GRIFFINS GEAR UP FOR THREE NORTH DIVISION GAMES

This Week’s Games
Wed., Feb. 4 GRIFFINS at Toronto Marlies 11 a.m. ESPN 96.1 / AHLLive.com
Fri., Feb. 6 Rochester Americans at GRIFFINS 7 p.m. WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM / AHLLive.com
Sat., Feb. 7 Rochester Americans at GRIFFINS 7 p.m. WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM / AHLLive.com

Last Week’s Results
Thu., Jan. 29 GRIFFINS 6 at Iowa Wild 0 SO 22-16-3-1, 48 pts. (3rd, Midwest Division)
Fri., Jan. 30 GRIFFINS 3 at Milwaukee Admirals 0 SO 23-16-3-1, 50 pts. (3rd)
Sat., Jan. 31 Milwaukee Admirals 4 at GRIFFINS 0 SO 23-17-3-1, 50 pts. (T3rd)

Shutout Week: The Griffins produced two consecutive shutouts on the road last week, first a 6-0 blanking of the Iowa Wild on Thursday, followed by a 3-0 defeat of the Milwaukee Admirals on Friday. On Saturday, however, the tables were turned when the Admirals visited Van Andel Arena and shut down the Griffins, 4-0. Teemu Pulkkinen earned the Griffins’ first hat trick of the season on Wednesday. All three of his goals came on the power play, making Pulkkinen just the second player in franchise history to accomplish the feat. Despite the lopsided score, Iowa rattled off 38 shots in the contest, all of which goaltender Jared Coreau turned away for his second shutout of the season. Coreau followed up that performance by blocking all 28 saves he faced in Friday’s 3-0 shut down of the Admirals, while Mitch Callahan, Landon Ferraro and Mark Zengerle all notched goals. With the loss, the Admirals saw their nine-game winning streak come to an end. Milwaukee’s Colton Sissons exacted his revenge on the Griffins when the Admirals visited Van Andel Arena on Saturday, ending Grand Rapids’ four-game winning streak with a 4-0 decision. The Griffins will return to action for a rare matinee game in Toronto on Wednesday at 11 a.m., before welcoming the Rochester Americans to Grand Rapids on Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m.

Friday Promotions: Friday’s game gives fans the opportunity to enjoy $2 hot dogs and $2 domestic drafts from 6-8 p.m., while supplies last. Fans can also take advantage of College Night specials, where college students can purchase an upper bowl ticket for $14 (or $13 in advance at The Zone) and stop by the McFadden’s concourse table to receive a free pass to the post-game party at McFadden’s. Every Friday night is a Griffins D-Zone night, where fans can have $2 beers and $2 hot dogs served directly to their seats. D-ZONE tickets are only available by calling 616-774-4585 ext. 2 or at griffinshockey.com/dzone. In addition, fans can enjoy all of the popcorn they can eat with this special offer that includes four or more upper or lower level tickets and a Griffins popcorn bucket good for unlimited popcorn refills throughout the game! Popcorn packs are only available by calling 616-774-4585 ext. 2 or at griffinshockey.com/popcorn.

Mitch Callahan Bobblehead Giveaway: The first 2,500 fans will receive a Mitch Callahan bobblehead, courtesy of Lake Michigan Credit Union. Mascots will be running loose on Saturday as well, as Griff and Finn’s friends from surrounding area teams join them to take part in Mascot Mania. All game long, mascots will visit fans game and take part in intermission activities.

Great Skate Winterfest: Griffins fans can enjoy a day full of winter-inspired events and family activities starting at noon on Saturday as part of the 2015 Great Skate Winterfest, which will run for 34 consecutive hours from Saturday to Sunday at Rosa Parks Circle in downtown Grand Rapids. The seventh annual Winterfest will begin at noon on Saturday, leading into the Griffins’ game versus the Rochester Americans at 7 p.m. Following the contest, Griffins players will make their way to Rosa Parks Circle for the 13th annual Great Skate, which features at least one player skating with fans for 24 consecutive hours – 10 p.m. on Saturday to 10 p.m. on Sunday. For more information, for a schedule of events, or to make a donation to the Griffins Youth Foundation in support of a Griffins player’s participation, visit griffinshockey.com/greatskate.

