HATS OFF TO MATT

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Matt Ellis recorded his first AHL hat trick to lead the Grand Rapids Griffins to their fifth straight win on Friday, a 5-2 triumph over the San Antonio Rampage at Van Andel Arena.

The Griffins’ captain scored shorthanded, on the power play and at even strength into an empty net to secure his first hat trick since March 8, 2003, during his rookie pro season with ECHL Toledo. Ellis also added an assist for his second four-point game of the campaign and his third in four seasons as a Griffin.

Grand Rapids, a season-best five games over 0.500 (25-20-4-2), has won four straight and seven of its last eight games at home, where it will stage a rematch with the Rampage (23-30-1-3) at 7 p.m. Saturday.

Midway through the opening period, Ellis netted his franchise-record 11th career shorthanded goal on a tremendous effort, at the expense of two former teammates. He sent an unsuccessful shot on net after beating Donald MacLean and Bryan Helmer down the right side, but quickly circled behind the cage, tracked down the puck in the left circle and smacked a backhander past David LeNeveu at 11:35.

Two more shorthanded goals by the Griffins in the second period chased LeNeveu from the game in favor of Josh Tordjman and established a team record for shorties in a home game. Ellis factored in the second tally, sending a cross-ice pass to a streaking Derek Meech, who snapped a wrister home from the right circle at 5:22 for his first home goal since Feb. 10, 2006. When Eric Himelfarb’s deft puck handling resulted in a goal from the slot at 7:36, it marked just the second time in franchise history that the Griffins tallied three shorthanded goals in one game, dating to an IHL contest at Michigan on Oct. 17, 1998.

MacLean, who scored 31 of his Griffins-record 56 goals at Van Andel Arena last season, notched a power play marker for the visitors with 15 seconds left in the frame, connecting on a cannon from the left point past a screened Jimmy Howard.

Ellis’ second goal of the night, on the power play at 5:49 of the third period, made it a 4-1 game. San Antonio’s Yanick Lehoux converted with 2:49 remaining, but Ellis chipped a shot into a vacated net with 1:03 on the clock for the final margin.

Howard made 24 saves for his fourth consecutive win, while LeNeveu sustained the loss with 19 stops. Tordjman finished with 16 saves in relief.