FINDING THEIR STRIDE

This Week’s Games
Wed., Nov. 25 Iowa Wild at GRIFFINS 7 p.m. WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM / AHLLive.com
Fri., Nov. 27 GRIFFINS at Milwaukee Admirals 8 p.m. WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM / AHLLive.com
Sat., Nov. 28 Lake Erie Monsters at GRIFFINS 7 p.m. WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM / AHLLive.com

Last Week’s Results
Wed., Nov. 18 Rockford IceHogs 2 at GRIFFINS 3 3-8-0-1, 7 pts. (7th, Central Division)
Fri., Nov. 20 San Diego Gulls 4 at GRIFFINS 7 4-8-0-1, 9 pts. (6th)
Sat., Nov. 21 GRIFFINS 2 at Chicago Wolves 1 5-8-0-1, 11 pts. (6th)

Giant Killers: The Griffins knocked off three Western Conference powers last week to post their first winning streak of the season and improve to 4-1-0-1 in their last six outings. Wednesday’s 3-2 victory over Rockford (9-3-1-1) broke the IceHogs’ 10-game point streak, and the Griffins evened their home record at 4-4 thanks to a big offensive performance in Friday’s 7-4 win over San Diego (9-4-0-1). Grand Rapids capped off its perfect week on Saturday by earning its first road win of the season, a 2-1 triumph over Central Division-leading Chicago.

Giving Thanks: This week, a Wednesday-Saturday home set will bookend Friday’s visit to Milwaukee, as the Griffins look to continue their climb up the Central Division standings. The Iowa Wild, owners of the AHL’s worst record (3-14-1-2, 0.225) and a 10-game winless streak (0-9-0-1), will visit Van Andel Arena on Wednesday, trying to avenge their 5-2 loss here on Nov. 11. It’s another Winning Wednesday, with the Griffins attempting to stay perfect at home on “hump day” (3-0) and build upon their three-game winning streak on home ice. All fans who were in attendance for the Griffins’ win against Rockford on Nov. 18 can redeem their ticket stub for a free ticket to this game. Saturday’s game against Lake Erie features the annual Teddy Bear Toss presented by J&H Family Stores, as fans are encouraged to bring new, store-tagged teddy bears and stuffed animals to throw onto the ice when the Griffins score their first goal, benefiting Hug-A-Bears of Kent County. After the game, 5,000 fans will receive a Griffins 20th anniversary poster courtesy of Eikenhout, and fans who bring their skates can take part in the post-game open skate presented by Arby’s.

He’s a Magic Man: On Monday, Griffins right wing Tomas Jurco was selected as the CCM/AHL Player of the Week for the period ending Nov. 22. After being assigned by the Detroit Red Wings last Tuesday for conditioning, Jurco posted a league-best seven points for the week (3-4—7) and tallied assists on all three of the Griffins’ game-winning goals. Most notably, Jurco enjoyed a four-point night and tied a franchise record with three power play goals in Friday’s win over San Diego, equaling the standard held by Teemu Pulkkinen (1/29/15 at Iowa) and Joe Murphy (10/16/01 at Cleveland). Jurco, 22, had one assist in four NHL games with Detroit this season before joining the Griffins. A member of Grand Rapids’ Calder Cup championship team as a rookie in 2012-13, he has gone on to play 103 games with the Red Wings, totaling 11 goals and 23 assists for 34 points. Jurco, a native of Kosice, Slovakia, was a second-round draft choice by Detroit (35th overall) in 2011 and has registered 30 goals and 37 assists for 67 points in 109 AHL games with Grand Rapids. In recognition of his achievement, Jurco will be presented with an etched crystal award prior to an upcoming Griffins home game.