Ryan Fischer Hockey Classic: The Griffins will host the Ryan Fischer Legacy Scholarship Hockey Classic between the Grandville Bulldogs and Detroit Catholic Central Shamrocks on Saturday at Van Andel Arena at 1:30 p.m. Tickets for the event are on sale for $15 at griffinshockey.com/promocode, where fans can enter the promo code “FISCHER” to take advantage of the offer. Tickets will grant entry to both the high school game and the Griffins’ showdown with the Americans at 7 p.m. A portion of the proceeds from each ticket purchased will be donated to the scholarship fund.

Griffins Leaders: Right wing Teemu Pulkkinen continues to lead the Griffins, and the entire league, in scoring with 48 points (24-24—48) in 38 games. Center Andy Miele sits in second on the team with 38 points (13-25—38) in 39 games, while left wing Mitch Callahan ranks third (16-19—35). Right wing Chris Bruton (80) leads the team in penalty minutes and defenseman Brennan Evans (58) ranks second. Defenseman Alexey Marchenko, who was recalled to Detroit last week, registers the highest plus/minus rating on the team (plus-15). The next-highest ranking is center Tomas Nosek with a plus-13 rating.

The Midwest: The Midwest Division has the narrowest point spread between first and fifth place of any division in the league (13 pts.). The Rockford IceHogs (26-14-4-2, 58 pts.) continue their hold over the division, but the second-place Milwaukee Admirals (25-13-2-3, 55 pts.) are just three points behind with three games in hand. The Admirals have won nine of their last 10 games, with their only loss (3-0) coming at the hands of the Griffins last Friday at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Grand Rapids (23-17-3-1, 50 pts.) and the Chicago Wolves (22-18-5-1, 50 pts.) tie for third place, while the Lake Erie Monsters (19-16-4-3, 45 pts.) rank fifth.

League Leader: Right wing Teemu Pulkkinen continued his scoring dominance last week after picking up five points (3-2—5) in a matter of two games between Thursday and Friday. While Pulkkinen didn’t dress for Saturday’s game against Milwaukee due to flu-like symptoms, it didn’t affect his placement in terms of scoring. The third-year Griffin ranks first in scoring in the league (48 pts.), first in goals (24), third in power play goals (9), fourth in shots (148) and ties for first in game-winning goals (6).

Goal, Goal, Goal: In last Thursday’s 6-0 victory at Iowa, Teemu Pulkkinen earned Grand Rapids’ first hat trick of the 2014-15 campaign. All of his goals were scored on the man-advantage, making him just the second Griffin in franchise history to score three goals on the power play. The feat was previously accomplished by Joe Murphy (10/16/01 at Cleveland).

Snapped Streak: The Griffins’ four-game winning streak (Jan. 23-30), their longest of the season, came to a screeching halt with a 4-0 loss to the Milwaukee Admirals on Saturday. Grand Rapids has had more trouble stringing together consecutive victories this season compared to their last two campaigns with Jeff Blashill at the helm. In 2012-13, Blashill’s first season as head coach, the Griffins strung together eight consecutive victories from 11/3/12-11/24/12. In 2013-14, the team had three separate seven-game winning streaks (10/26/13-11/8/13; 11/20/13-12/7/13; 2/22/14-3/7/14).

Top Rookie Goalies: In terms of rookie goaltenders throughout Griffins franchise history, Jared Coreau currently ranks first all-time. While his sample size is small thus far with just 16 games played, the second-year netminder owns a 2.07 goals against average alongside a 9-6-1 record and a 0.930 save percentage this season. In comparison:

Rookie Sharpshooter: Rookie center Mark Zengerle ranks first among AHL newcomers in shooting percentage at 23.1%. Zengerle has connected on six of the 26 shots he has taken in his rookie campaign with Grand Rapids.

Shootin’ Machines: Teemu Pulkkinen ranks fourth overall in the league with 148 shots this season, while Landon Ferraro follows closely behind in fifth place with 147 shots. Pulkkinen has a 16.2% shooting percentage and Ferraro sits at 12.9%.

