HIGH FIVE

This Week’s Games
GRIFFINS at Cleveland Monsters // Tues., Dec. 6 // 7 p.m. // Quicken Loans Arena
Listen: ESPN 96.1 FM at 6:35 p.m.
Watch: AHLLive.com
Season Series: 1-0-0-0 Road, 4-0-0-1 Overall. Sixth of 12 meetings overall, second of six at Quicken Loans Arena
All-Time Series: 17-12-2-6 Road, 42-24-3-8 Overall
NHL Affiliation: Columbus Blue Jackets
Noteworthy: The Griffins have been involved in five shootouts over the last two seasons and four have come against the Monsters.

Chicago Wolves at GRIFFINS // Wed., Dec. 7 // 7 p.m. // Van Andel Arena
Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 6:35 p.m.
Watch: AHLLive.com
Season Series: 1-1-0-0 Home, 2-1-0-0 Overall. Fourth of 10 meetings overall, third of five at Van Andel Arena
All-Time Series: 36-22-2-4-2 Home, 73-50-2-6-2 Overall
NHL Affiliation: St. Louis Blues
Noteworthy: Chicago’s Brad Hunt was named the AHL Player of the Week on Monday, marking the third consecutive player of the week to come out of the Central Division (Matt Lorito on Nov. 21, Teemu Pulkkinen on Nov. 28).

Milwaukee Admirals at GRIFFINS // Fri., Dec. 9 // 7 p.m. // Van Andel Arena
Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 6:35 p.m.
Watch: AHLLive.com
Season Series: 0-0-0-0 Home, 1-1-0-0 Overall. Third of 12 meetings overall, first of six at Van Andel Arena
All-Time Series: 45-24-2-1-2 Home, 79-55-7-6-7 Overall
NHL Affiliation: Nashville Predators
Noteworthy: All time, the Admirals have suffered more losses at Van Andel Arena than any other team, as the Griffins own a 45-24-2-1-2 home record against Milwaukee.

GRIFFINS at Chicago Wolves // Sun., Dec. 11 // 5 p.m. // Allstate Arena
Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 4:35 p.m.
Watch: AHLLive.com, The U Too (Chicago)
Season Series: 1-0-0-0 Road, 2-1-0-0 Overall. Fifth of 10 meetings overall, second of five at Allstate Arena
All-Time Series: 37-28-0-2-0 Road, 73-50-2-6-2 Overall
NHL Affiliation: St. Louis Blues
Noteworthy: The Griffins are 4-1-0-0 in their last five games at Allstate Arena, outscoring the Wolves 18-7.

Last Week’s Results
Wed., Nov. 30 Cleveland Monsters 3 at GRIFFINS 2 SO 11-6-0-1 (23 points, 2nd Central Division)
Fri., Dec. 2 Iowa Wild 4 at GRIFFINS 3 SO 11-6-0-2 (24 points, 2nd)
Sat., Dec. 3 GRIFFINS 4 at Rockford IceHogs 1 12-6-0-2 (26 points, 2nd)

Opening Faceoff: The Grand Rapids Griffins have points in five consecutive games (3-0-0-2) following last Saturday’s 4-1 win at Rockford. Grand Rapids is positioned second in the Central Division, third in the Western Conference and eighth in the AHL with a 12-6-0-2 record (0.650). After tonight's game at Cleveland, the Griffins head home and will finish up a mid-week back-to-back against Chicago on Wednesday before hosting division-leading Milwaukee on Friday and making a return trip to Chicago on Sunday.

Last Week’s Recap: The Griffins lost in consecutive shootouts for the first time since Dec. 9-10, 2011, as they dropped a 3-2 decision to Cleveland last Wednesday and fell 4-3 to Iowa on Friday. Grand Rapids bounced back on Saturday with a 4-1 victory at Rockford as Cal Heeter made 33 saves to earn his first win in a Griffins uniform.

This Week’s Promotions: Wednesday against Chicago will be a Winning Wednesday presented by Farm Bureau Insurance. Every time the Griffins win at home on Wednesday, each fan in attendance will receive a free ticket to the next Wednesday game. Friday’s game against Milwaukee is ‘80s Fauxback Night presented by WZZM 13. What if the Griffins existed in the early 1980s? Take part in this fake throwback – “fauxback” – night as the Griffins will don special-edition jerseys that feature a 1980s-themed logo. Also on Friday, fans can enjoy $2 hot dogs and $2 domestic drafts from 6-8 p.m., while supplies last.

Nastasiuk Reassigned: The Detroit Red Wings on Monday reassigned forward Zach Nastasiuk to the Griffins from the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye. In his second professional season, Nastasiuk has skated in 10 games with the Walleye and recorded five points (2-3—5) and a plus-one rating while helping Toledo post a league-best 0.833 points percentage (15-3). The 6-foot-1, 200-pound winger is riding a three-game point streak (2-1—3). Detroit’s second choice (48th overall) in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, Nastasiuk has played in three games with the Griffins this season and contributed one assist.