Double Your Pleasure: Andreas Athanasiou – aka “Double A” – has been on fire since returning last Thursday from his NHL debut with Detroit. After registering just one goal and one assist in his first eight games with Grand Rapids this season, he eclipsed his previous point total in one night with Friday’s three-point outburst (1-2—3) against San Diego, before accounting for both of the Griffins’ goals in their 2-1 win at Chicago on Saturday. Athanasiou became the 151st Griffins alumnus to play in the NHL when he made his debut with the Red Wings on Nov. 8 in a 4-1 loss to Dallas. He went on to tally his first NHL goal, which proved to be the game-winner, in a 1-0 shutout of the Washington Capitals at Joe Louis Arena on Nov. 10. Detroit’s fourth choice (110th overall) in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, Athanasiou played in six games with the Wings before returning to Grand Rapids.

High-Water Marks: The Griffins exploded for a season-high seven goals on Friday against the Gulls, sparked by a four-goal first period that marked their most productive frame of the campaign so far. Their four power play goals and nine power play opportunities also set season highs.

Griffins Leaders: Eric Tangradi (5-5—10) continues to pace Grand Rapids in scoring, thanks to a three-game point streak (2-3—5) that matches Tomas Jurco’s for the longest by a Griffin this season. Andy Miele (2-6—8) and defenseman Ryan Sproul (2-6—8) are currently tied for second on the team, with Andreas Athanasiou (4-3—7), Jurco (3-4—7) and Anthony Mantha (2-5—7) in hot pursuit.

Russo’s Reveal: Rookie defenseman Robbie Russo led the Griffins to a 3-2 victory over Rockford last Wednesday with a three-point performance (1-2—3), including scoring the game-winning tally, his first goal as a professional. He also notched an assist in Friday’s 7-4 defeat of San Diego. Russo captained the Notre Dame Fighting Irish last season as a senior and enjoyed a career year, ranking second on the team with 41 points (15-26—41) in 40 games. A native of Westmont, Ill., he tied for first in the nation in goals by a defenseman and finished one point shy of tying for the lead in points. As a result, he was selected to the NCAA East Second All-American Team and the Hockey East First All-Star Team. In 142 career collegiate contests from 2011-15, Russo tallied 94 points (28-66-94) and 82 penalty minutes. The 6-foot, 191-pound Russo signed a two-year contract with Detroit on Aug. 16.

Worth Celebrating: The Griffins are one win shy of the 800th regular season victory in franchise history. Over 1,528 contests to date, they show a record (W-L-T-OTL-SOL) of 799-559-27-47-96 (0.579).

Climbing the Charts: Last Friday’s contest against San Diego marked Mitch Callahan’s 250th regular season game as a Griffin, making him just the 16th player in the franchise’s 20 seasons to reach that plateau. Louis-Marc Aubry is just five games shy of reaching that same milestone…Callahan also accomplished two other feats against the Gulls: his assist on Tomas Jurco’s third goal gave him 116 points as a Griffin, moving him past Evan McGrath into sole possession of 20th all time, and his delay of game penalty during the second period gave him 300 PIM for his Grand Rapids career, leaping teammate Triston Grant (299) to become the 17th Griffin to hit three centuries in the sin bin…Nathan Paetsch’s second assist against San Diego put him at 88 as a Griffin, tying him with Glen Metropolit for 10th all time…Tom McCollum’s 89th win for Grand Rapids, earned behind 27 saves on Saturday in Chicago, leaves him one short of tying Jimmy Howard (90) for second in franchise history behind Joey MacDonald (109). McCollum, who needs seven more appearances to equal MacDonald’s mark of 210, broke the 5,000-save barrier against the Wolves (5,003) and stands behind only MacDonald (5,362) in club annals.

Walleye World: Thanks to a 3-0-0-2 run, the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye now find themselves in second place in the North Division with a 7-5-0-3 mark (17 points), just two points behind first-place Wheeling. Red Wings prospect Marek Tvrdon (6-8—14), Grand Rapids-contracted Alden Hirschfeld (8-5—13) and former Griffin Shane Berschbach (5-8—13) continue to do the heavy lifting on offense. Rookie netminder Jake Paterson, Detroit’s second pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, shows a 3-3-0-1 record with a 2.84 GAA and 0.916 save percentage as an understudy to former Michigan State Spartan Jeff Lerg (4-2-0-2, 2.07 GAA, 0.925%).

