New Year's Resolutions

This Week’s Games
GRIFFINS at San Antonio Rampage // Fri., Jan. 3 // 8 p.m. EST // AT&T Center
GRIFFINS at San Antonio Rampage // Sun., Jan. 5 // 4 p.m. EST // AT&T Center
Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 7:35 p.m. on Friday, ESPN 96.1 FM at 3:35 p.m. on Sunday
Watch: AHLTV
Season Series: 0-0-0-0 Road, 1-0-0-0 Overall. Second and third of eight meetings overall, first and second of four at the AT&T Center
All-Time Series: 24-16-0-2-1 Road, 51-28-1-5-2 Overall
NHL Affiliation: St. Louis Blues
Noteworthy: Grand Rapids has won 15 of the last 17 matchups and outscored the Rampage 66-34.

GRIFFINS at Texas Stars // Sat., Jan. 4 // 8 p.m. EST // H-E-B Center at Cedar Park
Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 7:35 p.m.
Watch: AHLTV
Season Series: 0-1-0-1 Road, 1-1-0-1 Overall. Fourth of eight meetings overall, third of four at the H-E-B Center at Cedar Park
All-Time Series: 14-10-2-1 Road, 31-16-2-4 Overall
NHL Affiliation: Dallas Stars
Noteworthy: Grand Rapids has points in seven of the last nine meetings (6-2-0-1).

Last Week’s Results
Fri., Dec. 27 // Milwaukee Admirals 3 at GRIFFINS 0 // 12-16-2-2 (28 pts., 8th Central Division)
Sat., Dec. 28 // GRIFFINS 3 at Milwaukee Admirals 2 // 13-16-2-2 (30 pts., T6th Central)
Tue., Dec. 31 // Chicago Wolves 2 at GRIFFINS 0 // 13-17-2-2 (30 pts., T7th Central)

Status Update: The Griffins enter 2020 with a 13-17-2-2 record (30 points) and tie for seventh in the Central Division. Grand Rapids, owning a 4-2-1-0 mark in its last seven outings on foreign ice, opens the new year with a four-game road trip that begins Friday in San Antonio and ends next Wednesday in Milwaukee. The Griffins will then enjoy an eight-game homestand from Jan. 10-25, which is the team’s longest since an eight-game stretch from Oct. 14-Nov. 4, 2006.

Last Week’s Notes:
Friday vs. Milwaukee – Grand Rapids played its first home game since Dec. 6...Pat Nagle made his first start in a Griffins uniform at Van Andel Arena since Jan. 23, 2015 and collected 28 saves…The Griffins were on the short end of a combined shutout for only the third time in their history with the other occurrences coming April 13, 2019 at Milwaukee (Troy Grosenick four saves/Tom McCollum 20 saves) and March 30, 1997 at the IHL’s Detroit Vipers (Jeff Reese one save/Rich Parent 19 saves)...Grand Rapids tallied a season-high 37 PIM...The Griffins outshot Milwaukee 34-31, finished 0-for-3 on the power play and 3-for-4 on the penalty kill...Milwaukee’s power play goal at 18:01 of the second period snapped Grand Rapids’ streak of consecutive penalties killed at 32. Recap | Highlights

Saturday at Milwaukee – The Griffins collected their 100th regular season win against Milwaukee, their most against any foe...Turner Elson scored his fourth goal of the campaign with 1:58 remaining in regulation to snap Milwaukee’s nine-game home winning streak...Pat Nagle accumulated 23 saves and earned his first win in a Griffins uniform since Jan. 23, 2015 vs. Utica...Defenseman Blake Hillman made his Griffins debut...Chris Terry skated in his 600th AHL game and 100th as a Griffin...Grand Rapids outshot Milwaukee 34-25, finished 0-for-4 on the power play and 1-for-2 on the penalty kill. Recap | Highlights

Tuesday vs. Chicago – Grand Rapids had its four-game winning streak in New Year’s Eve games snapped…The Griffins have been shut out in consecutive home games for just the third time in franchise history and own a goal drought of 160:36 at Van Andel Arena, having been blanked since Eric Tangradi scored at the 4:24 mark of the second period of their 2-1 SOL to Rockford on Dec. 6…Grand Rapids previously suffered consecutive home shutouts Jan. 23-27, 2016 and Nov. 10-19, 2010…Pat Nagle extended his career-best by making his fourth consecutive start for the Griffins and finished with 22 saves…The Griffins’ lineup was missing eight regulars due to injuries, loans to the World Junior Championship and recalls to Detroit…The crowd of 10,834 marked Grand Rapids’ seventh straight sellout on New Year’s Eve. Recap | Highlights

Follow the Leaders:

Red Wings Report: There have been 12 players who have played for both Detroit and Grand Rapids this season – Madison Bowey, Dennis Cholowski, Jonathan Ericsson, Jimmy Howard (conditioning), Joe Hicketts, Taro Hirose, Brian Lashoff, Dylan McIlrath, Calvin Pickard, Givani Smith, Evgeny Svechnikov and Filip Zadina.

