RALLY KILLERS

MILWAUKEE – A furious second-period rally by the Grand Rapids Griffins fell just short against the Milwaukee Admirals in the Bradley Center on Sunday evening. The Griffins (8-3-2-1) fell behind 4-1 before scoring three goals in 57 seconds in the second period during a 5-4 loss to the Admirals (7-5-0-1).

Darren Haydar picked up his 300th professional assist while Jimmy Howard stopped 20 shots between the pipes for the Griffins. Mark Dekanich saw 22 shots in net for the Admirals and stopped 18 in just more than 50 minutes of action.

The Admirals jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead on a goal by Triston Grant. Mark Matheson flicked a shot from the left point that Grant tipped in to give Milwaukee the first goal 32 seconds into the game. Antti Pihlstrom made it 2-0 in favor of the Admirals with a power play goal at the 16:25 mark of the first period. On an odd-man rush, Andreas Thuresson slid a pass to Pihlstrom on the left side and his wrist shot snuck under Howard’s right arm. Just 2:34 after that goal, Cody Franson ripped a one-timer off a feed from Mike Santorelli to send the Admirals into the first intermission with a 3-0 lead.

The Griffins got on the board when Landon Wilson notched a power play goal 4:57 into the second period. Haydar launched a shot from the left point that caromed off the end-boards and right to Wilson. Wilson tucked the puck just inside the left post for his seventh goal of the season, bringing the Griffins to within two at 3-1.

Franson’s second goal of the night re-established the three-goal lead for Milwaukee just 1:31 after Wilson’s goal. Immediately following a penalty against the Griffins, the Admirals won a faceoff in the Griffins’ zone and Franson’s shot from the point beat Howard for a 4-1 Admirals lead.

The flurry of second period goals continued with three Grand Rapids goals in a span of 57 seconds. Garrett Stafford scored the first goal with his left-point shot at the 9:14 mark. Twenty-three seconds later, Ryan Oulahen put away a rebound with a diving backhander to make the score 4-3. Mattias Ritola tied the game 4-4 when he skated in from the left wing and played a backhand shot off the right goalpost with 9:49 remaining in the second.

Hugh Jessiman gave the Admirals a 5-4 lead by scoring the eventual game-winner with 6:29 left in the second. He converted on a backhand shot while on his knees with his back to the net for his second goal of the season.

Three Stars: 1. MIL Franson (2 goals, assist); 2. GR Stafford (Goal, assist); 3. MIL Grant (Goal)