Coreau Tidbits: Rookie goaltender Jared Coreau is the seventh Griffins goalie to post back-to-back shutouts in the regular season and the first since Daniel Larsson in 2008-09. He’s also just the second goalie in franchise history to post consecutive road shutouts in the regular season. In addition, Coreau’s overall shutout streak of 140:32 is closing in on the Griffins’ regular season record.

• Consecutive Games with a Shutout: 2, Larsson, 12/21/08-12/27/08; Jimmy Howard, 12/31/06-2/9/07; Joey MacDonald, 2/13/04-2/14/04; Marc Lamothe, 11/12/02-11/15/02; Martin Prusek, 11/17/01-11/21/01; Jani Hurme, 1/13/00-1/20/00.
• Consecutive Road Games with a Shutout: 2, Lamothe, 11/26/03-11/30/03
• Longest Shutout Streak: 153:58, Lamothe, 11/7/02-11/16/02
• After turning away all 38 shots he faced in Thursday’s 6-0 victory at Iowa, Jared Coreau became the fourth Griffins rookie to record multiple shutouts, joining Simon Lajeunesse (3 in 2001-02), MacDonald (3 in 2002-03) and Howard (2 in 2005-06).
• Coreau currently ranks ranks eighth among league goaltenders with a 2.07 GAA.

CCM/AHL Player of the Week: The American Hockey League on Monday announced that Griffins goaltender Jared Coreau has been selected as the CCM/AHL Player of the Week for the period ending Feb. 1. Last week, the 6-foot-5, 230-pound Coreau became just the seventh goaltender in Griffins history to record a shutout in consecutive games, last accomplished by Daniel Larsson in 2008-09. On Thursday, Coreau turned aside all 38 shots he faced in a 6-0 blanking of the Iowa Wild at Wells Fargo Arena, before earning a 3-0 victory on Friday with 28 saves against the Milwaukee Admirals at BMO Harris Bradley Center, marking his third shutout of the season. Coreau’s current shutout streak of 140:32 is just 13:26 shy of the franchise record held by Marc Lamothe, the only other netminder in Griffins history to post consecutive road shutouts. Coreau joins a list of 15 other Griffins who have been named AHL Player of the Week, and he becomes just the fifth goaltender in franchise history to earn the honor: Petr Mrazek (Feb. 3, 2013), Jimmy Howard (Jan. 25, 2009 and March 20, 2006), Joey MacDonald (Feb. 16, 2004) and Lamothe (Nov. 18, 2002).

Monster Arrivals: The Red Wings on Saturday assigned goaltender Jonas Gustavsson to Grand Rapids for conditioning and also assigned defenseman Brian Lashoff after he cleared waivers. A native of Danderyd, Sweden, Gustavsson has been recovering from a shoulder injury that occurred in an overtime loss to the New York Rangers on Nov. 5. The 30-year-old has appeared in just three games with the Wings this season, producing a 1-1-1 record, a 2.30 goals against average, a 0.908 save percentage and one shutout. Gustavsson started in Saturday’s home game against Milwaukee, in which he gave up three goals before the Admirals added an empty-netter in the 4-0 loss. Lashoff, 24, has made 11 appearances with Detroit this season, notching two assists, six penalty minutes and a plus-four rating. A native of Albany, N.Y., Lashoff has notched 13 points (2-11—13) and 57 PIM in 117 games with the Wings from 2012-15. Prior to his NHL career, the 6-foot-3, 221-pound defenseman appeared in parts of five seasons with Grand Rapids from 2008-13, accumulating 35 points (11-24—35) and 91 PIM in 162 AHL games. Most notably, Lashoff was a member of the Griffins’ 2012-13 Calder Cup-winning squad, tallying one assist and 10 PIM in 18 playoff games for Grand Rapids.

Walleye World: The ECHL’s Toledo Walleye (28-7-3-2, 61 pts.) played just two games last week, earning a 4-0 shutout victory against Cincinnati on Friday but losing 3-2 to the Fort Wayne Komets on Saturday. On Friday, Martin Frk earned first-star honors after scoring Toledo’s third and fourth goals and picking up an assist along the way. Toledo got off to a quick start on Saturday with goals from Justin Mercier and Tyler Barnes just 16 seconds apart in the second period, but Fort Wayne rallied for three unanswered goals in the third period to earn the win. The Walleye and Komets (29-10-1-2, 61 pts.) are now once again tied for first place in the North Division, but Toledo has two games in hand to Fort Wayne.

