This Week’s Games

GRIFFINS at Cleveland Monsters // Tue., Feb. 13 // 7 p.m. // Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse
GRIFFINS vs. Cleveland Monsters // Fri., Feb. 16 // 7 p.m. // Van Andel Arena

Listen: 96.1 The Game at 6:45 p.m. on Tuesday and WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM at 7 p.m. on Friday

Watch: AHLTV on Tuesday, WXSP-TV and AHLTV on Friday

Season Series: 1-0-1-1 overall, 1-0-1-0 home, 0-0-0-1 road. Fourth and fifth of eight meetings overall, second of four at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, third of four at Van Andel Arena.

All-Time Series: 72-38-7-12 Overall, 41-18-3-3 Home, 31-20-4-9 Road

NHL Affiliation: Columbus Blue Jackets

Noteworthy: The Griffins have just five games remaining against teams outside of the Central Division, all of which are coming against Cleveland. After this week, Grand Rapids will play 24 of its remaining 27 games against division rivals.

GRIFFINS at Rockford IceHogs // Sat., Feb. 17 // 8 p.m. EST // BMO Center

Listen: 96.1 The Game at 7:45 p.m. EST

Watch: AHLTV

Season Series: 3-2-1-0 overall, 2-1-0-0 road. Seventh of 12 meetings overall, third of six at the BMO Center.

All-Time Series: 64-45-10-11 Overall, 25-30-4-6 Road

NHL Affiliation: Chicago Blackhawks

Noteworthy: Rockford will be the Griffins’ most frequent opponent down the stretch, as there are still six games to be played against the two teams.

Keep the Good Times Rolling: The Griffins saw their season-high seven-game win streak (Jan. 19-Feb. 9) come to an end last weekend, which was the longest win streak since the team rattled of a 13-game run from Feb. 20-March 19, 2016. However, Grand Rapids extended its point streak to nine games (7-0-1-1, Jan. 13-Feb. 10). Grand Rapids is also on a season-best seven-game road winning streak (Dec. 27-Feb. 2), which is tied for the longest road winning streak in franchise history (Jan. 29-Feb. 28, 2015 and Oct. 16-Dec. 3, 2004). The Griffins have secured at least a point in 16 of their last 19 contests (13-3-2-1) and are tied with Texas for second place in the Central Division. The Griffins are 12-2-1-1 since Christmas and have a pair of winning streaks of five or more games in the same season for the first time since 2015-16. Grand Rapids has points in 12 of its last 16 games (10-4-1-1) inside Van Andel Arena and has points in eight of its past nine road appearances (7-1-1-0). The Griffins have been solid at home with a 12-6-2-1 mark, outscoring their opponents 65-50. Grand Rapids has started to find a rhythm on the road, earning seven straight victories to even its record away from home (9-9-2-1).

Sea Bass Fishing: Rookie netminder Sebastian Cossa won a team-high four straight games from Jan. 19-Feb. 2 and is currently on a five-game point streak (4-0-1) from Jan. 19-Feb. 10. The 6-foot-7 goaltender is 7-2-2 in his last 11 outings from Dec. 15-Feb. 10, showing a .914 save percentage and a 2.38 goals against average. Since returning from the holiday break on Dec. 27, Cossa has a 6-1-1 ledger with a 1.87 goals against average and a .928 save percentage. The former 15^th overall pick by the Red Wings in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft has allowed more than two goals just twice in his past eight games. Through 21 contests, Cossa is 10-7-4 with a 2.70 goals against average and a .908 save percentage. The 21-year-old ranks seventh among rookie goaltenders in both goals against average and save percentage.

Shoot Your Shot: The past three games for the Griffins have been decided by a shootout. The last time three straight Griffins games were decided by a shootout was during a four-game stretch from March 24-30, 2018. The Griffins came away with two of the three shootout victories from Feb. 2-10 and are now 2-2 this season. Amadeus Lombardi (1-for-2) and Tim Gettinger (1-for-2) pace the team with a 50% conversion rate, while Sebastian Cossa has stopped 75% (9-for-12) of opponents shootout attempts and Michael Hutchinson comes in at 80% (8-for-10). The Griffins have an all-time record of 117-125 during a shootout.

I Can See the Future: Rookie forwards Marco Kasper and Carter Mazur have had promising starts to their professional careers. Kasper, who was named the AHL Player of the Week on Jan. 22, is tied for third on the roster with 22 points (7-15—22) in 42 outings. Since the holiday break, Kasper has 14 points in 16 appearances, including three multi-point games. Kasper was selected with the eighth overall pick by Detroit in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft. Mazur is also tied for third on the team with 22 points (11-11—22) in 36 contests. The Jackson, Mich., native enjoyed a four-game goal streak from Dec. 20-31 and now has 13 points (7-6—13) in his last 17 games from Dec. 20-Feb. 10. Mazur was taken with the 70^th overall pick by Detroit in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft and competed for Team USA at the 2023 World Championship this past summer. Both Kasper (1-1—2) and Mazur (0-2—2) are on a two-game point streak from Feb. 9-10.

