GRIFFINS RETURN TO THE VAN FOR A TRIO OF GAMES

This Week’s Games
Wed., Feb. 17 Milwaukee Admirals at GRIFFINS 7 p.m. WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM / AHLLive.com
Fri., Feb. 19 Charlotte Checkers at GRIFFINS 7 p.m. WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM / AHLLive.com
Sat., Feb. 20 Charlotte Checkers at GRIFFINS 7 p.m. WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM / AHLLive.com

Last Week’s Results
Fri., Feb. 12 GRIFFINS 2 at Iowa Wild 4 26-18-1-1, 54 points (4th, Central Division)
Sat., Feb. 13 GRIFFINS 4 at Iowa Wild 3 27-18-1-1, 56 points (4th)
Sun., Feb. 14 GRIFFINS 2 at Rockford IceHogs 4 27-19-1-1, 56 points (4th)

Opening Faceoff: Playing three games in three nights all on the road last weekend, the Griffins finished their trip 1-2-0-0 – despite holding a lead in both defeats – following Sunday’s 4-2 loss to the Central Division-leading Rockford IceHogs. The Griffins are currently positioned fourth in the division, sixth in the Western Conference and 12th in the league with a 27-19-1-1 (0.583) record. Grand Rapids opens a three-game homestand on Wednesday with the second-place Milwaukee Admirals before a Friday-Saturday back-to-back against the Charlotte Checkers closes out the week.

This Week’s Promotions: On Friday, the Griffins host their fifth annual Purple Community Game to benefit the Van Andel Institute. On Saturday, the first 2,500 fans in attendance will receive a Griffins baseball cap, courtesy of Option 1 Credit Union.

Win Some and Lose Some: The Griffins own a 27-19-1-1 (.583) record through 48 games. Take a look at how Grand Rapids’ numbers stack up between its 27 wins and 21 (including overtime and shootout) losses:

Against the Best: The Griffins own a 22-13-1-1 (0.575) record against teams with a winning record this season, including a 10-7-0-0 (0.588) mark against teams with a winning percentage greater than 0.600 as of Feb. 16. Grand Rapids has also posted a 24-10-1-1 (0.694) record against its Central Division rivals including going 15-6-0-1 (0.705) versus the top three teams (Rockford, Milwaukee, Lake Erie).

Griffins After the All-Star Break: Since moving from the IHL to the AHL in 2001-02, Grand Rapids has perennially proved to be a surging team following the all-star hiatus. In fact, the Griffins have tallied a 232-174-22-21 (0.565) AHL record in games played after the mid-season classic. In six seasons as an AHL/NHL head coach, Todd Nelson has guided his teams (2010-14: AHL’s Oklahoma City Barons; 2014-15: NHL’s Edmonton Oilers) to an 80-58-8-20 (0.566) mark after the all-star break.

Busy, Busy: Grand Rapids will play 12 games – all against Central Division foes – in February’s 29 days including two sets of back-to-back-to-backs (Feb. 12-14, Feb. 26-28).

Free Hockey: In their eight games that have gone to either overtime or a shootout, the Griffins post a 0.750 winning percentage – fourth-highest in the league (5-1 in OT, 1-1 in SO).

Back-to-Back-to-Backs: The Griffins completed their first of four back-to-back-to-backs on Sunday at Rockford. Take a look at how the statistics compare for Grand Rapids when it plays on consecutive nights:

Whoa, Nellie: Named the franchise’s 10th head coach on June 19, 2015, Todd Nelson has already attached his name to several records in Griffins lore. In the first half season under Nelson’s watch, Grand Rapids has set franchise records for overall win streak (15, Nov. 18-Dec. 26) and home win streak (14, Nov. 11-Jan. 15). Now in his sixth season as an AHL head coach, including five spent in Oklahoma City with the Barons, Nelson claimed his 200th career AHL win (203-130-13-35) in Grand Rapids’ 3-2 overtime win against Lake Erie on Jan. 20.

Griffins Leaders: Andy Miele (9-26—35) and Eric Tangradi (17-16—33) continue to pace the offense, ahead of Martin Frk (19-10—29), Anthony Mantha (12-17—29), Mark Zengerle (5-24—29) and Mitch Callahan (12-8—20).

