SPRINGING FORWARD

This Week’s Games
Tues., March 22 GRIFFINS at San Antonio Rampage 8 p.m. WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM / AHLLive.com
Sat., March 26 Lake Erie Monsters at GRIFFINS 7 p.m. WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM / AHLLive.com

Last Week’s Results
Wed., March 16 GRIFFINS 4 at Texas Stars 1 40-20-1-1 (82 points, 1st Central Division)
Sat., March 19 GRIFFINS 6 at Texas Stars 5 OT 41-20-1-1 (84 points, 1st)
Sun., March 20 GRIFFINS 0 at San Antonio Rampage 2 41-21-1-1 (84 points, 1st)

Opening Faceoff: The Griffins had their 13-game winning streak come to a close on Sunday following a 2-0 loss to San Antonio...Rookie Jake Paterson recorded 39 saves in his second career AHL start but it was not enough as Grand Rapids was shut out for the sixth time this season...The Griffins stand in first place in a tightly contested Central Division as the top four teams all boast winning percentages above 0.600...Grand Rapids also places second in the conference and fourth overall with a 41-21-1-1 record (0.656)...The Griffins’ 41 wins are second-most in the league while 84 points are tied for third-most...Grand Rapids has won at least 40 games for the fourth consecutive season and the 13th time in franchise history...With their magic number for a playoff berth down to nine, the Griffins are approaching their fourth consecutive postseason appearance...Twelve games remain in the regular season for the Griffins – four at home and eight on the road…Grand Rapids concludes its season-high five-game roadtrip against the Rampage on Tuesday.

This Week’s Promotions: Saturday’s game against Lake Erie will be Superhero Night, presented by Eikenhout Inc. Also on Saturday, the first 2,500 fans in attendance will receive a pair of Griffins socks, thanks to Eikenhout Inc.

A Month Between Losses: The Griffins saw their 13-game winning streak come to an end in Sunday’s 2-0 defeat at the hands of the San Antonio Rampage, marking the first loss for the team since Feb. 19...Grand Rapids’ streak was the second-longest in franchise history, trailing only the record 15-game streak from earlier this season...The Griffins are the first AHL team since the 2009-10 Calder Cup champion Hershey Bears to post a pair of double-digit winning streaks in the same season...Grand Rapids’ 13-game run tied for the sixth-longest in the AHL since 1992 (13, Manchester, 2004-05)...Todd Nelson is the first head coach in team history to author two winning streaks of double digits at any point during his tenure...In the first 19 years of the franchise, Grand Rapids’ longest winning streak stood at 11 games and that streak has been surpassed twice just this season.

Road Warriors: The Griffins are set to play eight of their final 12 games on the road. In fact, over a 26-day stretch lasting March 13-April 7, Grand Rapids will play just a single home game (March 26 vs. Lake Erie). The Griffins had their six-game road winning streak snapped on Sunday in San Antonio. Grand Rapids’ 17 victories on foreign ice are tied for the fourth-most in the league.

Home Ice Advantage: Averaging 8,306 fans per home game this season, the Griffins need to average only 6,184 over the final four home games to achieve an average attendance increase at Van Andel Arena for the sixth straight season and the ninth time in 10 years. Grand Rapids has taken full advantage of the raucous crowd support, leading the league with 24 home victories. In fact, the Griffins have won seven straight and nine of their last 10 at home and have secured points in 24 of the last 29 games at Van Andel Arena (23-5-1-0). Against Central Division opponents at home, the Griffins are 21-3-1-0 (0.860). The club record for home wins in a season is 31, set back in 2000-01 when the league played an 82-game schedule.

Griffins Leaders: Andy Miele (14-38—52) and Eric Tangradi (24-25—49) continue to pace the offense, ahead of Mark Zengerle (6-34—40), Martin Frk (25-14—39), and Robbie Russo (5-32—37).