Off to Toledo: The Detroit Red Wings on Monday reassigned right wing Martin Frk from the Griffins to the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye. In addition, the Griffins assigned center Alden Hirschfeld to Toledo and released defenseman Joel Chouinard from his professional tryout. Frk, 21, has scored one goal in 10 contests with Grand Rapids this season. Detroit’s first choice (49th overall) in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, Frk has spent a majority of this season with Toledo, where the forward ranks fifth on the team in scoring with 30 points (17-13—30) in 23 games. A native of Pelhrimov, Czech Republic, Frk earned 12 points (3-9—12) in 50 games with the Griffins and 13 points (5-8—13) in 15 games with the Walleye last season. The 6-foot, 203-pound Hirschfeld has suited up in 10 games with Grand Rapids this season and has contributed one assist. In addition, Hirschfeld ties for eighth on the Walleye in scoring with 24 points (6-18—24) in 28 games. A native of Dallas,Texas, Hirschfeld made 13 appearances with the Griffins last season, earning a goal, an assist and a plus-three rating. A native of Sherbrooke, Quebec, Chouinard has picked up 20 points (5-15—20) and a plus-17 rating in 32 games with Toledo this season, and he ranks first among Walleye defensemen in scoring. While with Grand Rapids, Chouinard went scoreless in two appearances.

Scouting Report

Wed., Feb.. 4 at Toronto Marlies (18-17-8-0) – Ricoh Coliseum – 11 a.m.
Radio: ESPN 96.1 at 10:35 a.m. Web Casts: Video web cast at AHLLive.com, free audio available through iheart.com. All-Time Series: 29-26-3-2 Overall, 12-15-2-1 Road. Season Series: 1-1-0-0 Overall, 0-1-0-0 Road. Third of four meetings overall, second of two at Ricoh Coliseum. NHL Affiliation: Toronto Maple Leafs. Head Coach: Gord Dineen (1st season). Notes: The Marlies rank fourth in the North Division, 12th in the Western Conference and tie for 24th overall…The last time these two teams met was on Dec. 19 at Van Andel Arena, where the Griffins took home a commanding 7-1 victory…The Marlies are led in scoring by rookie right wing Connor Brown, who has 33 points (12-21—33) in 43 games and ranks second among AHL rookies. Following next on the team is second-place Spencer Abbott (7-13—20) and in third is center Greg McKegg (8-10—18)…Christopher Gibson (9-10-3, 2.56 GAA) and rookie Antoine Bibeau (8-7-4, 2.52 GAA) have split goaltending duties for Toronto this season…Both Toronto’s power play (12.4%) and penalty killing record (80.6%) rank 27th in the league...The Marlies average 26.44 shots per game (30th), while giving up 31.95 shots per game (25th)…Toronto is on a three-game home losing streak.

Fri., Feb. 6 vs. Rochester Americans (19-26-1-0) – Van Andel Arena – 7 p.m.
Sat., Feb. 7 vs. Rochester Americans – Van Andel Arena – 7 p.m.
Radio: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 6:35 p.m. (Fri. and Sat.) Web Casts: Video web cast at AHLLive.com, free audio available through woodradio.com. All-Time Series: 38-22-1-2-3 Overall, 22-7-1-0-2 Home. Season Series: Third and fourth of four meetings overall, first and second of two at Van Andel Arena. NHL Affiliation: Buffalo Sabres. Head Coach: Chadd Cassidy (2nd season). Notes: The Americans rank fifth in the North Division, 13th in the Western Conference and 28th overall…Center Phil Varone (11-24—35) leads Rochester in scoring, center Mikhail Grigorenko (10-20—30) ranks second and center Tim Schaller (13-16—29) ranks third…Current Griffins goaltender Pat Nagle played one game with the Americans just over a month ago on Jan. 3, when he made 39 saves on 42 shots in a 4-0 loss to the Adirondack Flames…Rookie netminder Andrey Makarov has been the primary goalie for Rochester, posting a 14-13-1 record, alongside a 2.89 goals against average and a 0.905% save percentage.

