Griffins Game #73 * Home Game #38 * AHL Game #1,088

Season Series: 1-7-1-0 Home Series: 0-4-1-0 Road Series: 1-3-0-0
All-Time Series: 91-78-2-7-3 All-Time Home Series: 44-36-2-5-2 All-Time Road Series: 47-42-0-2-1

Griffins vs. Wolves
Tenth of 12 meetings overall, sixth of six at Van Andel Arena…Grand Rapids has faced Chicago 181 times in the regular season dating back to their IHL days, the second-most of any Griffins opponent (Milwaukee, 204)…The Griffins possess a 20-29-1-1 record against Chicago over the last five years...Since the 2017-18 season, the Griffins are 5-14-1-0 (0.275) against the Wolves on home ice and are being outscored 77-47...The last time Grand Rapids was above 0.500 against Chicago in West Michigan was in the 2016-17 season when it went 4-1-0-0...On March 13, Grand Rapids snapped its nine-game winless streak against Chicago (0-8-1-0), dating back to the 2020-21 campaign...Grand Rapids’ penalty kill comes in at 75.6% (29th) while Chicago ranks fifth at 83.3%. In addition, the power play for Chicago is tied for 18th (19.1%) while the Griffins are tied for 27th (16.9%)...The Wolves come into the contest with a 6-4-0-0 record in their past 10 games and a 23-9-2-2 road ledger...The Griffins are 5-5-0-0 in their last 10 outings and possess a 17-15-4-1 mark at home...Chicago’s Andrew Poturalski has been Grand Rapids’ nemesis this season, as the forward has 19 points (7-12—19) in nine games...As part of his 11-year pro career, Griffins coach Ben Simon registered 87 points (37-50—87) in 196 games with the Wolves from 2001-03 and 2004-05 and was a part of their first Calder Cup title in 2002...This is the final home game of the regular season for Grand Rapids.

Last Time Out
The Griffins remained in the playoff hunt with a crucial 5-3 victory over the Rockford IceHogs on Wednesday at the BMO Harris Center. The Griffins used three goals in the third period to collect the important two points. Riley Barber extended his point streak to 13 games (11-6—17), which is the longest by a Griffin in more than 16 years, since Donald MacLean’s franchise-record 19-game run in 2005-06. Turner Elson tallied his team-leading 21st goal of the season. Barber and Elson are the first Grand Rapids teammates with 20-plus goals each since Chris Terry (29) and Matt Puempel (24) in 2018-19. Drew Worrad and Butrus Ghafari recorded their first AHL goals while Samuel Dove-McFalls collected his first pro point. Jonatan Berggren pushed his point streak to seven games (4-7—11) while Kyle Criscuolo saw his climb to four (3-3—6). Rockford’s 18 shots were the fewest allowed this season by Grand Rapids. Taro Hirose pushed his point streak to four outings (1-5—6) and Elson scored his 100th pro goal. The Griffins finished the season series against Rockford with a 6-2-0-0 record (0.750).

Roster Shake Up
- April 16, 2022—F Chase Pearson recalled by Detroit
- April 17, 2022—F Riley Barber recalled by Detroit; F Chase Pearson reassigned by Detroit
- April 18, 2022—F Chase Pearson recalled by Detroit; F Brett McKenzie released from PTO
- April 19, 2022—F Brett McKenzie signed to a PTO; F Riley Barber reassigned by Detroit

This Date in Griffins History
2018: On the strength of three-point first periods by Matthew Ford and Ben Street, the Griffins rebounded from a loss in Game 1 of the Central Division Semifinals with a resounding 5-1 victory at Manitoba. Grand Rapids scored the last five goals, including four in the opening period, and outshot Manitoba 15-1 in the third, setting a team playoff record for fewest shots allowed in a road period and tying the mark for shots allowed in any period.

Down to the Wire
The Griffins currently sit in seventh place in the Central Division standings with a 32-32-6-2 (0.500) mark and only four games remaining. The top five teams from the division will qualify for the Calder Cup Playoffs, with the top three receiving a first-round bye. The Griffins’ magic number over Iowa, which sits in the final playoff spot, is 12 points. The Griffins have the toughest remaining schedule in the division with a remaining opponent win percentage of 0.647, while Iowa has the second-easiest remaining schedule at 0.533. Grand Rapids has appeared in the last seven Calder Cup Playoffs, dating back to the 2012-13 season when it lifted the cup for the first time.

Race to the Top
Jonatan Berggren on April 9 became just the sixth rookie in Griffins history to record 50 points, as he places third on the Griffins’ rookie single-season scoring list with 56 points (19-37—56) in 66 games. Berggren has 18 points (5-13—18) in his last 14 games, including an active season-high seven-game point streak (4-7—11). The Uppsala, Sweden, native paces the Griffins and ranks fourth among rookies with his 56 points, while his 37 assists also places fourth. Berggren is second among rookies with seven game-winning goals. Berggren is on pace for 59 points, which would tie Teemu Pulkkinen (2013-14) for the Griffins’ rookie single-season scoring title. His 37 assists are the most by a rookie in a Griffins uniform while his 19 goals are tied for 10th among Griffin rookies.