Current Playoff Picture:

Scoring Streaks: Andy Miele (2-8—10) and Eric Tangradi (5-5—10) have contributed 10 points apiece in the last six contests…Miele is tied for eighth league wide with 52 points (14-38—52) while Tangradi ties for 16th with 49 points (24-25—49)…Rookie Robbie Russo has 17 points (3-14—17) in the last 13 games...Among league defensemen Russo is tied for eighth in point production (5-32—37) and ranks fifth in assists (32)...Russo leads the league in plus/minus at +47...Defenseman Ryan Sproul has seven points (2-5—7) in the last five games...Martin Frk is tied for fifth in the league with 25 goals and tied for third with 11 power play goals.

Russo’s Rare Rookie Numbers: With 37 points (5-32—37), Robbie Russo has tied the Griffins’ scoring record for rookie defensemen (Clay Wilson in 2005-06 and Chad Billins in 2012-13). His 37 points also tie him for ninth on the team’s all-time rookie scoring list. Russo’s 32 assists are already the most ever by a rookie defenseman and he is just four shy of tying Gustav Nyquist’s record for assists by a first-year Griffin (36 in 2011-12). He is currently third in that category, also trailing Glen Metropolit (35 in 1997-98).

Terrific Tom: With 13 saves on Saturday at Texas, Tom McCollum earned his 100th win as a Griffin becoming just the second player in franchise history to reach the century mark (Joey MacDonald, 109). McCollum is also Grand Rapids’ all-time leader in appearances (218) and saves (5,453). Over his last seven starts, McCollum has been outstanding, showing a 7-0-0 record, a 1.57 GAA and a 0.948 save percentage. McCollum is about 25 minutes shy of qualifying for the AHL’s goaltending leaders and if he had enough minutes he would currently place eighth in GAA (2.38) and fourth in save percentage (0.927).

Back and Forth for Coreau: The Detroit Red Wings recalled goaltender Jared Coreau from the Griffins last Thursday. He has served as a backup in Detroit’s last two games – a 3-1 win at Columbus on Thursday and a 5-3 victory at Florida on Saturday. On Monday, he was assigned back to Grand Rapids. Coreau is categorized as one of the AHL’s elite goaltenders this season, placing in the top three for wins (29, second), shutouts (six, tied for second), goals against average (2.15, third) and save percentage (0.931, tied for first). Coreau recorded his sixth shutout of the season at Chicago on March 13, equaling a club record for bagels in a season reached five times previously and most recently by Jimmy Howard in 2006-07. His shutout against the Wolves also marked Coreau’s fourth road blanking of the season, setting a new club record. Coreau’s 29 wins tie him for fifth with Jani Hurme (1999-00) on the team’s single-season list.

On the Plus Side: Among the 17 Griffins skaters who have appeared in 20 or more games this season, 16 find themselves with a positive plus/minus rating including seven who are in double digits. Rookie Robbie Russo paces the league at +47 – nine better than Andrew Campbell of Toronto in second. Russo has been on the ice 26 times when the opponent scores and that includes three power play goals and two empty netters. Russo is climbing the AHL’s all-time list for single season plus/minus rating and if the season ended today, his +47 would tie for the best mark in the AHL over the last 23 seasons. Take a look at the AHL’s single-season top 10 list for plus/minus (the league began keeping the stat in 1991-92):

Win Some and Lose Some: The Griffins own a 41-21-1-1 (0.656) record through 64 games. Take a look at how Grand Rapids’ numbers stack up between its 41 wins and 23 (including overtime and shootout) losses:

Against the Best: The Griffins own a 27-16-0-1 (0.625) record against teams with a winning record this season, including an 18-10-0-1 (0.638) mark against teams with a winning percentage greater than 0.600 as of March 22. Grand Rapids will face opponents with a combined winning percentage of 0.551 over its final 12 contests.

Magic Numbers: The Griffins are 37-3-1-0 when scoring three or more goals and 30-4-0-0 when allowing two or fewer…Grand Rapids is 23-4-0-0 when leading after one period and 27-2-0-0 when leading after two...The Griffins’ 39 first goals are tied for tops in the league while showing a 31-7-1-0 mark when striking first.