This Week’s Games
Wed., Feb. 4 GRIFFINS at Toronto Marlies 11 a.m. ESPN 96.1 / AHLLive.com
Fri., Feb. 6 Rochester Americans at GRIFFINS 7 p.m. WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM / AHLLive.com
Sat., Feb. 7 Rochester Americans at GRIFFINS 7 p.m. WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM / AHLLive.com

Last Week’s Results
Thu., Jan. 29 GRIFFINS 6 at Iowa Wild 0 SO 22-16-3-1, 48 pts. (3rd, Midwest Division)
Fri., Jan. 30 GRIFFINS 3 at Milwaukee Admirals 0 SO 23-16-3-1, 50 pts. (3rd)
Sat., Jan. 31 Milwaukee Admirals 4 at GRIFFINS 0 SO 23-17-3-1, 50 pts. (T3rd)

Shutout Week: The Griffins produced two consecutive shutouts on the road last week, first a 6-0 blanking of the Iowa Wild on Thursday, followed by a 3-0 defeat of the Milwaukee Admirals on Friday. On Saturday, however, the tables were turned when the Admirals visited Van Andel Arena and shut down the Griffins, 4-0. Teemu Pulkkinen earned the Griffins’ first hat trick of the season on Wednesday. All three of his goals came on the power play, making Pulkkinen just the second player in franchise history to accomplish the feat. Despite the lopsided score, Iowa rattled off 38 shots in the contest, all of which goaltender Jared Coreau turned away for his second shutout of the season. Coreau followed up that performance by blocking all 28 saves he faced in Friday’s 3-0 shut down of the Admirals, while Mitch Callahan, Landon Ferraro and Mark Zengerle all notched goals. With the loss, the Admirals saw their nine-game winning streak come to an end. Milwaukee’s Colton Sissons exacted his revenge on the Griffins when the Admirals visited Van Andel Arena on Saturday, ending Grand Rapids’ four-game winning streak with a 4-0 decision. The Griffins will return to action for a rare matinee game in Toronto on Wednesday at 11 a.m., before welcoming the Rochester Americans to Grand Rapids on Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m.

Friday Promotions: Friday’s game gives fans the opportunity to enjoy $2 hot dogs and $2 domestic drafts from 6-8 p.m., while supplies last. Fans can also take advantage of College Night specials, where college students can purchase an upper bowl ticket for $14 (or $13 in advance at The Zone) and stop by the McFadden’s concourse table to receive a free pass to the post-game party at McFadden’s. Every Friday night is a Griffins D-Zone night, where fans can have $2 beers and $2 hot dogs served directly to their seats. D-ZONE tickets are only available by calling 616-774-4585 ext. 2 or at griffinshockey.com/dzone. In addition, fans can enjoy all of the popcorn they can eat with this special offer that includes four or more upper or lower level tickets and a Griffins popcorn bucket good for unlimited popcorn refills throughout the game! Popcorn packs are only available by calling 616-774-4585 ext. 2 or at griffinshockey.com/popcorn.

Mitch Callahan Bobblehead Giveaway: The first 2,500 fans will receive a Mitch Callahan bobblehead, courtesy of Lake Michigan Credit Union. Mascots will be running loose on Saturday as well, as Griff and Finn’s friends from surrounding area teams join them to take part in Mascot Mania. All game long, mascots will visit fans game and take part in intermission activities.

Great Skate Winterfest: Griffins fans can enjoy a day full of winter-inspired events and family activities starting at noon on Saturday as part of the 2015 Great Skate Winterfest, which will run for 34 consecutive hours from Saturday to Sunday at Rosa Parks Circle in downtown Grand Rapids. The seventh annual Winterfest will begin at noon on Saturday, leading into the Griffins’ game versus the Rochester Americans at 7 p.m. Following the contest, Griffins players will make their way to Rosa Parks Circle for the 13th annual Great Skate, which features at least one player skating with fans for 24 consecutive hours – 10 p.m. on Saturday to 10 p.m. on Sunday. For more information, for a schedule of events, or to make a donation to the Griffins Youth Foundation in support of a Griffins player’s participation, visit griffinshockey.com/greatskate.

