On the Road Again
This Week’s Games
GRIFFINS at Rockford IceHogs // Wed., Jan. 18 // 8 p.m. EST // BMO Center
Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 7:45 p.m. EST
Watch: AHLTV
Season Series: 0-3-0-0 Overall, 0-2-0-0 Road. Fourth of eight meetings overall, third of four at the BMO Center
All-Time Series: 58-41-9-11 Overall, 22-28-4-6 Road
NHL Affiliation: Chicago Blackhawks
Noteworthy: The Griffins have just scored one goal in each of the previous three meetings against the IceHogs this season. Grand Rapids has been outscored 13-3 by Rockford this campaign.
GRIFFINS vs. Springfield Thunderbirds // Sat., Jan. 21 // 7 p.m. // Van Andel Arena
Listen: WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 7 p.m.
Season Series: 1-0-0-0 Overall, 0-0-0-0 Home. Second of two meetings overall, first of one at Van Andel Arena
All-Time Series: 1-0-0-0 Overall, 0-0-0-0 Home
NHL Affiliation: St. Louis Blues
Noteworthy: This will be the first-ever meeting in West Michigan against the Griffins and Thunderbirds. Grand Rapids won 2-1 in overtime in the first-ever game against Springfield back on Dec. 9, 2022.
Promotion: Grateful Dead Tribute Night presented by Acrisure, 18th Annual Great Skate Winterfest Game
Last Week’s Results
Wed., Jan. 11 // GRIFFINS 2 vs. Iowa 5 (13-18-1-1 (28 pts., 0.424, T6th Central)
Fri., Jan. 13 // GRIFFINS 0 vs. Iowa 4 // 13-19-1-1 (28 pts., 0.412, T6th Central)
Sat., Jan. 14 // GRIFFINS 1 vs. Chicago 0 // 14-19-1-1 (30 pts., 0.429, 6th Central)
Mon., Jan. 16 // GRIFFINS 1 at Iowa 2 (SO) // 14-19-1-2 (31 pts., 0.431, 6th Central)
Last Week’s Notes
Wednesday vs. Iowa (2-5 L) - The Wild put an end to the Griffins’ three-game point streak with a 5-2 win at Van Andel Arena. The Griffins led the Wild in the shot column with a 34-24 advantage despite the loss. Chase Pearson knotted the game at two a piece with his first goal of the 2022-23 campaign (1-8–9). In his first game since Dec. 31, 2022, Kyle Criscuolo lit the lamp for the fifth time this season with a crafty goal in the second stanza. Criscuolo has been scratched the last three games due to the AHL’s development rule. Netminder Alex Nedeljkovic bagged his fourth assist of his AHL career and first since Jan. 19, 2020 against the Toronto Marlies. Recap | Highlights
Friday vs. Iowa (0-4 L) - The Wild handed the Griffins their third shutout loss of the season in a 4-0 contest at Van Andel Arena. Chase Pearson’s three-game point streak (1-2–3) was snapped, recording two penalty minutes and two shots in the contest. Jesper Wallstedt made 24 saves in his first shutout in the AHL. In the two-game series this week between Iowa and Grand Rapids, Sammy Walker had four points (2-2–4) and now has eight points in five outings (4-4–8) against the Griffins in 2022-23. Defenseman Wyatt Newpower skated in his 100th professional game. Recap | Highlights
Saturday vs. Chicago (1-0 W) - The Griffins concluded their seven-game homestand with a 1-0 shutout win over the Wolves at Van Andel Arena, courtesy of Alex Nedeljkovic's 27 saves. In six games with Grand Rapids, Nedeljkovic has a 0.920 save percentage, 2.30 goals against average and a 3-2-1 ledger. Cross Hanas tallied the game-winner in the first stanza, his first goal since returning from injury on Jan. 4. In their seven-consecutive home games, the Griffins finished with a 3-3-0-1 record. Recap | Highlights
Monday at Iowa (1-2 SOL) - Victor Brattstrom and Zane McIntyre combined for 65 saves in the Wild’s 2-1 shootout win over the Griffins on Martin Luther King Jr. Day at Wells Fargo Arena. Brattstrom drew the start between the pipes for the first time since Dec. 30, making 28 saves on 29 shots. The Swede’s 0.966 save percentage is a season best outside of his eight saves on eight shots performance in just 9:22 of ice time on Oct. 23. Austin Czarnik scored the lone goal for Grand Rapids, claiming second place in goals scored by a Griffin this season with 10. The Griffins moved to 8-0-1-2 (0.864) in games decided by one goal this season. Recap | Highlights
Alexander The Great: Netminder Alex Nedeljkovic has been a welcomed addition to the Griffins roster, as the goaltender was assigned on a conditioning loan by Detroit on Jan. 4. After clearing waivers on Jan. 16, the netminder was assigned to Grand Rapids on a regular loan. Through six outings, Nedeljkovic has a 3-2-1 record along with a 2.30 goals against average and a 0.920 save percentage. Last Saturday, Nedeljkovic posted a 27-save shutout against the Chicago Wolves, his first in the AHL since Feb. 7, 2020 against Hartford (17 saves). On Jan. 11, Nedeljkovic recorded his fourth assist and fifth point of his AHL career, which was his first AHL point since Jan. 19, 2020. The only other season in Grand Rapids history during which two NHL goalies (Nedeljkovic and Magnus Hellberg) played for the Griffins on conditioning stints was 2005-06, when both Chris Osgood (3 GP, 2-1, 3.34 GAA, 0.882%) and Manny Legace (1 GP, 1-0, 2.00 GAA, 0.909%) donned the Griffins’ wings instead of Detroit’s.