Rotating Roster: Including four goalies, the Griffins have used 37 players already before the halfway mark this season. Here is how the current usage stacks up to the final player counts in recent seasons: 2018-19 – 41 players, 2017-18 – 32, 2016-17 – 39, 2015-16 – 37 and 2014-15 – 39. Since the AHL’s season began on Oct. 4, the Red Wings have recalled or assigned a player from or to Grand Rapids a total of 62 times.

December Leaders: Taro Hirose paced the club in scoring (4-5—9 in 11 GP) while tying Givani Smith (1-5—6 in 10 GP) for the team lead in assists. Eric Tangradi netted a team-high five goals in seven games. Goalie Pat Nagle tallied a 2.59 goals against average and a 0.906 save percentage in five games while posting a 1-3-1 record.

Ford Named Playing Captain: The AHL announced on Dec. 18 that Matthew Ford will serve as one of the two playing captains for the 2020 AHL All-Star Classic, to be held January 26-27 in Ontario, Calif. Hershey Bears forward Matt Moulson was also selected. A SoCal native, Ford is in his third season as the Griffins’ captain, fourth in Grand Rapids and 12th in the AHL. He becomes the fourth Griffin to be chosen as a playing captain for an AHL All-Star Classic, joining Jeff Hoggan (2016, West), Kip Miller (2007, PlanetUSA) and Travis Richards (2004, PlanetUSA).

Seider, Veleno at WJC: Moritz Seider and Joe Veleno are representing their respective countries at the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship. Through Jan. 1, Seider has five assists in five games as captain of Germany and Veleno shows four points (1-3—4) in three games for Canada. This marks the second consecutive year a player has left the Griffins mid-season to compete in the World Junior Championship after Filip Zadina represented the Czech Republic at the 2019 event. Tomas Tatar also suited up for Slovakia during his rookie campaign with Grand Rapids in 2009-10.

Three’s Company: The Griffins will play three games in three nights this weekend in Texas for the first and only time of the season. Having just one stretch of three consecutive games comes as a stark contrast to previous seasons as Grand Rapids did so three times last year, four times in 2017-18, twice in 2016-17, four times in 2015-16, five times in 2014-15, six times in 2013-14, nine times in 2012-13, six times in 2011-12 and 10 times in 2010-11.

Time to Tango: Signed to a one-year contract by Grand Rapids 90 minutes prior to the opening faceoff against Rockford on Dec. 6, Eric Tangradi has seven points (5-2—7) in his first seven outings during his return to a Griffins uniform. His seven points finished second on the team in December and his current three-game goal streak ties for the longest by a Griffin in 2019-20. A 2017 Calder Cup champion with Grand Rapids, Tangradi ranks among the team’s all-time leaders with 171 points (9th), 81 goals (5th), 23 PPG (T8th), 14 GWG (4th), three OT goals (T3rd) and nine unassisted goals (3rd) in 207 games since 2015-16. Tangradi posted nine points (5-4—9) in 22 games for Astana Barys of the KHL this season and spent the 2018-19 campaign in the New Jersey organization.

Tar-Oh!: Assigned by Detroit on Dec. 3, rookie Taro Hirose has found the scoresheet in six of his first 11 games and his nine points (4-5—9) in December was a team high.

Lights Out: Despite Milwaukee scoring on the man-advantage in back-to-back games last weekend, Grand Rapids’ penalty killers have gone 48 for their last 51 (94.1%) since the third period at Chicago on Nov. 27. In fact, from the third period on Dec. 4 to the second period on Dec. 27, the Griffins fended off 32 consecutive penalties. On Nov. 28, the Griffins sat 30th in the league in penalty killing and have since climbed into a tie for 14th.

Back Up, Terr: Despite being held off the scoresheet in three consecutive games, Chris Terry ties for 10th in the AHL in points (30) while pacing the Griffins in goals (13), assists (17), multi-point games (10) and power play goals (8). In his 11th-year pro, Terry guided the Griffins with 61 points last season and the most recent player to lead GR in scoring in back-to-back seasons was Andy Miele in 2014-15 and 2015-16. Terry played in his 600th AHL game and 100th as a Griffin on Dec. 28 at Milwaukee.