Ryan Fischer Hockey Classic: The Griffins will host the Ryan Fischer Legacy Scholarship Hockey Classic between the Grandville Bulldogs and Detroit Catholic Central Shamrocks on Saturday at Van Andel Arena at 1:30 p.m. Tickets for the event are on sale for $15 at griffinshockey.com/promocode, where fans can enter the promo code “FISCHER” to take advantage of the offer. Tickets will grant entry to both the high school game and the Griffins’ showdown with the Americans at 7 p.m. A portion of the proceeds from each ticket purchased will be donated to the scholarship fund.

Griffins Leaders: Right wing Teemu Pulkkinen continues to lead the Griffins, and the entire league, in scoring with 48 points (24-24—48) in 38 games. Center Andy Miele sits in second on the team with 38 points (13-25—38) in 39 games, while left wing Mitch Callahan ranks third (16-19—35). Right wing Chris Bruton (80) leads the team in penalty minutes and defenseman Brennan Evans (58) ranks second. Defenseman Alexey Marchenko, who was recalled to Detroit last week, registers the highest plus/minus rating on the team (plus-15). The next-highest ranking is center Tomas Nosek with a plus-13 rating.

The Midwest: The Midwest Division has the narrowest point spread between first and fifth place of any division in the league (13 pts.). The Rockford IceHogs (26-14-4-2, 58 pts.) continue their hold over the division, but the second-place Milwaukee Admirals (25-13-2-3, 55 pts.) are just three points behind with three games in hand. The Admirals have won nine of their last 10 games, with their only loss (3-0) coming at the hands of the Griffins last Friday at BMO Harris Bradley Center. Grand Rapids (23-17-3-1, 50 pts.) and the Chicago Wolves (22-18-5-1, 50 pts.) tie for third place, while the Lake Erie Monsters (19-16-4-3, 45 pts.) rank fifth.

League Leader: Right wing Teemu Pulkkinen continued his scoring dominance last week after picking up five points (3-2—5) in a matter of two games between Thursday and Friday. While Pulkkinen didn’t dress for Saturday’s game against Milwaukee due to flu-like symptoms, it didn’t affect his placement in terms of scoring. The third-year Griffin ranks first in scoring in the league (48 pts.), first in goals (24), third in power play goals (9), fourth in shots (148) and ties for first in game-winning goals (6).

Goal, Goal, Goal: In last Thursday’s 6-0 victory at Iowa, Teemu Pulkkinen earned Grand Rapids’ first hat trick of the 2014-15 campaign. All of his goals were scored on the man-advantage, making him just the second Griffin in franchise history to score three goals on the power play. The feat was previously accomplished by Joe Murphy (10/16/01 at Cleveland).

Snapped Streak: The Griffins’ four-game winning streak (Jan. 23-30), their longest of the season, came to a screeching halt with a 4-0 loss to the Milwaukee Admirals on Saturday. Grand Rapids has had more trouble stringing together consecutive victories this season compared to their last two campaigns with Jeff Blashill at the helm. In 2012-13, Blashill’s first season as head coach, the Griffins strung together eight consecutive victories from 11/3/12-11/24/12. In 2013-14, the team had three separate seven-game winning streaks (10/26/13-11/8/13; 11/20/13-12/7/13; 2/22/14-3/7/14).

Top Rookie Goalies: In terms of rookie goaltenders throughout Griffins franchise history, Jared Coreau currently ranks first all-time. While his sample size is small thus far with just 16 games played, the second-year netminder owns a 2.07 goals against average alongside a 9-6-1 record and a 0.930 save percentage this season. In comparison:

Rookie Sharpshooter: Rookie center Mark Zengerle ranks first among AHL newcomers in shooting percentage at 23.1%. Zengerle has connected on six of the 26 shots he has taken in his rookie campaign with Grand Rapids.

Shootin’ Machines: Teemu Pulkkinen ranks fourth overall in the league with 148 shots this season, while Landon Ferraro follows closely behind in fifth place with 147 shots. Pulkkinen has a 16.2% shooting percentage and Ferraro sits at 12.9%.