Power Play Streaks: Following a power play goal on Saturday at Rockford, the Griffins extended their streak of scoring on the power play to 11 games, which ties for the second-longest string in franchise history. Grand Rapids is 18-for-56 (32.1%) on the man advantage during the stretch. In comparison, the 2005-06 team that also went on an 11-game streak was 17-for-77 (22.1%) during its run. Take a look at the longest power play streaks in club history:

On the Power Play: The Griffins have relied on their power play for 38.5% of their goals (25-of-65), the second-highest percentage in the AHL behind only Tucson’s 44.7% (21-of-47). In the last 11 games, Grand Rapids has scored 23 goals at even strength and 18 on the man advantage. The power play has been keyed by first-year Griffin Matt Lorito, who ranks second in the league in power play points (4-10—14) and ties for fourth in power play assists (10), and Martin Frk, who ties for second in power play goals as six of his eight markers on the year have come on the man advantage.

Specialty Teams: Grand Rapids has surrendered just five power play goals in the last 41 periods. The Griffins rank third in the power play (26.3%) and ninth in the penalty kill (84.7%), one of four teams (Tucson, Rochester, Chicago) to place in the top 10 in both categories.

Setting the Pace: Matt Lorito is tied for third in the AHL in points (9-15—24) and tied for fifth in assists (15). At this pace, Lorito is on track to conclude the season with 34 goals, 57 assists and 91 points. Thirty-four goals would tie for fourth most in franchise history while 57 assists would be second and 91 points would be third. Martin Frk ties for second in the league in power play goals with six and he is on pace for 22, which would be the most in club history.

Thru 20…: Matt Lorito’s 24 points (9-15—24) tie for fourth most in franchise history through the first 20 games of a season, trailing Jiri Hudler’s 30 points (14-16—30) in 2005-06, Michel Picard’s 28 points (11-17—28) in 1997-98 and Robert Petrovicky’s 27 points (9-18—27) in 1998-99. Teemu Pulkkinen (2014-15) and Eric Manlow (2005-06) also had 24 points in the season’s initial 20 games.

Shots Fired: Grand Rapids paces the league in shots per game at 35.35 and has eclipsed the 40-shot mark seven times in the last 13 games. The Griffins are 5-1-0-1 when recording 40 or more shots on goal. Ben Street leads the team with 66 shots.

Showing Discipline: The Griffins are the least penalized team in the league, averaging just 9.25 penalty minutes per contest. Grand Rapids has committed 80 minors and five majors for 185 total PIM.

Follow the Leader(s): Matt Lorito (9-15—24), Mitch Callahan (7-9—16) and Ben Street (3-11—14) lead the team in points…Lorito’s 24 points tie for third in the league…Lorito also has a team-high 15 assists…Robbie Russo’s 12 points (3-9—12) are tied for 14th among league defensemen…Evgeny Svechnikov paces the club with 26 penalty minutes and Nick Jensen has a team-best +7 rating.

Current Streaks: Mitch Callahan has three goals and four points (3-1—4) in the last three games...Matt Lorito has recorded back-to-back one goal and two assist games (Dec. 2 vs. IA, Dec. 3 at RFD) for the second time this season (Nov. 16 and 18 vs. TEX)...Martin Frk has four goals in the last five games.

Tango Time: Eric Tangradi contributed a pair of assists in his return to the lineup last Saturday at Rockford after missing 12 games due to an injury. Tangradi was the team’s leading goal scorer a season ago (28) while ranking second in points (28-28—56).

In the Mix: With Jared Coreau on recall in Detroit, a pair of first-year Griffins have filled the spot between the pipes. From Nov. 25-Dec. 2, Eddie Pasquale started four consecutive games in the crease for the first time since starting five in a row from Jan. 7-18, 2014 when he was a member of the St. John’s IceCaps. Cal Heeter made his Griffins debut Saturday at Rockford and recorded 33 saves in a 4-1 win. Not only was Saturday the first Griffins game for Heeter, it was also his first AHL game since starting for the Toronto Marlies on Nov. 8, 2014 in a 4-3 overtime loss at a Todd Nelson-led Oklahoma City squad. Heeter spent the majority of the 2014-15 season and the entire 2015-16 year between the KHL and DEL.

Five in Detroit: Tyler Bertuzzi, Jared Coreau, Brian Lashoff, Anthony Mantha and Tomas Nosek remain on recall with the Detroit Red Wings. Bertuzzi became the 157th Griffins alumnus to play in the NHL when he debuted with the Red Wings during Detroit’s 3-2 shootout win at Philadelphia on Nov. 8. He has appeared in seven games and recorded a minus-one rating but was recently placed on injured reserve. Coreau became the 158th Griffins alumnus to play in the NHL following his debut last Saturday at Pittsburgh. Coreau made 32 saves but the Red Wings fell 5-3 to the defending Stanley Cup champions. Recalled last Saturday, Lashoff recorded 15:31 of ice time in Sunday’s 4-3 overtime win at the New York Islanders. Mantha has six points (3-3—6) and a plus-two rating in 11 games. Nosek was also recalled last Saturday and has not played in the NHL yet this season.