Scouting Report

Wed., Nov. 25 vs. Iowa Wild (3-14-1-2) – Van Andel Arena – 7 p.m.
Radio: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 6:35 p.m. Web Casts: Video web cast at AHLLive.com, free audio available through woodradio.com. All-Time Series: 6-2-0-0 Home, 13-2-0-0 Overall. Season Series: 1-0-0-0 Home, 1-0-0-0 Overall. Second of eight meetings overall, second of four at Van Andel Arena. NHL Affiliation: Minnesota Wild. Head Coach: John Torchetti (2nd season). Notes: The Wild rank eighth in the Central Division, 15th in the Western Conference and 30th in the AHL with a 0.225 winning percentage. They’ve gone 0-9-0-1 since a modest 3-5-1-1 start…Including Grand Rapids’ 5-2 win in the first meeting of the season on Nov. 11, the Griffins have beaten Iowa four straight times at home and eight consecutive times overall, a streak that spans parts of three seasons since the Wild’s 3-1 win at Van Andel Arena on March 8, 2014…Iowa netminders Leland Irving (0.924) and Jeremy Smith (0.913) boast strong save percentages, but they’ve faced a barrage as the Wild rank last in the AHL in shots allowed per game (35.75)…The Wild also stand last in goals scored per game (1.70) while placing 29th in shots per game (25.90)…Iowa is led in scoring by the tandem of Michael Keranen (5-5—10) and rookie Christoph Bertschy (2-8—10), who ties for 14th in the AHL among first-year players…The Wild are 1-5-0-0 on the road.

Fri., Nov. 27 at Milwaukee Admirals (11-4-1-0) – BMO Harris Bradley Center – 8 p.m.
Radio: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 7:35 p.m. Web Casts: Video web cast at AHLLive.com, free audio available through woodradio.com. All-Time Series: 32-27-5-5-5 Road, 73-51-7-6-7 Overall. Season Series: First of eight meetings overall, first of four at BMO Harris Bradley Center. NHL Affiliation: Nashville Predators. Head Coach: Dean Evason (4th season). Notes: The Admirals rank first in the Central Division, second (tied) in the Western Conference and fourth (tied) in the AHL with a 0.719 winning percentage, thanks to their current 9-0-1-0 streak...The Griffins’ 7-2-1-0 record against Milwaukee last season included a 3-1-1-0 mark on the road…Admirals netminder Juuse Saros stands 16th in the AHL with a 2.33 GAA…Milwaukee only places 28th on the circuit in penalty killing at 77.3%...Leading scorer Viktor Arvidsson (5-10—15) has a point in all 12 games as an Admiral since being assigned by Nashville in late October…Milwaukee is 6-3-0-0 at home.

Sat., Nov. 28 vs. Lake Erie Monsters (10-4-0-2) – Van Andel Arena – 7 p.m.
Radio: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 6:35 p.m. Web Casts: Video web cast at AHLLive.com, free audio available through woodradio.com. All-Time Series: 18-10-1-1 Home, 31-21-3-7 Overall. Season Series: 0-0-0-0 Home, 0-1-0-1 Overall. Third of 12 meetings overall, first of six at Van Andel Arena. NHL Affiliation: Columbus Blue Jackets. Head Coach: Jared Bednar (1st season). Notes: The Monsters rank third in the Central Division, fifth in the Western Conference and eighth in the AHL with a 0.688 winning percentage…Lake Erie took a two-game set from the Griffins on Nov. 13-14 at Quicken Loans Arena, winning 3-2 in a shootout before a decisive 5-1 triumph in the rematch. Grand Rapids has since won a season-high three straight games…Monsters head coach Jared Bednar played for the Griffins during their 1998-99 IHL campaign, racking up 21 points (3-18—21) and a team-high 220 PIM in 74 games...Rookie goaltender Joonas Korpisalo is third among league backstops with a 1.90 goals against average (tied) and a 0.939 save percentage, while creasemate Anton Forsberg ranks 17th with a 2.39 GAA…Leading scorer Kerby Rychel (4-7—11) has been with the parent Columbus Blue Jackets since Nov. 13…All four of the Monsters’ regulation losses have come on the road, where they are 6-4-0-0.