Coreau Tidbits: Rookie goaltender Jared Coreau is the seventh Griffins goalie to post back-to-back shutouts in the regular season and the first since Daniel Larsson in 2008-09. He’s also just the second goalie in franchise history to post consecutive road shutouts in the regular season. In addition, Coreau’s overall shutout streak of 140:32 is closing in on the Griffins’ regular season record.

• Consecutive Games with a Shutout: 2, Larsson, 12/21/08-12/27/08; Jimmy Howard, 12/31/06-2/9/07; Joey MacDonald, 2/13/04-2/14/04; Marc Lamothe, 11/12/02-11/15/02; Martin Prusek, 11/17/01-11/21/01; Jani Hurme, 1/13/00-1/20/00.
• Consecutive Road Games with a Shutout: 2, Lamothe, 11/26/03-11/30/03
• Longest Shutout Streak: 153:58, Lamothe, 11/7/02-11/16/02
• After turning away all 38 shots he faced in Thursday’s 6-0 victory at Iowa, Jared Coreau became the fourth Griffins rookie to record multiple shutouts, joining Simon Lajeunesse (3 in 2001-02), MacDonald (3 in 2002-03) and Howard (2 in 2005-06).
• Coreau currently ranks ranks eighth among league goaltenders with a 2.07 GAA.

CCM/AHL Player of the Week: The American Hockey League on Monday announced that Griffins goaltender Jared Coreau has been selected as the CCM/AHL Player of the Week for the period ending Feb. 1. Last week, the 6-foot-5, 230-pound Coreau became just the seventh goaltender in Griffins history to record a shutout in consecutive games, last accomplished by Daniel Larsson in 2008-09. On Thursday, Coreau turned aside all 38 shots he faced in a 6-0 blanking of the Iowa Wild at Wells Fargo Arena, before earning a 3-0 victory on Friday with 28 saves against the Milwaukee Admirals at BMO Harris Bradley Center, marking his third shutout of the season. Coreau’s current shutout streak of 140:32 is just 13:26 shy of the franchise record held by Marc Lamothe, the only other netminder in Griffins history to post consecutive road shutouts. Coreau joins a list of 15 other Griffins who have been named AHL Player of the Week, and he becomes just the fifth goaltender in franchise history to earn the honor: Petr Mrazek (Feb. 3, 2013), Jimmy Howard (Jan. 25, 2009 and March 20, 2006), Joey MacDonald (Feb. 16, 2004) and Lamothe (Nov. 18, 2002).

Monster Arrivals: The Red Wings on Saturday assigned goaltender Jonas Gustavsson to Grand Rapids for conditioning and also assigned defenseman Brian Lashoff after he cleared waivers. A native of Danderyd, Sweden, Gustavsson has been recovering from a shoulder injury that occurred in an overtime loss to the New York Rangers on Nov. 5. The 30-year-old has appeared in just three games with the Wings this season, producing a 1-1-1 record, a 2.30 goals against average, a 0.908 save percentage and one shutout. Gustavsson started in Saturday’s home game against Milwaukee, in which he gave up three goals before the Admirals added an empty-netter in the 4-0 loss. Lashoff, 24, has made 11 appearances with Detroit this season, notching two assists, six penalty minutes and a plus-four rating. A native of Albany, N.Y., Lashoff has notched 13 points (2-11—13) and 57 PIM in 117 games with the Wings from 2012-15. Prior to his NHL career, the 6-foot-3, 221-pound defenseman appeared in parts of five seasons with Grand Rapids from 2008-13, accumulating 35 points (11-24—35) and 91 PIM in 162 AHL games. Most notably, Lashoff was a member of the Griffins’ 2012-13 Calder Cup-winning squad, tallying one assist and 10 PIM in 18 playoff games for Grand Rapids.

Walleye World: The ECHL’s Toledo Walleye (28-7-3-2, 61 pts.) played just two games last week, earning a 4-0 shutout victory against Cincinnati on Friday but losing 3-2 to the Fort Wayne Komets on Saturday. On Friday, Martin Frk earned first-star honors after scoring Toledo’s third and fourth goals and picking up an assist along the way. Toledo got off to a quick start on Saturday with goals from Justin Mercier and Tyler Barnes just 16 seconds apart in the second period, but Fort Wayne rallied for three unanswered goals in the third period to earn the win. The Walleye and Komets (29-10-1-2, 61 pts.) are now once again tied for first place in the North Division, but Toledo has two games in hand to Fort Wayne.