McCollum Sets Record: On Feb. 12 at Iowa, goaltender Tom McCollum set a Griffins’ franchise record as he surpassed Joey MacDonald with his 211th appearance between the pipes. McCollum’s win against Rockford on Feb. 5 earned him his 93rd victory as a Griffin, ranking second in club history behind only MacDonald (109). With 5,253 career saves and counting, he stands behind only MacDonald (5,362) in Griffins’ archives.

Sorry, Not Sorry: In addition to putting together their own winning streak of 15 games earlier this season (Nov. 18-Dec. 26), which set a franchise record, the Griffins have also made a habit out of being able to stop the streaks of their opponents. Consider the significant double-digit runs that Grand Rapids has been responsible for halting this season: Rockford’s 10-game point streak on Nov. 18 (3-2 W), Milwaukee’s 11-game point streak and franchise-record 10-game winning streak on Nov. 27 (6-0 W) and Charlotte’s 12-game point streak on Jan. 12 (5-3 W).

The Central Conversation: Despite a 2-8-0-1 record and a last-place 0.227 winning percentage to begin the season, the Griffins have rebounded with a 25-11-1-0 mark to climb into contention in the Central Division. Overall, the Griffins place fourth in the division, sixth in the Western Conference and 12th in the AHL.

Getting the Call: Four players who were in Grand Rapids’ lineup for the season opener at Bakersfield on Oct. 9 have gone on to appear in at least one game with the parent club this year. Andreas Athanasiou and Xavier Ouellet are currently on recall with the Red Wings. Tomas Nosek and Eric Tangradi became the 152nd and 153rd Griffins alumni, respectively, to play in the NHL after Nosek played six games for Detroit (Dec. 19-Jan. 5) and Tangradi made his Red Wings debut on Jan. 25

Goal Scoring: Partly attributable to the Griffins’ current 12th-place standing in the AHL is the fact they rank in the top 10 for both goals for (3.06, tied for sixth) and goals against (2.69, 10th) per game.

Magic Numbers: The Griffins are 25-3-1-0 when scoring three or more goals and 18-3-0-0 when allowing two or fewer…Grand Rapids is 14-3-0-0 when leading after one period, 16-2-0-0 when leading after two and 20-6-1-0 when striking first.

Fantastic Frk: Martin Frk paces the team and ties for 10th in the league with 19 goals (19-10—29). Grand Rapids is a perfect 4-0-0-0 when Frk charts two or more goals in a game. Since the start of the New Year, Frk’s 10 goals are tied for fourth-most in the league.

Clear Influence: A veteran of over 1,100 professional games including 938 in the NHL, 37-year-old Daniel Cleary has made his presence felt on the ice during his first season as a Griffin. Despite Cleary registering only 10 points (1-9—10) on the season, in the 24 games the 19th year pro is in the lineup the Griffins post a staggering 19-4-1-0 (0.813) record.

On the Plus Side: Among the 17 Griffins skaters who have appeared in 10 or more games this season, 11 find themselves with a positive plus/minus rating. Rookie Robbie Russo leads the team at plus-25, which ranks third in the league.

Stone Wall: Categorized in the AHL’s top 10 for wins (22, fourth), shutouts (three, tied for sixth), goals against average (2.37, seventh) and save percentage (0.925, tied for third), goaltender Jared Coreau has anchored a consistent presence in between the pipes for the Griffins. His 22 wins include a career best 11-game winning streak (Nov. 18-Dec. 26) that fell just one game short of tying Jimmy Howard’s all-time record (12, Feb. 25-March 31, 2006) for a Grand Rapids goalie.

Russo’s Rookie Relevance: Rookie defenseman Robbie Russo has dished out 18 helpers from his blueline position to rank third on the team in assists. Russo’s seven-game assist streak (Dec. 5-19) matched a franchise record for most consecutive games with an assist in a single season (most recent: Kris Newbury, Oct. 25-Nov. 13, 2009) and was one shy of the overall assist streak record set by Valtteri Filppula (8, March 26, 2006-Oct. 13, 2006).

Making the Grade: Eric Tangradi set a team-best this season when he recorded an eight-game point streak from Nov. 27-Dec. 26. Tangradi’s 17 goals, which place second on the team and tie for 17th in the league, are buoyed by his fourth career hat trick recorded on Dec. 5 against Lake Erie, one of four Griffins to net three goals in a game this season (Mitch Callahan, Feb. 5 at RFD; Colin Campbell, Dec. 26 at LE; Tomas Jurco, Nov. 20 vs. San Diego).