Lock it Down: The Griffins’ defense has been much improved since the holiday break, allowing an average of 2.31 goals per game from Dec. 27-Feb. 10. Prior to the holiday break, Grand Rapids allowed 3.31 goals per game from Oct. 13-Dec. 20. The Griffins have allowed a total of 123 goals through 42 games this season, which ranks second in the Central Division and tied for sixth in the AHL. Grand Rapids also is tied for 12^th on the circuit with 2.93 goals against per game, which is second in the division trailing only Milwaukee (2.43). Netminders Sebastian Cossa (2.70) and Michael Hutchinson (2.88) each possess a goals against average below 3.00. Defensemen Albert Johansson (+8), Wyatt Newpower (+6), Antti Tuomisto (+4), Brogan Rafferty (+3), Simon Edvinsson (+3) and William Wallinder (+2) all have a positive plus-minus rating. Last season, none of the Griffins’ blueliners finished with a positive plus-minus rating.

Johnny Bravo: Jonatan Berggren enjoyed a season-high six-game point streak (5-5—10) from Jan. 13-27 and has 12 points (6-6—12) in his last nine games from Jan. 13-Feb. 10. Berggren also has 18 points (7-11—18) in his last 14 outings and 21 points (9-12—21) in his last 17 games from Dec. 15-Feb. 10. The 23-year-old leads the roster in points (14-22—36), assists (22) and goals (14) through 33 games this season. The Enkoping, Sweden, product became the seventh-fastest player to reach 100 points as a Griffin, doing so in just his 106th game on Jan. 26 against Belleville. Berggren has a combined 107 points (39-68—107) in 110 career AHL appearances from 2021-24, collecting an assist during his 100th game as a Griffin on Jan. 10 against Milwaukee. During his rookie season with the Griffins in 2021-22, Berggren broke Grand Rapids’ rookie single-season scoring record with 64 points (21-43—64) in 70 games, five more points than the previous record held by Teemu Pulkkinen (2013-14). The prospect has appeared in 76 games with the Red Wings throughout two seasons and has 33 points (17-16—33), including five points (2-3—5) in nine contests this campaign. Berggren participated in the 2024 AHL All-Star Classic presented by Tech CU.

The Last Czar: Austin Czarnik enjoyed a season-high six-game point streak from Jan. 13-27 (3-5—8) and is now on a two-game goal streak from Feb. 9-10. Since returning to the Griffins from Detroit on Dec. 30, Czarnik has accumulated 15 points (5-10—15) in 14 games. The 31-year-old has made the most of his time in Grand Rapids, showing 22 points (8-14—22) in 23 appearances. Czarnik posted three assists on Dec. 31 against the Cleveland Monsters and logged five assists in three games from Dec. 9-Jan. 5. The Washington Township, Michigan, native signed a two-year deal with the Red Wings on July 7, 2022 and has since gone on to register 59 points (22-37—59) in 66 career games with the Griffins. Czarnik has 284 points (103-181—284) in 293 AHL games from 2014-18 and 2019-24, scoring his 100th AHL goal on Jan. 24 against Rockford. He has also suited up for 18 games with Detroit this season and has one assist, six penalty minutes and a minus-three rating. In total, Czarnik has 51 points (18-33—51) in 189 career NHL outings.

Oh, It’s You Again: The Griffins are tied for second place in the Central Division with a 21-15-4-2 record and 48 points, 11 points clear of a playoff spot. In the final 30 games of the regular season, Grand Rapids will compete against the Central Division 25 times, with its only games outside of the division coming against Cleveland (5). The Griffins have done well against their division rivals, as they are 15-9-2-1 (.611) with a plus-11 scoring margin against the Central Division. Grand Rapids is undefeated this season against Chicago (3-0-0-0) and Iowa (2-0-0-0), while it has collected just one win against Texas (1-4-1-0). Iowa and Rockford will be the Griffins’ most frequent opponents down the stretch, as there are still six meetings against both franchises. Grand Rapids will also see a lot of Chicago (5) as the season progresses.

Under Three is Key: Unsurprisingly, the Griffins have done well in games where they have scored four or more goals, going 16-1-1-0 (.917). Although, when scoring three goals or less the team is just 5-14-3-2 (.313). Grand Rapids has surpassed the four-goal mark in 10 of its last 19 outings. On the flip side, Grand Rapids is just 6-12-4-2 (.375) when allowing at least three goals, compared to a 15-3-0-0 mark (.833) when allowing two goals or less. In their last 19 appearances, the Griffins have allowed three or more goals 10 times.

AHL Leaderboard Tracker
Sebastian Cossa—2.70 GAA places seventh among rookie netminders, .908 save percentage ranks seventh among rookie goaltenders
Simon Edvinsson—Two power-play goals are tied for 13th among defensemen, two game-winners are tied for fifth among defensemen
Carter Mazur—Two game-winners are tied for 10th among rookies, five power-play goals are tied for ninth among rookies
Antti Tuomisto—Three goals are tied for 11th among rookie defensemen, one power-play goal is tied for sixth among rookie defensemen, two game-winners are tied for fifth among defensemen
William Wallinder—Three goals are tied for 11th among rookie defensemen

Milestones
Jonatan Berggren recorded his 200^th point as a pro on Feb. 10 against Manitoba, while Simon Edvinsson registered his 50^th point as a Griffin. On Jan. 26, Berggren bagged his 100th point as a Griffin in just his 106th game, marking the seventh-fastest player to reach 100 points in franchise history.
Zach Aston-Reese—Two games from 100 in the AHL
Josiah Didier—Four penalty minutes from 500 as a pro
Taro Hirose—Three goals from 50 as a Griffin

Photo by Nicolas Carrillo/Griffins