Net Nagle: Ninth-year pro Pat Nagle has started the last four games (1-2-1), the longest stretch of his AHL career. His 2.32 goals against average ranks ninth among AHL goalies who have played at least 380 minutes. Nagle has appeared in 10 games for Grand Rapids since 2014-15, with seven of those coming this season, and his 23-save win on Dec. 28 at Milwaukee was his first for the Griffins since Jan. 23, 2015 vs. Utica. Nagle was assigned to the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye yesterday.

Teenage Dream: From 2010-19, the franchise’s second full decade, Grand Rapids captured its first two Calder Cups (2017, 2013), won two division championships (2012-13, 2014-15), advanced to the Calder Cup Playoffs seven times, and collected a 403-282-37-45 regular season record (0.579). Of the 182 Griffins to play in the NHL, 74 came during this decade.

A Few 2019 Highlights: Grand Rapids qualified for the Calder Cup Playoffs for a franchise-record seventh consecutive season...The Griffins saw eight players either return to or debut in the NHL including Michael Rasmussen (returned Feb. 7 DET vs. VGK), Filip Zadina (debuted Feb. 24 DET vs. SJ), Matt Puempel (returned March 23 DET at VGK), Dylan McIlrath (returned March 25 DET at SJ), Jake Chelios (debuted March 29 DET vs. NJD), Givani Smith (debuted Oct. 25 DET vs. BUF), Calvin Pickard (returned Nov. 29 DET at PHI) and Madison Bowey (returned Dec. 14 DET at MTL).

Milestones Within Reach:
Dominic Turgeon – needs four games to reach 250 in the AHL/as a Griffin
Chris Terry – needs nine points to reach 100 as a Griffin
Matthew Ford – needs eight games to reach 700 in the AHL

Griffins in General: Grand Rapids is in the franchise’s 24th overall season of play, 19th as a member of the American Hockey League and 18th as the primary affiliate of the 11-time Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings…Grand Rapids is 978-673-27-60-114 (0.583) in the regular season since 1996-97 to go along with 17 playoff appearances, seven division titles and two Calder Cups (2017, 2013)…The Griffins have earned 40 or more wins and accumulated 90 or more points in six of the last seven seasons…Grand Rapids has qualified for the Calder Cup Playoffs in a franchise-record seven consecutive seasons and advanced to at least the second round on five occasions…The Griffins’ 8-5 season-opening win at Chicago on Oct. 5 marked the club’s 750th win in the AHL…Grand Rapids’ 318 regular season wins since the 2012-13 campaign tie Providence for third, behind Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s 321 and Toronto’s 336 while the Griffins’ 691 points in that span are fourth, trailing Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (696), Providence (703) and Toronto (728)…Since the affiliation began in 2002-03, 92 Griffins have gone on to play for the Red Wings.

San Antonio Notes: Current record 12-13-5-4, 33 points, 6th Central Division…Since being swept in all four meetings during the 2015-16 campaign, Grand Rapids has won 15 of the last 17 matchups and outscored the Rampage 66-34…The Griffins have claimed the last five matchups with a +9 goal differential (17-8)…Grand Rapids has won six of the last eight at the AT&T Center…In the first meeting of the season on Nov. 20 in West Michigan, Turner Elson scored 23 seconds into the game to mark the fastest tally to open any period by a Griffin this season, Calvin Pickard earned his 100th AHL win and Moritz Seider recorded his first AHL goal…Pickard appeared in 21 games with the Rampage during the 2015-16 season and posted a 9-8-4 record to go along with a 2.75 GAA, 0.917 save percentage and one shutout…Elson spent the 2016-17 with San Antonio and scored three points (1-2—3) while being limited by injury to 13 games…Rampage forward Zach Nastasiuk was a second-round draft selection, 48th overall, by Detroit in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft and skated in 65 games with the Griffins from 2013-18, tallying 14 points (4-10—14) and four PIM.

Texas Notes: Current record 13-17-2-2, 30 points, T7th Central Division…Grand Rapids has points in seven of the last nine meetings overall (6-2-0-1)…In the last matchup on Oct. 26 at Van Andel Arena, the Griffins came back to win, 6-4, after being down three goals for the first time since a 4-3 SOW vs. Iowa on Dec. 13, 2017…The Stars took the first two meetings of the season in Texas, winning 4-3 in a shootout on Oct. 18 and 3-0 on Oct. 19…Joe Hicketts (0-4—4) leads the team in the season series.

Win Some, Lose Some: Compare the statistics between the Griffins’ 13 wins and 21 (including OT and SO) losses:

Back-to-Back: This weekend will mark the 12th of 25 times total this season the Griffins will play on consecutive nights.

Photo by Sam Iannamico/Griffins