DES MOINES, Iowa -- In the Grand Rapids Griffins’ regular-season finale, Nate Danielson scored the shootout-winner and Jack Campbell made 31 saves alongside three in the shootout to secure the 2-1 win over the Iowa Wild on Saturday at Wells Fargo Arena.

With the victory, the Griffins clinched the third seed and will face the second-seeded Texas Stars in the best-of-five Central Division Semifinals. Game 1 against the Stars will be on Tuesday, April 29 at Van Andel Arena. For the full schedule and more details about the series, click here. 

The Griffins finished the regular season with eight shootout wins, good for the most in the AHL. Sheldon Dries scored the Griffins’ regulation tally, his team-high 25th of the season. Dominik Shine earned an assist, moving him into a tie for ninth place on the franchise’s all-time assist list with Tomas Tatar (109). Amadeus Lombardi also secured a helper, extending his point streak to three (1-2—3). 

At 10:29 of the first period, a Griffins turnover set up Luke Mistelbacher with an open look in the slot and he buried the chance to give Iowa an early lead. Grand Rapids fell behind 12-2 in shots but closed the margin to 13-8 as the first frame expired. 

Grand Rapids killed off two more penalties to open the second period. In the late minutes of the frame, the Griffins' offense seemed to spark, as they registered nine straight shots, but failed to sneak one into the back of the net and the one-goal deficit carried over into the third. 

At 7:45 of the final frame, Shine sent a cross-ice pass to the left circle where Dries found an opening and snapped the puck past Samuel Hlavaj to tie the game. The Griffins earned a power-play opportunity with 8:08 to play, but a penalty during the man-advantage granted Iowa with 1:36 of a power play following 24 seconds of 4-on-4. However, Grand Rapids’ penalty kill held strong to sustain the 1-1 tie. Both sides failed to score in the final minutes and the Griffins secured the third seed with a point at the end of regulation.

The overtime period remained stagnant on both ends until Graeme Clarke skated out in front of the Griffins’ defense alone at 2:37. Clarke made a move toward the goalmouth, but Campbell laid out to make the diving save. Ryan O’Rourke streaked in to fire the rebound toward the empty net, but Campbell stuck his leg into the air, knocking down the puck before it could cross the line and the game continued. Despite a few open looks for Grand Rapids as time ticked down, the outing extended into a shootout. 

Iowa elected to shoot first, but Campbell stopped Clarke once again in the opening round. Danielson started it off for Grand Rapids and scored past the outstretched leg of Hlavaj. Newcomer Axel Sandin-Pellikka came up empty-handed in his second-round attempt, but Campbell turned away Liam Ohgren and Travis Boyd to secure the 2-1 shootout win. 

Notes

• The Griffins finished 4-2-1-1 in their regular-season series against the Wild.
• The last five meetings between Grand Rapids and Iowa have been decided by one goal. 

Box Score

Grand Rapids 0 0 1 0 - 2
Iowa 1 0 0 0 - 1

1st Period-1, Iowa, Mistelbacher 1   10:29. Penalties-Bankier Ia (interference), 5:51; Dries Gr (slashing), 18:54.

2nd Period- No Scoring.Penalties-Tuomisto Gr (slashing), 4:07; Didier Gr (tripping), 6:40; Clarke Ia (interference), 7:35.

3rd Period-2, Grand Rapids, Dries 25 (Shine, Lombardi), 7:45. Penalties-Haight Ia (holding), 11:52; Sandin-Pellikka Gr (holding), 13:28.

OT Period- No Scoring.Penalties-No Penalties

Shootout - Grand Rapids 1 (Danielson G, Sandin-Pellikka NG), Iowa 0 (Clarke NG, Öhgren NG, Boyd NG).
Shots on Goal-Grand Rapids 8-10-10-2-1-31. Iowa 13-7-5-7-0-32.
Power Play Opportunities-Grand Rapids 0 / 3; Iowa 0 / 4.
Goalies-Grand Rapids, Campbell 5-7-1 (32 shots-31 saves). Iowa, Hlavaj 14-14-3 (30 shots-29 saves).
A-9,312

Three Stars

1. GR Campbell (SOW, 31 saves); 2. IA Hlavaj (SOL, 29 saves); 3. GR Dries (goal)

Record/Next Game

Grand Rapids: 37-29-4-2 (80 pts.) / Central Division Semifinals Game 1: Tue., April 29 vs. Texas Stars

Iowa: 27-37-6-2 (62 pts.) 

Photo by Iowa Wild