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 12 points (1-11—12) on the season, in the 31 games the 19th year pro is in the lineup the Griffins post a staggering 25-5-1-0 (0.823) record.

Free Hockey: In their 11 games that have gone to either overtime or a shootout, the Griffins post a 0.818 winning percentage – second-highest in the league (8-1 in OT, 1-1 in SO).

Goal Scoring: One of four teams to rank inside the top 10 in both goals for and goals against per game, the Griffins are the only ones to place in the top four in each category (goals for, 3.25, fourth; goals against, 2.39, third). Grand Rapids is one of only four teams to eclipse 200 or more goals so far this season.

Walleye World: The Toledo Walleye clinched a spot in the 2016 Kelly Cup Playoffs this past weekend and will be heading to the postseason for the fourth time in team history. Toledo came just short of reaching the Kelly Cup Finals a season ago, losing in three overtimes in the deciding seventh game of the Eastern Conference Finals against South Carolina. The offense is paced by former Griffins Shane Berschbach (23-38—61) and A.J. Jenks (22-23—45). Rookie netminder Jake Paterson, Detroit’s second pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft and currently with the Griffins, shows a 14-9-1-1 record with a 2.21 GAA and 0.925 save percentage as an understudy to former Michigan State Spartan Jeff Lerg (26-8-1-2, 2.06 GAA, 0.930%).

Scouting Report

Tuesday, March 22 at San Antonio Rampage (25-33-8-0) – AT&T Center – 8 p.m.
Radio: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 7:35 p.m. Web Casts: Video web cast at AHLLive.com. All-Time Series: 18-13-0-2-1 Road, 36-25-1-5-2 Overall. Season Series: 0-1-0-0 Road, 0-3-0-0 Overall. Fourth of four meetings overall, second of two at the AT&T Center. NHL Affiliation: Colorado Avalanche. Head Coach: Dean Chynoweth (1st season). Notes: The Rampage rank seventh in the Pacific Division, 13th in the Western Conference and 27th overall with a 25-33-8-0 record (0.439)…The Rampage snapped their eight-game losing skid and the Griffins’ 13-game winning streak in Sunday’s 2-0 victory…San Antonio has dropped eight of its last 10 contests…San Antonio has won just nine home games in 31 tries at the AT&T Center including a 13-game winless streak from Nov. 20-Jan. 19…Grand Rapids has just one win at the AT&T Center since the 2012-13 season (1-4-1-1)…The Rampage tie for 12th in the power play (17.4%) and are 28th in the penalty kill (79.4%)...San Antonio is 29th in shots against per game (33.79) and show a 15-27-3-0 record when getting outshot by opponents.


Saturday, March 26 vs. Lake Erie Monsters (34-21-5-5) – 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. All-Time Series: 22-10-1-1 Home, 38-22-3-7 Overall. Season Series: 4-0-0-0 Home, 7-2-0-1 Overall. 11th of 12 meetings overall, fifth of six at Van Andel Arena. NHL Affiliation: Columbus Blue Jackets. Head Coach: Jared Bednar (1st season). Notes: The Lake Erie Monsters are fourth in the Central Division, sixth in the Western Conference and 11th in the AHL with a 34-21-5-5 record (0.600)…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…Lake Erie is 5-4-0-1 in its last 10, including a 4-1 loss against league-leading Toronto on Sunday…The Monsters are 13-14-4-1 on the road…The Monsters are responsible for snapping the Griffins’ franchise record 15-game winning streak on Dec. 27…In the Dec. 27 game, which ended in a 3-2 Lake Erie victory, the two teams combined for an AHL season-high 158 PIM (GR 84, LE 74)…The Monsters are tied for fourth in goals against per game (2.52) but are tied for 26th in goals for (2.60)…Lake Erie is tied for third in the penalty kill at 86.7%…The Griffins have won seven of the last eight against the Monsters this season after dropping the first two… The last three games between the clubs – which all resulted in a Griffins victory – have been decided in either a shootout or overtime…