This Week’s Games
Wed., Nov. 25 Iowa Wild at GRIFFINS 7 p.m. WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM / AHLLive.com
Fri., Nov. 27 GRIFFINS at Milwaukee Admirals 8 p.m. WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM / AHLLive.com
Sat., Nov. 28 Lake Erie Monsters at GRIFFINS 7 p.m. WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM / AHLLive.com

Last Week’s Results
Wed., Nov. 18 Rockford IceHogs 2 at GRIFFINS 3 3-8-0-1, 7 pts. (7th, Central Division)
Fri., Nov. 20 San Diego Gulls 4 at GRIFFINS 7 4-8-0-1, 9 pts. (6th)
Sat., Nov. 21 GRIFFINS 2 at Chicago Wolves 1 5-8-0-1, 11 pts. (6th)

Giant Killers: The Griffins knocked off three Western Conference powers last week to post their first winning streak of the season and improve to 4-1-0-1 in their last six outings. Wednesday’s 3-2 victory over Rockford (9-3-1-1) broke the IceHogs’ 10-game point streak, and the Griffins evened their home record at 4-4 thanks to a big offensive performance in Friday’s 7-4 win over San Diego (9-4-0-1). Grand Rapids capped off its perfect week on Saturday by earning its first road win of the season, a 2-1 triumph over Central Division-leading Chicago.

Giving Thanks: This week, a Wednesday-Saturday home set will bookend Friday’s visit to Milwaukee, as the Griffins look to continue their climb up the Central Division standings. The Iowa Wild, owners of the AHL’s worst record (3-14-1-2, 0.225) and a 10-game winless streak (0-9-0-1), will visit Van Andel Arena on Wednesday, trying to avenge their 5-2 loss here on Nov. 11. It’s another Winning Wednesday, with the Griffins attempting to stay perfect at home on “hump day” (3-0) and build upon their three-game winning streak on home ice. All fans who were in attendance for the Griffins’ win against Rockford on Nov. 18 can redeem their ticket stub for a free ticket to this game. Saturday’s game against Lake Erie features the annual Teddy Bear Toss presented by J&H Family Stores, as fans are encouraged to bring new, store-tagged teddy bears and stuffed animals to throw onto the ice when the Griffins score their first goal, benefiting Hug-A-Bears of Kent County. After the game, 5,000 fans will receive a Griffins 20th anniversary poster courtesy of Eikenhout, and fans who bring their skates can take part in the post-game open skate presented by Arby’s.

He’s a Magic Man: On Monday, Griffins right wing Tomas Jurco was selected as the CCM/AHL Player of the Week for the period ending Nov. 22. After being assigned by the Detroit Red Wings last Tuesday for conditioning, Jurco posted a league-best seven points for the week (3-4—7) and tallied assists on all three of the Griffins’ game-winning goals. Most notably, Jurco enjoyed a four-point night and tied a franchise record with three power play goals in Friday’s win over San Diego, equaling the standard held by Teemu Pulkkinen (1/29/15 at Iowa) and Joe Murphy (10/16/01 at Cleveland). Jurco, 22, had one assist in four NHL games with Detroit this season before joining the Griffins. A member of Grand Rapids’ Calder Cup championship team as a rookie in 2012-13, he has gone on to play 103 games with the Red Wings, totaling 11 goals and 23 assists for 34 points. Jurco, a native of Kosice, Slovakia, was a second-round draft choice by Detroit (35th overall) in 2011 and has registered 30 goals and 37 assists for 67 points in 109 AHL games with Grand Rapids. In recognition of his achievement, Jurco will be presented with an etched crystal award prior to an upcoming Griffins home game.

Double Your Pleasure: Andreas Athanasiou – aka “Double A” – has been on fire since returning last Thursday from his NHL debut with Detroit. After registering just one goal and one assist in his first eight games with Grand Rapids this season, he eclipsed his previous point total in one night with Friday’s three-point outburst (1-2—3) against San Diego, before accounting for both of the Griffins’ goals in their 2-1 win at Chicago on Saturday. Athanasiou became the 151st Griffins alumnus to play in the NHL when he made his debut with the Red Wings on Nov. 8 in a 4-1 loss to Dallas. He went on to tally his first NHL goal, which proved to be the game-winner, in a 1-0 shutout of the Washington Capitals at Joe Louis Arena on Nov. 10. Detroit’s fourth choice (110th overall) in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, Athanasiou played in six games with the Wings before returning to Grand Rapids.