Walleye World: A recent 6-3-1-0 stretch has the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye atop the North Division standings with a 29-13-2-3 record (63 points). The Walleye lead second-place Wheeling (21-21-2-3) by 16 points. Former Griffins Shane Berschbach (15-27—42) and A.J. Jenks (15-20—35) pace the offense. Rookie netminder Jake Paterson, Detroit’s second pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, shows an 8-8-1-1 record with a 2.39 GAA and 0.921 save percentage as an understudy to former Michigan State Spartan Jeff Lerg (20-5-1-2, 2.05 GAA, 0.929%). While spending 15 games with the Griffins earlier this season, Paterson made his first career AHL start on Jan. 13 at Charlotte and recorded 38 saves in a 4-3 loss.

Scouting Report

Wednesday, Feb. 17 vs. Milwaukee Admirals (30-14-3-0) – 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: 44-24-2-1-2 Home, 77-53-7-6-7 Overall. Season Series: 3-0-0-0 Home, 4-2-0-0 Overall. Seventh of eight meetings overall, fourth of four at Van Andel Arena. NHL Affiliation: Nashville Predators. Head Coach: Dean Evason (4th season). Notes: The Milwaukee Admirals rank second in the Central Division, third in the Western Conference and fifth in the AHL with a 30-14-3-0 (0.670) record…The Admirals are 7-2-1-0 in their last 10 games and have won their last two…Milwaukee is 13-6-3-0 in 22 road games… The Admirals rank are seventh in the power play (19.9%) and ninth in the penalty kill (84.7%)…Goaltender Marek Mazanec ranks sixth in goals against average (2.32) while rookie Juuse Saros stands in 12th place (2.51)… Frederick Gaudreau (12-19—31) and rookie Max Gortz (9-19—28) lead the team in points…Milwaukee’s 7-3 win over Grand Rapids on Jan. 30 marked the most goals the Griffins have surrendered in the regular season since giving up seven to Charlotte at Van Andel Arena on April 18, 2015…Grand Rapids is 4-2-0-0 against Milwaukee this season and Jared Coreau has shut out the Admirals twice…Louis-Marc Aubry (6-1—7), Eric Tangradi (3-1—4) and Andy Miele (2-2—4) lead Grand Rapids in points against Milwaukee.

Friday, Feb. 19 vs. Charlotte Checkers (25-19-3-2) – Van Andel Arena – 7 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 20 vs. Charlotte Checkers – Van Andel Arena – 7 p.m.
Radio: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 6:35 p.m. each night Web Casts: Video web cast at AHLLive.com, free audio available through woodradio.com. All-Time Series: 5-7-0-0 Home, 11-12-0-1 Overall. Season Series: 1-1-0-0 Home, 2-2-0-0 Overall. Fifth and sixth meetings of eight overall, third and fourth of four at Van Andel Arena. NHL Affiliation: Carolina Hurricanes. Head Coach: Mark Morris (1st season). Notes: The Charlotte Checkers are fifth in the Central Division, seventh in the Western Conference and 15th overall with a 25-19-3-2 (0.561) record… Charlotte is winless in its last nine (0-7-2-0)…In a 5-3 win at Charlotte on Jan. 12, the Griffins ended the Checkers 12-game point streak…The Checkers are 14-7-1-1 on the road compared to 11-12-2-1 at home…Charlotte ranks second in the power play (22.3%) and have scored 47 of its 146 goals (32.2%) while on the man advantage…Derek Ryan leads the team in point production (14-23—37)…Former Michigan State Spartan Jake Chelios, and son of former Detroit defenseman Chris Chelios, has 25 points (5-20—25) in 46 games…Rookie Daniel Altshuller is tied for 14th in GAA (2.55) but was recalled by the Hurricanes on Tuesday…In the teams’ last meeting, Jan. 13 at Bojangles’ Coliseum, the Checkers scored four unanswered to come from behind and win 4-3…Andy Miele (1-5—6) and Martin Frk (5-0—5) lead Grand Rapids in four games against Charlotte.