Welcome to the Barber Shop
Riley Barber has been on a tear as of late, with points in a career-high 13 straight games (11-6—17), including his third-ever hat trick on April 9 at Toronto. There have been only three longer point streaks in franchise history (Jiri Hudler 14; Derek King 17; Donald MacLean 19). Barber’s 13-game streak is tied for the longest in the AHL this season, alongside Springfield’s Scott Perunovich, Ontario’s Jordan Spence and Bakersfield’s Seth Griffith. His streak is also the longest by a Griffin in more than 16 years, since Donald MacLean’s franchise-record 19-game run in 2005-06. Since being reassigned by Detroit on March 2, Barber has notched 25 points (13-12—25) in 22 games, including six multi-point outings. The Pittsburgh, native is tied for third on the roster with 44 points (21-23—44) in 45 outings. Through 77 contests with the Griffins, the 28-year-old veteran has 78 points (41-37—78) and 46 penalty minutes.

Stalled Engine
The Griffins have struggled out of the gate recently, allowing the first goal in 11 of their past 12 contests. The Griffins snapped the 11-game run on April 20 at Rockford. Grand Rapids has six wins in those 12 games, showing a 6-5-1-0 mark. During this run, Grand Rapids has not won a first period and has been outscored 16-5. However, in the past 12 second periods the Griffins have a plus-five scoring margin (16-11). Narrowing it down even more, Grand Rapids has been outscored 12-4 in the last six first frames while it has outscored its opponents 10-3 in the past six second periods. When scoring first, the Griffins are 20-8-2-1 (0.694) this season while they are 12-24-4-1 (0.354) when conceding the opening goal.

The Roaring 20s
Turner Elson reached the 20-goal mark for the first time in his career on April 9. The ninth-year pro has had a career-high season on the offensive end, with a career-best 21 goals, 23 assists and 44 points so far. Elson and Riley Barber (21) are the first Griffins teammates with 20-plus goals each since Chris Terry (29) and Matt Puempel (24) in 2018-19. The alternate captain has turned it on as of late with 17 points (8-9—17) in his last 22 games. In comparison, Elson had just nine points (3-6—9) in the 22 contests before this run.

Work Horse
Netminder Victor Brattstrom has appeared in 14 consecutive games, dating back to March 22. Brattstrom has a 3-1 record in his last four starts with a 2.50 goals against average and a 0.902 save percentage. Through 30 games this season, the Goteborg, Sweden, native shows a 10-15-3 mark with a 0.894 save percentage and a 3.30 goals against average. The goaltender has won his previous three games at Van Andel Arena with a 0.957 save percentage and a 1.33 goals against average. Brattstroms’ 30 games played are the fifth-most ever for a Griffins rookie goaltender and the most since Petr Mrazek made 42 appearances in 2012-13.

Northern Exposure
The Griffins have fared well against opponents from the North Division, as they hold a 7-2-2-0 record (0.682) and have outscored their opponents 38-28. In comparison, Grand Rapids is 22-26-3-2 (0.462) against Central-Division foes and 3-4-1-0 (0.438) against teams from the Pacific. The Griffins’ final game of the regular season on April 30 will come against Cleveland from the North Division.

Traffic Jam
The Griffins have won three games in their last 10 contests away from West Michigan, having been outscored 44-30. Grand Rapids has secured seven out of 14 points in its past seven outings away from home. Grand Rapids went on a season-high five-game road trip from March 19-27 and finished with a 1-3-1-0 mark. The Griffins are 15-17-2-1 (0.471) this season away from West Michigan while they are 17-15-4-1 (0.527) at home. Grand Rapids will play three of its remaining four games on foreign ice.

Rarified Air
Brian Lashoff’s 576 games played for the Griffins ranks first among active AHL players who have spent their entire AHL career with the same club and fourth 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 Paul Larivee (Providence Reds, 1952-62) for the No. 4 spot on April 6 against Cleveland and is now 32 games behind No. 3 Howie Yanosik (Hershey Bears, 1957-67). Lashoff is still 79 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—56 points (19-37—56) place fourth among first-year players, 37 assists rank fourth among rookies, seven game-winning goals are second among rookies
Jared McIsaac—24 points are tied for seventh among rookie defensemen, 19 assists are tied for seventh among rookie defensemen
Ryan Murphy—11 goals are tied for fourth among defensemen
Calvin Pickard—2.58 goals against average ranks 14th, 0.918 save percentage is tied for ninth, 21 wins rank seventh, 2534:30 minutes played places fifth
Dominik Shine—139 penalty minutes are tied for second

Milestones
Ben Simon collected his 200th win as a pro head coach on April 20 with a 5-3 victory over Rockford. Turner Elson registered his 100th pro goal on April 20 at Rockford. Jan Drozg appeared in his 100th AHL game on April 19 at Iowa. Other upcoming milestones include:
Riley Barber—Two assists from 150 in the AHL and as a pro
Kyle Criscuolo—One point from 100 as a Griffin
Jan Drozg—Three goals from 50 as a pro
Taro Hirose—One assist from 100 as a pro
Ryan Murphy—Three assists from 200 as a pro, two points from 250 as a pro
Chase Pearson—Two games from 150 as a pro, four games from 150 in the AHL

Photo by Dale Woltmann/Wolves