Magic Numbers: The Griffins are 9-1-0-1 when scoring the game’s first goal, 8-1 when leading after one period and 9-1 when leading after two periods…Grand Rapids is 12-1-0-1 when scoring three goals or more and 0-5-0-1 when scoring two or less.

Milestones: With 159 career points, Mitch Callahan (85-74—159) ranks eighth on the franchise’s all-time list…Callahan’s 85 goals place fourth in team history and are two behind Tomas Tatar for third…Captain Nathan Paetsch has 111 assists in his Griffins career to place seventh all-time and needs three to tie Jiri Hudler for sixth.

Prophetic Promotions: When Chicago comes to town on Wednesday, it will mark the fourth Winning Wednesday promotion of the season. The promotion, in which each fan in attendance receives a free ticket to the next Wednesday game if the Griffins win, has proved to be prophetic as Grand Rapids has won nine of its last 12 home Wednesday contests including two of three this season.

Same Team, Different Day: The Griffins and Monsters will square off on Tuesday for the fourth time in the last 12 days. After Tuesday, Grand Rapids will have played 12 of its last 27 games against Cleveland dating back to their six-game playoff series last spring.

Every Goal Counts: Since the Monsters joined the AHL in 2007-08, the Griffins have matched up against them 77 times. Thirty-nine of those 77 games have been decided by just a single tally, including 23 in overtime or a shootout. The Griffins hold the slight edge, having won 20-of-39 one-goal contests. Dating back to the start of the 2014-15 campaign, 16 of the last 27 meetings between the clubs have been decided by one goal, including three of five encounters this season (Oct. 22: 3-2 W, Nov. 9: 5-4 SOW, Nov. 30: 2-3 SOL).

Cleveland Connections: Griffins head coach Todd Nelson played one season (1992-93) on the shores of Lake Erie for the IHL’s Lumberjacks, totaling 42 points (7-35—42) and 115 penalty minutes in 76 games...Assistant coach Ben Simon is a native of Shaker Heights, a Cleveland suburb...Robbie Russo and T.J. Tynan were teammates at Notre Dame from 2011-14 and helped the Irish win the 2012-13 CCHA Championship...Griffins newcomer and assistant captain Matthew Ford spent most of his first three pro seasons (2008-11) with the Monsters, totaling 69 points (39-30—69) in 126 appearances...First-year Griffin and assistant captain Ben Street played in 44 games with the Monsters in 2014-15 and accumulated 39 points (9-30—39).

Chicago Connections: Wolves newcomer Landon Ferraro, who signed with the St. Louis Blues in the offseason, played five seasons in Grand Rapids (2009-10; 2011-15), totaled 140 points (75-65—140) in 270 regular season games and helped the Griffins claim the 2013 Calder Cup...Ferraro’s 75 career goals are tied for sixth-most in Grand Rapids history...Griffins head coach Todd Nelson served as an assistant coach with the Wolves for two seasons (2006-08) and won the 2008 Calder Cup in his final season with Chicago…Griffins assistant coach Ben Simon spent three seasons playing for the Wolves (2001-03, 2004-05) and helped Chicago capture the Calder Cup in 2002…First-year Griffins goalie Eddie Pasquale made his AHL debut with Chicago in 2010-11, posting a 2.93 goals against average in 24 outings...The next season, as a member of the St. John’s IceCaps, he was named to the AHL’s All-Rookie Team…A pair of Griffins defensemen were born in Illinois, as Robbie Russo is from Chicagoland’s Westmont and Conor Allen was born in Chicago.

To the Hunt: Wolves defenseman Brad Hunt played under coach Todd Nelson while in Oklahoma City from 2013-15. Hunt totaled 72 points (18-54—72) in 83 games while Nelson coached the Barons. After Nelson was named interim coach of the Edmonton Oilers on Dec. 15, 2014, Hunt also played in five games with the Oilers under his direction and scored a pair of assists.

Wisconsin Connections: First-year Griffins Ben Street and Matthew Ford were teammates at the University of Wisconsin from 2005-08 and helped the Badgers win the 2006 NCAA Championship…Defenseman Conor Allen skated in 31 games with Milwaukee last season and recorded six points (1-5—6) and 52 PIM.

Walleye Report: Under first-year head coach Dan Watson, the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye have won seven straight and post the best winning percentage in the ECHL at 0.833 (15-3-0-0). Former Griffin A.J. Jenks (8-13—21) and rookie Tyson Spink (7-13—20) lead the team in scoring while second-year pro Jake Paterson, Detroit’s second pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, is 7-3 while ranking eighth with a 2.31 goals against average and 13th with a 0.919 save percentage. Griffins-contracted Cal Heeter, who is currently on recall in Grand Rapids, is a perfect 8-0 between the pipes and shows a 2.67 GAA and a 0.912 save percentage with the Walleye.

Back-to-Backs: The Griffins will play back-to-back games a total of 27 times this season. Compare the statistics for when the Griffins have played on consecutive nights:

Win Some, Lose Some: Compare the statistics for the Griffins during their 12 wins and eight (including overtime and shootout) losses: