inaugural outdoor game with a shootout win in subfreezing conditions at Comerica Park, Marlies rookie goaltender Garret Sparks freezes the Griffins’ top-ranked offense by making 31 saves in a 3-1 win. The Griffins close out a tremendous 2013 that garnered a Calder Cup championship and a 46-24-4-5 (0.639) regular season record during the calendar year.
2014: Jared Coreau’s 47 saves enable the Griffins to earn a point in a 3-2 shootout loss to division-leading Rockford.
2015: Jared Coreau pitches a 23-save shutout as the Griffins ring out 2015 with their franchise-record 11th consecutive home win, a 3-0 decision over division-leading Milwaukee.
2016: The Griffins’ 5-2 victory over Rockford secures a spot for head coach Todd Nelson in the 2017 AHL All-Star Classic, by virtue of Grand Rapids (20-8-1-2, 0.694) owning the best points percentage in the Central Division as 2016 expires.
2018: Harri Sateri makes 31 saves in a 2-1 win over Rockford, as the Griffins close out the calendar year with a regular season mark of 47-21-4-5 (0.669).

Presented by Farm Bureau Insurance

Time: 6 p.m. at Van Andel Arena (doors open at 5 p.m.).

New Year’s Eve Post-Game Fireworks presented by Farm Bureau Insurance: Fans are encouraged to stick around after the game and help ring in the New Year with West Michigan’s Largest Indoor Fireworks Show.

Post-Game Open Skate: Bring your skates to the rink and take to the ice for the post-game open skate. The skate will take place after fireworks.

Photo by Sam Iannamico/Griffins