This Week’s Games
Tues., March 22 GRIFFINS at San Antonio Rampage 8 p.m. WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM / AHLLive.com
Sat., March 26 Lake Erie Monsters at GRIFFINS 7 p.m. WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM / AHLLive.com

Last Week’s Results
Wed., March 16 GRIFFINS 4 at Texas Stars 1 40-20-1-1 (82 points, 1st Central Division)
Sat., March 19 GRIFFINS 6 at Texas Stars 5 OT 41-20-1-1 (84 points, 1st)
Sun., March 20 GRIFFINS 0 at San Antonio Rampage 2 41-21-1-1 (84 points, 1st)

Opening Faceoff: The Griffins had their 13-game winning streak come to a close on Sunday following a 2-0 loss to San Antonio...Rookie Jake Paterson recorded 39 saves in his second career AHL start but it was not enough as Grand Rapids was shut out for the sixth time this season...The Griffins stand in first place in a tightly contested Central Division as the top four teams all boast winning percentages above 0.600...Grand Rapids also places second in the conference and fourth overall with a 41-21-1-1 record (0.656)...The Griffins’ 41 wins are second-most in the league while 84 points are tied for third-most...Grand Rapids has won at least 40 games for the fourth consecutive season and the 13th time in franchise history...With their magic number for a playoff berth down to nine, the Griffins are approaching their fourth consecutive postseason appearance...Twelve games remain in the regular season for the Griffins – four at home and eight on the road…Grand Rapids concludes its season-high five-game roadtrip against the Rampage on Tuesday.

This Week’s Promotions: Saturday’s game against Lake Erie will be Superhero Night, presented by Eikenhout Inc. Also on Saturday, the first 2,500 fans in attendance will receive a pair of Griffins socks, thanks to Eikenhout Inc.

A Month Between Losses: The Griffins saw their 13-game winning streak come to an end in Sunday’s 2-0 defeat at the hands of the San Antonio Rampage, marking the first loss for the team since Feb. 19...Grand Rapids’ streak was the second-longest in franchise history, trailing only the record 15-game streak from earlier this season...The Griffins are the first AHL team since the 2009-10 Calder Cup champion Hershey Bears to post a pair of double-digit winning streaks in the same season...Grand Rapids’ 13-game run tied for the sixth-longest in the AHL since 1992 (13, Manchester, 2004-05)...Todd Nelson is the first head coach in team history to author two winning streaks of double digits at any point during his tenure...In the first 19 years of the franchise, Grand Rapids’ longest winning streak stood at 11 games and that streak has been surpassed twice just this season.

Road Warriors: The Griffins are set to play eight of their final 12 games on the road. In fact, over a 26-day stretch lasting March 13-April 7, Grand Rapids will play just a single home game (March 26 vs. Lake Erie). The Griffins had their six-game road winning streak snapped on Sunday in San Antonio. Grand Rapids’ 17 victories on foreign ice is tied for the fourth-most in the league.

Home Ice Advantage: Averaging 8,306 fans per home game this season, the Griffins need to average only 6,184 over the final four home games to achieve an average attendance increase at Van Andel Arena for the sixth straight season and the ninth time in 10 years. Grand Rapids has taken full advantage of the raucous crowd support, leading the league with 24 home victories. In fact, the Griffins have won seven straight and nine of their last 10 at home and have secured points in 24 of the last 29 games at Van Andel Arena (23-5-1-0). Against Central Division opponents at home, the Griffins are 21-3-1-0 (0.860). The club record for home wins in a season is 31, set back in 2000-01 when the league played an 82-game schedule.

Griffins Leaders: Andy Miele (14-38—52) and Eric Tangradi (24-25—49) continue to pace the offense, ahead of Mark Zengerle (6-34—40), Martin Frk (25-14—39), and Robbie Russo (5-32—37).