High-Water Marks: The Griffins exploded for a season-high seven goals on Friday against the Gulls, sparked by a four-goal first period that marked their most productive frame of the campaign so far. Their four power play goals and nine power play opportunities also set season highs.

Griffins Leaders: Eric Tangradi (5-5—10) continues to pace Grand Rapids in scoring, thanks to a three-game point streak (2-3—5) that matches Tomas Jurco’s for the longest by a Griffin this season. Andy Miele (2-6—8) and defenseman Ryan Sproul (2-6—8) are currently tied for second on the team, with Andreas Athanasiou (4-3—7), Jurco (3-4—7) and Anthony Mantha (2-5—7) in hot pursuit.

Russo’s Reveal: Rookie defenseman Robbie Russo led the Griffins to a 3-2 victory over Rockford last Wednesday with a three-point performance (1-2—3), including scoring the game-winning tally, his first goal as a professional. He also notched an assist in Friday’s 7-4 defeat of San Diego. Russo captained the Notre Dame Fighting Irish last season as a senior and enjoyed a career year, ranking second on the team with 41 points (15-26—41) in 40 games. A native of Westmont, Ill., he tied for first in the nation in goals by a defenseman and finished one point shy of tying for the lead in points. As a result, he was selected to the NCAA East Second All-American Team and the Hockey East First All-Star Team. In 142 career collegiate contests from 2011-15, Russo tallied 94 points (28-66-94) and 82 penalty minutes. The 6-foot, 191-pound Russo signed a two-year contract with Detroit on Aug. 16.

Worth Celebrating: The Griffins are one win shy of the 800th regular season victory in franchise history. Over 1,528 contests to date, they show a record (W-L-T-OTL-SOL) of 799-559-27-47-96 (0.579).

Climbing the Charts: Last Friday’s contest against San Diego marked Mitch Callahan’s 250th regular season game as a Griffin, making him just the 16th player in the franchise’s 20 seasons to reach that plateau. Louis-Marc Aubry is just five games shy of reaching that same milestone…Callahan also accomplished two other feats against the Gulls: his assist on Tomas Jurco’s third goal gave him 116 points as a Griffin, moving him past Evan McGrath into sole possession of 20th all time, and his delay of game penalty during the second period gave him 300 PIM for his Grand Rapids career, leaping teammate Triston Grant (299) to become the 17th Griffin to hit three centuries in the sin bin…Nathan Paetsch’s second assist against San Diego put him at 88 as a Griffin, tying him with Glen Metropolit for 10th all time…Tom McCollum’s 89th win for Grand Rapids, earned behind 27 saves on Saturday in Chicago, leaves him one short of tying Jimmy Howard (90) for second in franchise history behind Joey MacDonald (109). McCollum, who needs seven more appearances to equal MacDonald’s mark of 210, broke the 5,000-save barrier against the Wolves (5,003) and stands behind only MacDonald (5,362) in club annals.

Walleye World: Thanks to a 3-0-0-2 run, the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye now find themselves in second place in the North Division with a 7-5-0-3 mark (17 points), just two points behind first-place Wheeling. Red Wings prospect Marek Tvrdon (6-8—14), Grand Rapids-contracted Alden Hirschfeld (8-5—13) and former Griffin Shane Berschbach (5-8—13) continue to do the heavy lifting on offense. Rookie netminder Jake Paterson, Detroit’s second pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, shows a 3-3-0-1 record with a 2.84 GAA and 0.916 save percentage as an understudy to former Michigan State Spartan Jeff Lerg (4-2-0-2, 2.07 GAA, 0.925%).