Off to Toledo: The Detroit Red Wings on Monday reassigned right wing Martin Frk from the Griffins to the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye. In addition, the Griffins assigned center Alden Hirschfeld to Toledo and released defenseman Joel Chouinard from his professional tryout. Frk, 21, has scored one goal in 10 contests with Grand Rapids this season. Detroit’s first choice (49th overall) in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, Frk has spent a majority of this season with Toledo, where the forward ranks fifth on the team in scoring with 30 points (17-13—30) in 23 games. A native of Pelhrimov, Czech Republic, Frk earned 12 points (3-9—12) in 50 games with the Griffins and 13 points (5-8—13) in 15 games with the Walleye last season. The 6-foot, 203-pound Hirschfeld has suited up in 10 games with Grand Rapids this season and has contributed one assist. In addition, Hirschfeld ties for eighth on the Walleye in scoring with 24 points (6-18—24) in 28 games. A native of Dallas,Texas, Hirschfeld made 13 appearances with the Griffins last season, earning a goal, an assist and a plus-three rating. A native of Sherbrooke, Quebec, Chouinard has picked up 20 points (5-15—20) and a plus-17 rating in 32 games with Toledo this season, and he ranks first among Walleye defensemen in scoring. While with Grand Rapids, Chouinard went scoreless in two appearances.

Scouting Report

Wed., Feb.. 4 at Toronto Marlies (18-17-8-0) – Ricoh Coliseum – 11 a.m.
Radio: ESPN 96.1 at 10:35 a.m. Web Casts: Video web cast at AHLLive.com, free audio available through iheart.com. All-Time Series: 29-26-3-2 Overall, 12-15-2-1 Road. Season Series: 1-1-0-0 Overall, 0-1-0-0 Road. Third of four meetings overall, second of two at Ricoh Coliseum. NHL Affiliation: Toronto Maple Leafs. Head Coach: Gord Dineen (1st season). Notes: The Marlies rank fourth in the North Division, 12th in the Western Conference and tie for 24th overall…The last time these two teams met was on Dec. 19 at Van Andel Arena, where the Griffins took home a commanding 7-1 victory…The Marlies are led in scoring by rookie right wing Connor Brown, who has 33 points (12-21—33) in 43 games and ranks second among AHL rookies. Following next on the team is second-place Spencer Abbott (7-13—20) and in third is center Greg McKegg (8-10—18)…Christopher Gibson (9-10-3, 2.56 GAA) and rookie Antoine Bibeau (8-7-4, 2.52 GAA) have split goaltending duties for Toronto this season…Both Toronto’s power play (12.4%) and penalty killing record (80.6%) rank 27th in the league...The Marlies average 26.44 shots per game (30th), while giving up 31.95 shots per game (25th)…Toronto is on a three-game home losing streak.

Fri., Feb. 6 vs. Rochester Americans (19-26-1-0) – Van Andel Arena – 7 p.m.
Sat., Feb. 7 vs. Rochester Americans – Van Andel Arena – 7 p.m.
Radio: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 6:35 p.m. (Fri. and Sat.) Web Casts: Video web cast at AHLLive.com, free audio available through woodradio.com. All-Time Series: 38-22-1-2-3 Overall, 22-7-1-0-2 Home. Season Series: Third and fourth of four meetings overall, first and second of two at Van Andel Arena. NHL Affiliation: Buffalo Sabres. Head Coach: Chadd Cassidy (2nd season). Notes: The Americans rank fifth in the North Division, 13th in the Western Conference and 28th overall…Center Phil Varone (11-24—35) leads Rochester in scoring, center Mikhail Grigorenko (10-20—30) ranks second and center Tim Schaller (13-16—29) ranks third…Current Griffins goaltender Pat Nagle played one game with the Americans just over a month ago on Jan. 3, when he made 39 saves on 42 shots in a 4-0 loss to the Adirondack Flames…Rookie netminder Andrey Makarov has been the primary goalie for Rochester, posting a 14-13-1 record, alongside a 2.89 goals against average and a 0.905% save percentage.