Scoring Streaks: Andy Miele (2-8—10) and Eric Tangradi (5-5—10) have contributed 10 points apiece in the last six contests…Miele is tied for eighth league wide with 52 points (14-38—52) while Tangradi ties for 16th with 49 points (24-25—49)…Rookie Robbie Russo has 17 points (3-14—17) in the last 13 games...Among league defensemen Russo is tied for eighth in point production (5-32—37) and ranks fifth in assists (32)...Russo leads the league in plus/minus at +47...Defenseman Ryan Sproul has seven points (2-5—7) in the last five games...Martin Frk is tied for fifth in the league with 25 goals and tied for third with 11 power play goals.

Russo’s Rare Rookie Numbers: With 37 points (5-32—37), Robbie Russo has tied the Griffins’ scoring record for rookie defensemen (Clay Wilson in 2005-06 and Chad Billins in 2012-13). His 37 points also tie him for ninth on the team’s all-time rookie scoring list. Russo’s 32 assists are already the most ever by a rookie defenseman and he is just four shy of tying Gustav Nyquist’s record for assists by a first-year Griffin (36 in 2011-12). He is currently third in that category, also trailing Glen Metropolit (35 in 1997-98).

Terrific Tom: With 13 saves on Saturday at Texas, Tom McCollum earned his 100th win as a Griffin becoming just the second player in franchise history to reach the century mark (Joey MacDonald, 109). McCollum is also Grand Rapids’ all-time leader in appearances (218) and saves (5,453). Over his last seven starts, McCollum has been outstanding, showing a 7-0-0 record, a 1.57 GAA and a 0.948 save percentage. McCollum is about 25 minutes shy of qualifying for the AHL’s goaltending leaders and if he had enough minutes he would currently place eighth in GAA (2.38) and fourth in save percentage (0.927).

Back and Forth for Coreau: The Detroit Red Wings recalled goaltender Jared Coreau from the Griffins last Thursday. He has served as a backup in Detroit’s last two games – a 3-1 win at Columbus on Thursday and a 5-3 victory at Florida on Saturday. On Monday, he was assigned back to Grand Rapids. Coreau is categorized as one of the AHL’s elite goaltenders this season, placing in the top three for wins (29, second), shutouts (six, tied for second), goals against average (2.15, third) and save percentage (0.931, tied for first). Coreau recorded his sixth shutout of the season at Chicago on March 13, equaling a club record for bagels in a season reached five times previously and most recently by Jimmy Howard in 2006-07. His shutout against the Wolves also marked Coreau’s fourth road blanking of the season, setting a new club record. Coreau’s 29 wins tie him for fifth with Jani Hurme (1999-00) on the team’s single-season list.

On the Plus Side: Among the 17 Griffins skaters who have appeared in 20 or more games this season, 16 find themselves with a positive plus/minus rating including seven who are in double digits. Rookie Robbie Russo paces the league at +47 – nine better than Andrew Campbell of Toronto in second. Russo has been on the ice 26 times when the opponent scores and that includes three power play goals and two empty netters. Russo is climbing the AHL’s all-time list for single season plus/minus rating and if the season ended today, his +47 would tie for the best mark in the AHL over the last 23 seasons.

Against the Best: The Griffins own a 27-16-0-1 (0.625) record against teams with a winning record this season, including an 18-10-0-1 (0.638) mark against teams with a winning percentage greater than 0.600 as of March 22. Grand Rapids will face opponents with a combined winning percentage of 0.551 over its final 12 contests.

Magic Numbers: The Griffins are 37-3-1-0 when scoring three or more goals and 30-4-0-0 when allowing two or fewer…Grand Rapids is 23-4-0-0 when leading after one period and 27-2-0-0 when leading after two...The Griffins’ 39 first goals are tied for tops in the league while showing a 31-7-1-0 mark when striking first.