Few and Far Between: The Griffins have struggled to find the back of the net in recent games, as the team has scored a combined two goals in their previous three outings. Grand Rapids has not scored more than two goals since Jan. 6 when it scored four in a 4-2 victory over Texas. Since then, the Griffins have tallied a combined six goals in five contests (1.20 goals per game). Grand Rapids is tied for 29th out of 32 teams with 96 goals scored this campaign (2.67 goals per game).
Finding His Stride: Rookie Cross Hanas is off to a positive start to his professional career with 15 points (8-7—15) in 24 games. The 21-year-old posted 12 points (7-5—12) during his first 15 appearances, which included a three-point outing on Nov. 11 against the Toronto Marlies. Hanas suffered an upper-body injury in late November that kept him sidelined until Jan. 4, missing 12 games. After failing to find the scoresheet in his first three games back, Hanas now has three points (1-2—3) in his last four contests, including the game-winner in a 1-0 decision against Chicago on Jan. 14.
On the Road Again: Last week, the Griffins wrapped up their season-high seven-game homestand that spanned from Dec. 31-Jan. 14. Grand Rapids finished with a 3-3-0-1 mark and are now 8-9-1-1 in West Michigan this season. The Griffins will now play seven out of their next eight games on the road, which began with a 1-2 shootout defeat at the Iowa Wild on Jan. 16. Grand Rapids holds a 6-10-0-1 ledger on foreign ice.
Bobbing for Apples: Taro Hirose has been known for his passing abilities throughout four seasons with the Griffins. In fact, the former Michigan State Spartan has had at least 22 assists in each full AHL campaign in his career. He has already surpassed 22 assists this season, as Hirose has totaled a team-leading 23 helpers in 36 games, which is tied for 12th on the circuit. In addition, his 13 power-play assists are tied for seventh in the AHL. Hirose has points in 22 of the 36 contests this season (9-23—32).
Just Keep it Close: The Griffins have had an up-and-down start to the season, but they have excelled at winning close games. In fact, Grand Rapids is 8-0-1-2 (0.864) in games decided by one goal and 4-0-1-0 (0.900) in overtime contests. In comparison, the Griffins are just 6-19-0-0 (0.240) in games decided by two or more tallies. In the 2021-22 season, the Griffins finished with a 13-7-6-2 (0.607) mark in games decided by one goal.
Power Struggle: After beginning the season with a 29.3% power-play conversion rate in the first nine games of the year, the Griffins have struggled as of late. Grand Rapids is 5-for-51 (9.8%) on the man-advantage in its last 15 outings and have just eight power-play goals in its last 20 contests (8-for-79, 10.1%). Grand Rapids has been held off the scoresheet on the power play in five straight games (0-for-15). The Griffins are tied for 25th in the AHL on the power play with a conversion rate of 17.5%.
AHL Leaderboard Tracker:
Pontus Andreasson—Four power-play goals are tied for eighth among rookies
Austin Czarnik—Four game-winning goals are tied for fourth
Taro Hirose—23 assists are tied for 12th, 13 power-play assists are tied for seventh
Joel L’Esperance—Eight power-play goals are tied for third
Milestones:
Kyle Criscuolo skated in his 350th pro game on Jan. 16 at Iowa while Austin Czarnik suited up for his 250th AHL game.
Seth Barton—One game from 50 as a pro
Alex Chiasson—One point from 50 in the AHL
Austin Czarnik—Two points from 250 in the AHL
Joel L’Esperance—Two goals from 100 as a pro
Danny O’Regan—One game from 400 as a pro
Chase Pearson—Three assists from 50 as a pro, in the AHL and as a Griffin
Dominik Shine—One assist from 50 as a pro, as a Griffins and in the AHL
Tyler Spezia—Two goals from 50 as a pro
Jakub Vrana—Two goals from 150 as a pro, two assists from 150 as a pro, one game from 500 as a pro
Photo by Sarah Caputi/IceHogs