Scouting Report

Wed., Nov. 25 vs. Iowa Wild (3-14-1-2) – Van Andel Arena – 7 p.m.
Radio: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 6:35 p.m. Web Casts: Video web cast at AHLLive.com, free audio available through woodradio.com. All-Time Series: 6-2-0-0 Home, 13-2-0-0 Overall. Season Series: 1-0-0-0 Home, 1-0-0-0 Overall. Second of eight meetings overall, second of four at Van Andel Arena. NHL Affiliation: Minnesota Wild. Head Coach: John Torchetti (2nd season). Notes: The Wild rank eighth in the Central Division, 15th in the Western Conference and 30th in the AHL with a 0.225 winning percentage. They’ve gone 0-9-0-1 since a modest 3-5-1-1 start…Including Grand Rapids’ 5-2 win in the first meeting of the season on Nov. 11, the Griffins have beaten Iowa four straight times at home and eight consecutive times overall, a streak that spans parts of three seasons since the Wild’s 3-1 win at Van Andel Arena on March 8, 2014…Iowa netminders Leland Irving (0.924) and Jeremy Smith (0.913) boast strong save percentages, but they’ve faced a barrage as the Wild rank last in the AHL in shots allowed per game (35.75)…The Wild also stand last in goals scored per game (1.70) while placing 29th in shots per game (25.90)…Iowa is led in scoring by the tandem of Michael Keranen (5-5—10) and rookie Christoph Bertschy (2-8—10), who ties for 14th in the AHL among first-year players…The Wild are 1-5-0-0 on the road.

Fri., Nov. 27 at Milwaukee Admirals (11-4-1-0) – BMO Harris Bradley Center – 8 p.m.
Radio: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 7:35 p.m. Web Casts: Video web cast at AHLLive.com, free audio available through woodradio.com. All-Time Series: 32-27-5-5-5 Road, 73-51-7-6-7 Overall. Season Series: First of eight meetings overall, first of four at BMO Harris Bradley Center. NHL Affiliation: Nashville Predators. Head Coach: Dean Evason (4th season). Notes: The Admirals rank first in the Central Division, second (tied) in the Western Conference and fourth (tied) in the AHL with a 0.719 winning percentage, thanks to their current 9-0-1-0 streak...The Griffins’ 7-2-1-0 record against Milwaukee last season included a 3-1-1-0 mark on the road…Admirals netminder Juuse Saros stands 16th in the AHL with a 2.33 GAA…Milwaukee only places 28th on the circuit in penalty killing at 77.3%...Leading scorer Viktor Arvidsson (5-10—15) has a point in all 12 games as an Admiral since being assigned by Nashville in late October…Milwaukee is 6-3-0-0 at home.

Sat., Nov. 28 vs. Lake Erie Monsters (10-4-0-2) – Van Andel Arena – 7 p.m.
Radio: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 6:35 p.m. Web Casts: Video web cast at AHLLive.com, free audio available through woodradio.com. All-Time Series: 18-10-1-1 Home, 31-21-3-7 Overall. Season Series: 0-0-0-0 Home, 0-1-0-1 Overall. Third of 12 meetings overall, first of six at Van Andel Arena. NHL Affiliation: Columbus Blue Jackets. Head Coach: Jared Bednar (1st season). Notes: The Monsters rank third in the Central Division, fifth in the Western Conference and eighth in the AHL with a 0.688 winning percentage…Lake Erie took a two-game set from the Griffins on Nov. 13-14 at Quicken Loans Arena, winning 3-2 in a shootout before a decisive 5-1 triumph in the rematch. Grand Rapids has since won a season-high three straight games…Monsters head coach Jared Bednar played for the Griffins during their 1998-99 IHL campaign, racking up 21 points (3-18—21) and a team-high 220 PIM in 74 games...Rookie goaltender Joonas Korpisalo is third among league backstops with a 1.90 goals against average (tied) and a 0.939 save percentage, while creasemate Anton Forsberg ranks 17th with a 2.39 GAA…Leading scorer Kerby Rychel (4-7—11) has been with the parent Columbus Blue Jackets since Nov. 13…All four of the Monsters’ regulation losses have come on the road, where they are 6-4-0-0.