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 12 points (1-11—12) on the season, in the 31 games the 19th year pro is in the lineup the Griffins post a staggering 25-5-1-0 (0.823) record.

Free Hockey: In their 11 games that have gone to either overtime or a shootout, the Griffins post a 0.818 winning percentage – second-highest in the league (8-1 in OT, 1-1 in SO).

Goal Scoring: One of four teams to rank inside the top 10 in both goals for and goals against per game, the Griffins are the only ones to place in the top four in each category (goals for, 3.25, fourth; goals against, 2.39, third). Grand Rapids is one of only four teams to eclipse 200 or more goals so far this season.

Walleye World: The Toledo Walleye clinched a spot in the 2016 Kelly Cup Playoffs this past weekend and will be heading to the postseason for the fourth time in team history. Toledo came just short of reaching the Kelly Cup Finals a season ago, losing in three overtimes in the deciding seventh game of the Eastern Conference Finals against South Carolina. The offense is paced by former Griffins Shane Berschbach (23-38—61) and A.J. Jenks (22-23—45). Rookie netminder Jake Paterson, Detroit’s second pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft and currently with the Griffins, shows a 14-9-1-1 record with a 2.21 GAA and 0.925 save percentage as an understudy to former Michigan State Spartan Jeff Lerg (26-8-1-2, 2.06 GAA, 0.930%).

Scouting Report

Tuesday, March 22 at San Antonio Rampage (25-33-8-0) – AT&T Center – 8 p.m.
Radio: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 7:35 p.m. Web Casts: Video web cast at AHLLive.com. All-Time Series: 18-13-0-2-1 Road, 36-25-1-5-2 Overall. Season Series: 0-1-0-0 Road, 0-3-0-0 Overall. Fourth of four meetings overall, second of two at the AT&T Center. NHL Affiliation: Colorado Avalanche. Head Coach: Dean Chynoweth (1st season). Notes: The Rampage rank seventh in the Pacific Division, 13th in the Western Conference and 27th overall with a 25-33-8-0 record (0.439)…The Rampage snapped their eight-game losing skid and the Griffins’ 13-game winning streak in Sunday’s 2-0 victory…San Antonio has dropped eight of its last 10 contests…San Antonio has won just nine home games in 31 tries at the AT&T Center including a 13-game winless streak from Nov. 20-Jan. 19…Grand Rapids has just one win at the AT&T Center since the 2012-13 season (1-4-1-1)…The Rampage tie for 12th in the power play (17.4%) and are 28th in the penalty kill (79.4%)...San Antonio is 29th in shots against per game (33.79) and show a 15-27-3-0 record when getting outshot by opponents.


Saturday, March 26 vs. Lake Erie Monsters (34-21-5-5) – 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. All-Time Series: 22-10-1-1 Home, 38-22-3-7 Overall. Season Series: 4-0-0-0 Home, 7-2-0-1 Overall. 11th of 12 meetings overall, fifth of six at Van Andel Arena. NHL Affiliation: Columbus Blue Jackets. Head Coach: Jared Bednar (1st season). Notes: The Lake Erie Monsters are fourth in the Central Division, sixth in the Western Conference and 11th in the AHL with a 34-21-5-5 record (0.600)…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…Lake Erie is 5-4-0-1 in its last 10, including a 4-1 loss against league-leading Toronto on Sunday…The Monsters are 13-14-4-1 on the road…The Monsters are responsible for snapping the Griffins’ franchise record 15-game winning streak on Dec. 27…In the Dec. 27 game, which ended in a 3-2 Lake Erie victory, the two teams combined for an AHL season-high 158 PIM (GR 84, LE 74)…The Monsters are tied for fourth in goals against per game (2.52) but are tied for 26th in goals for (2.60)…Lake Erie is tied for third in the penalty kill at 86.7%…The Griffins have won seven of the last eight against the Monsters this season after dropping the first two… The last three games between the clubs – which all resulted in a Griffins victory – have been decided in either a shootout or overtime…