>August was a busy month for Griffins alumni putting the ink on fresh contracts with their NHL teams. Jason Williams (Detroit), Josh Langfeld (Ottawa), Dmitry Afanasenkov (Tampa Bay) and Kevyn Adams (Carolina) all re-upped with one-year deals, while Sean Avery squeezed a two-year commitment out of Los Angeles. (Combined with his tabloid-fodder relationship with supermodel Rachel Hunter , it would seem life is being quite kind to Mr. Avery these days, thank you very much.)>

>Three other alums struck NHL gold, tempered by the expectations of playing in the AHL: Darren Rumble (Tampa Bay), Keith Aldridge (NY Islanders) and Jim Henkel (Carolina).

>Tyler Moss joined the European exodus by signing a tryout contract with Germany ’s Adler Mannheim. Closer to home, Dave Van Drunen and Jeff Nelson swung deals with Muskegon , with Van Drunen’s being a two-way with Grand Rapids.